Next chapter is now here! Wow! I've been updating quickly! Yay me! :D Smile with me- it's good for you! XD

Enjoy!

The sharp sound echoed in the spacious room for a moment, and Zalim's hand instantly went to his cheek with a surprised cry of pain, the claw marks bleeding. "Wh… what in the world was that for?!" he sounded more surprised than angry. "What did I do to deserve that?"

"You- you… ugh!" his wife growled, hands curling into fists, claws digging into her palms until they flt arm and wet. "You… you stupid no good son of a…" he sat up, albeit a bit weakly, leaning against the bed for support. He pulled his hand away from his face and found with surprise his fingers stained a bright red. He raised his other hand to his stinging cheek, and found it red as well. He did not feel his wounds closing- why were they not healing? "-scared me hafta death! I-"

This caught his attention, and a smug grin crossed his face. "You were worried then?"

Realizing her mistake, she was quick to cover it up. "A' course no'." she rolled her eyes and crossed her arms. "Ah couldn' care less if ya c'mpletely wen' out 'er not."

"Then why is it that you were weeping just here?"

"I- I wasn't!" she rubbed angrily at her face, scrubbing away all traces of water. "Ah don' care nothing boutcha."

"Such insistence…" he mused. "So headstrong, so confident. Tell me, Raz, why is it you try so hard to convince yourself of false truths?"

Not that he was any better. He'd denied to himself for millennia of what was to come, and he very nearly succeeded convincing himself so- part of the reason he'd told himself to seek out companionship. Well, there was that, and-

"I don'!" she insisted haughtily. "Ah'm tellin ya-!"

He held up a hand. "Your lies work not on me. I can detect them with ease. I…" he stopped, noticing her squinting at him in an odd fashion. "What is it, my dear?"

"Oh Zalim…" she sighed, sounding exasperated if not concerned. "Yer bleeding…"

He frowned, though not angrily. Just curiosity. "I am aware. I do wonder why though; these mere scratches should have healed long before."

Hesitantly, Raz drew closer, absent mindedly ripping of a piece of cloth from the lace table cloth that was positioned oh-so-neatly on her end table.

She approached him carefully, and she stared at him, hard, for a moment, and he obediently lowered both arms. Dipping it in a nearby chalice- all of her possessions had scattered at the sharp collisions of magic earlier- and requested warm water. It appeared instantly, and after letting it soak for a moment, wrung it out.

She moved closer still, until they were mere inches apart. He watched with curiosity out of the corner of his eye as she took the warm, wet rag to his face, and gently scrubbed at his wounds. This was mere instinct and habit for her- baby of the family or not, for years, she was the only female. She had a natural urge to care for the injured (though she worked hard to suppress it often); she was their healer. Their doctor. If someone was sick or injured, she had a remedy. She knew how to make casts and slings, or what herbs to mix for a disinfecting brew, or a soothing salve for a nasty gash.

As she cleaned up the blood, she couldn't help feeling a little awkward and nervous. She'd never been this close to a male of her species, ever. Her big brothers were very protective and very careful