Foggy mornings were rare on the Silent Island. They reported a calm night and foretold a windless day, which were also not common in the Magors' village. The sun hadn't risen, but it wasn't as dark as at night. Rozi climbed out of her and her husband's bed, changed her clothes quietly and quickly because it was very cold. Winter was almost there, knocking on their door. She had already got water from the stream the day before, so it wouldn't be so cold in the morning.

She heard her husband waking up when she sneaked out of their room, but her daughters were still sleeping. 'Let them dream a little more' she smiled, closing the door behind her. This was the moment she noticed some light leaking out under Kese's door. She knocked quietly, but didn't get an answer at first. She suspected he sometimes had a "visitor" and he used to visit her as well. She didn't know for sure who this person was, but had a hunch that it was Zoli's daughter, Bíbora*. But it was just a pure guess based on their age and the girl's crush on the blonde blacksmith.

At first Rozi thought they had been together again and forgotten to snuff out a candle. She didn't want to bother them, so she silenced her curiosity and didn't knock again. But then she heard the blonde's voice. – Come in.

- Are you up this early? – she stepped into his room. Kese was sitting at his desk, writing in his booklet. He raised his head and blinked a few; his eyes tired.

- Is it morning already?! – he asked back.

- Yes. - Rozi noticed a few candles burnt down next to him; and his bed was made. – Don't tell me you've been up all night.

- Erm... – the blonde glanced at the booklets in front of him. He had managed to fill two since evening, and was finishing the third. He didn't have another empty one, so he would need to buy some more. And his right was aching too.

Rozi sighed. – You won't heal soon if you don't sleep enough. – she stated, her order obvious.

- Mother, please. – Kese turned to her and put his hands together, like he was begging her. – If you don't let me finish this I won't have any other way to process everything.

His mother put her hands on her hip. – What do you mean by this?!

- I... I can't explain. It's not like I'm not allowed to, but I just don't know how. I just have to do it. Please.

- Fine. – she sighed, not understanding anything he had said. - But you go to bed now and sleep a little before you continue.

He nodded and did as she asked, but he still couldn't sleep a minute, so he sat back and finished the third booklet from the night. He then sneaked out to get a fourth and some extra ink and candles from Zoli, and when he returned, he found someone in his room.

- Which one did I read the other day? – Karcsa murmured while searching on Kese's desk. – Holy crap, he's written more! Oh, hi.

- Good morning to you as well. – the blonde handed him a booklet. – Here.

- Thanks! – he hopped onto his bed and began reading. Meanwhile Kese sat down and started filling the next booklet. After two pages Karcsa sighed. – I'm finished. Could you give me one more, please?

The blonde smiled, but before he gave it to him, he ordered. – Opinion!

- ...Well, it's a little clouded sometimes, like even you didn't understand what was going on.

- That's right. – he chuckled and nodded.

- Can I ask something? Do you still have these... visions and dreams? – he received a nod. – Who else knows about this?

- Only Lehel and Ince, but not this detailed as you now. And I think father and mother suspect something, but I haven't told them.

- Hmm... These persons and places you wrote about. Are they real? Like, could we find and visit them or-

- It's rather they only had been real. As far as I got to know, most of them existed more than a thousand years ago.

- Are you aware of the recurring patterns?

- Yes, but their meaning and significance is still a mystery for me. – Karcsa hummed at this and fell in silence. The blonde thought he was rereading a few things, but he was just staring at the wardrobe in front of him. He was chewing his mouth from the inside, and that meant he was intensely thinking about something. Kese sighed and handed him the booklet. – Here. I wrote this yesterday evening.

- Yummy! – Karcsa quickly opened it but frowned almost immediately. He looked at his friend with an unexplainable expression. – And how the heck am I supposed to read this?

Kese smiled. The text didn't contain any kanji, hiragana or katakana the Elemental speakers used to write. It was written in Magor, in one of the least known and most difficult languages in the Shinobi World. But he hadn't written it the usual way. He knew Karcsa was clever enough to realize this; and that he had other obstacles. He just wasn't used to read this type of writing without help.

- Ah, thanks! – he grinned when the blonde handed him a mirror. He placed it next to the actual page and began reading again. – Much better! But where did you get the idea to use mirror-writing?

Kese smirked and dipped his plume. – It's a secret.

Karcsa had been in deep silence for ten minutes now. Of course, he was waiting for Kese to give him some more to read, but it wasn't the reason of his muteness. He just couldn't believe the things the blonde had written down; that every those thing was true and not fantasy. The amber eyed boy had got to know the persons better (whom his friend mentioned in his booklet earlier), and even more men and women and their stories. 'He would get damn rich if he sold these as complete books', he thought.

He loved these booklets. Those lives were all unique and interesting. But it had thrown him off that these were not made up by Kese. He had just told him he remembered these.

- Are you playing fool with me? – he nearly shouted these when he was finally able to say something. The blonde sighed, put down his plume and turned to him.

- I'm writing the explanation at the moment. Could you wait for it?

- No. I want to hear it right now.

- Alright. – he sighed again. He hadn't wanted to talk about this to anyone. But it seemed the booklets weren't enough, and he couldn't just write down everything.

He collected his thoughts. He didn't want her mother to hear this. His father was working in the workshop, and he knew Karcsa could fluently speak it. So, he put on a serious look and started to speak in Elemental. – First, you have to know that I've found the treasure. In a cave, inside the mountain. It was... nothing I expected. Do you remember the Pieces of Eden I wrote about?

- Yeah... – he paled. – Don't tell me that was... – he didn't finish his sentence, but Kese replied with a nod. Karcsa in turn let a good Magor swearword leave his lips. – What the heck is it doing here?!

- That's a good question. I asked it, but it didn't tell me.

- Wait, you asked it?! Kese, what the hell did you get from Ince to your head?

- Nothing. But back to the point: it fixed and explained my recent problems. Since the... pirate's visit, I had been having stranger visions. They became more vivid and frequent, and I mistook them for my own memories. A few days ago I wasn't able to concentrate on anything and I couldn't sleep more than a few hours a day. And in addition they caused me that terrible headache. The Apple – yes, it was The Apple – somehow... fixed it. I don't know how, but it got into my head, recognized the problem and put everything in order, while putting an end to the chaos. My headache, the flashbacks are gone now, I can concentrate, and I would be able to sleep if these gross of everything didn't bug my head.

- And despite of this, you still have the visions?

- Very rarely.

- Hmm... But what I don't understand is where did these memories come from?

- Do you remember my large wound I had when I first got here? – Karcsa nodded and so did Kese. – One more question: have you ever heard or read about this thing called DNA?

- Yeah, there is something about it in Lehel's books, but it's still a new research field nowadays.

- Nowadays, yes... What if I told you it had been already explored long ago, back in the past? I could talk about it for hours, but let's not dwell on this now. The point is: our DNA stores the memories of our ancestors.

Kese let his words sink into Karcsa's mind, who just sat on his bed and blinked at him. – Wut?

- I'm not sure if the DNA itself or the surrounding structures are responsible for this. The Apple told me that if they are ruptured, these memories can leak out. Is it clear? – Karcsa grimaced. – I know you understand; you just can't believe it, right? – the blonde received a nod as reply. – Okay. So, I don't know how I got that wound. But I'm sure it was one serious blow, because it tore into the DNA of my tissues. And this let those stored memories out.

Karcsa was nodding quietly. It was visible he was processing these information. Kese let him do it; he went out to the kitchen to get some water for himself and his friend. In all of a sudden, he sighed. 'Considering I told Ince not to tell it to anyone... I'm a bigger idiot I thought I was.'

When he returned, Karcsa immediately raised his hand. – One question: why now? I mean, you had your wound fresh two years ago, and you had these visions back then, too. Then why did it decide to mess with you right now?

- That wound had healed; you've seen my scar, right? When the pirates were here, it felt... strange; like it somehow reacted to danger. When I was fighting them, my scar opened by itself after a kick. No shit. I didn't get a cut there; I felt it opening with my own fingers! It had never been this sensitive. You remember when we fought you punched and kicked me several times in my stomach, but it didn't have any after effect. I must have been in such state it gave in. Maybe because I... – he diverted his eyes and lowered his head. - I...

- Say it. Just say it.

- Maybe because I killed them. I made a massacre. I... I still can't believe it.

- Kese, it might sound a platitude, but what's done is done. You can't change it.

- I know, I know. But it's simply unbelievable. I still can't look into mother's eyes for long... She witnessed the first. – the blonde sighed and shook his head. He glanced out of the window. – I've never thought I would be able to do it.

After a long silence, Karcsa suddenly spoke. – You've got some knowledge from your memories, right? Is it possible you also got some... potential to it? Or prone. Or likeness; I don't know what the best word is for it in Elemental. And these memories you have in plus... – he lifted a booklet. – ... contain many kills.

- I know. – he sighed. – In addition... Emiko once said I was a shinobi.

- You were a shinobi?! – Karcsa gaped.

- I don't know. Although I have the memories of many, I still don't have mine or of my direct lineage. My own ones were repressed by and with the others. I don't know if I still have them or not.

- And the memories from your ancestors could leak out in forms like visions and dreams. – Karcsa was speaking with such enthusiasm it was good to listen to him. - And when the pirates came, your wound opened again, and these memories found their way out, causing you some flashbacks and temporary amnesia. Then The Apple came and fixed this by making an order in the chaos!

- Something like that, yes.

- I understand now! But didn't your wound reopen a little after your arrival? Then shouldn't it have happened back then?

The blonde frowned. – It makes sense... Maybe it was just too fresh. I don't know.

- Hmm... I'm sorry to say this, but, Kese, this everything is awesome!

Both of them chuckled at this, until Rozi came in saying lunch is ready. Karcsa ate with the blacksmiths and their family; then he had to go to Lehel for check-up. And Kese way finally able to take a long and satisfying nap.

Later that day, when the shadows started to get longer, Lehel visited the blonde, but he politely sent him away, saying he was very busy with his writing and he would change his bandages by himself later. The doc was okay with this and he reminded Kese to see him in a few days. His patient didn't want to tell him about his healing yet.

The blonde was glad his mother let him do his things; and was pleasantly surprised when a certain Magor woman visited him later that evening. He heard Rozi talking to someone to look after the sleeping Csepke for a few minutes while she was away, then a bit later his door opened.

- Hello, my dear. – Emese whispered and hugged him from behind. Her hands quickly found their way down on his body. – How do you do? Are you up for a little fun tonight?

- I'm sorry, I want to finish this today. What about tomorrow? Hey, don't play with the lion's tail this recklessly!

As Kese got to know later, she was there for her son. Ákos had been playing with Jolánta and other children a lot recently, and Emese didn't mind it.

At dinner the blonde noticed his father had been contemplating something concerning him. He decided to talk with him later. After eating the blonde was up until late night, and he nearly finished writing what he wanted to. He was fidgeting with his key when he tried to fall asleep, and he still had it in his hand when he woke up. 'Amongst other things, this is what remained to be written down.'

After a modest breakfast he was about to go back to his room, but his father stopped him. – Could you come with me to the workshop today? – Kese nodded and after he got some more clothes on him – it was getting very cold outside -, he followed the older blacksmith to said place. What he told him surprised the blonde greatly.

- From now on I'm going to teach you how to forge weapons, like swords, different types of knives and even kunais, beside armours and other things. Do you have any questions?

Kese couldn't do anything but blinking at him. – I thought you don't forge these things.

- I used to make only these a few years ago. I was very good at it and I had many costumers, even ninjas, who wanted to have unique weapons; they found my style "exotic". But... a certain thing happened. Since then I haven't been able to bring myself to it again. And because of it I've lost many opportunities and many ryō.

- And what made you change your mind?

- You and your... deeds. I realized something. Even if I didn't do it anymore you might have need of it sometime or somewhere to make a living or just simply survive. And you've already learnt everything I could teach you except these... But because Lehel said you're still not healed completely, just sit and watch. I'll explain everything.

- Like the good old days when I was your fresh apprentice?

- Yes. – Tas chuckled. – Oh, and one more thing: I can teach you the full Tug Baranta. Only if you want to, of course.

- Thanks, father. – Kese grinned as wide as he just could. He felt he was cheating concerning his scar, but at least he had a little more time for himself.

- Hmm, I think I managed to wake up in time... – he moaned while stretching a good. His voice was a little harsh; after all, he had made some exhausting exercises at night. With Emese. On the floor of her room. Because her bed would be creaking damn loudly and it would wake up the boys and Dombi in the other room. He still didn't know how the woman had managed to set up this room order a few years ago, but it seemed to be good for everyone. However, she had some trouble with Karcsa recently, because he wanted to have that room for himself only.

Anyway, it was dark out and Emese was still sleeping. Kese carefully climbed out of her bed and got dressed. He was about to leave, but he still wanted a goodbye kiss from her. When his lips touched hers, she woke up and pulled him closer. – I'd love to, but I have to go. – Kese whispered then kissed her again. – Could you close the window behind me?

- Hmm... Give me a minute. – she yawned and sat up. – Uh! Why so cold? – and she buried herself with her blanket immediately. – Where is my nightie?

- I don't know.

- You threw it away.

Kese sighed and after a little search he handed it to her and watched her putting it up. When she finally got up she was shivering, so he hugged her. Emese cuddled to him until she noticed something... changing on his body. – You should go or I think we will have another round. And that would be a little dangerous now. Dawn is near.

- Alright. – Kese pouted, and after another goodbye kiss, he stepped out of the window.

Later that day - after he had visited Ince for some cream for his smaller scars – the blonde had a very uncomfortable dialogue with his father in their forge.

- You know, Kese, a man has certain... natural urges. And these urges are better to satisfy with, erm, the help of a woman.

- Father, for god's sake, get to the point! – Kese was as white as a bed-sheet in snowfall. 'This is getting damn too awkward!'

- We know you have someone to "sleep" with occasionally. – he stated. The blonde paled even more. – Which I personally don't mind, hell, I'm even glad of it a little; but your mother wants me to tell you something. That if a man and a woman sleep together they might have to face the consequences of their pleasure later.

- To the point, please. – 'He's killing me!'

- We just want you to make sure you wouldn't become a father too early.

'Shit.' The blonde stared at him with widened eyes, and this frightened Tas.

- Am I too late?!

Kese opened his mouth to say something, but for a few seconds, he was just gaping like a fish. – I hope not.

His answer made his father sigh heavily. He put his hands together; and this was the first and last time in his life Kese had seen him begging. – Please... Ask her about this next time you meet.

- I promise I will!

*Pronounciation:
Bíbora: [ biborɑ ]

Thanks for reading! ^^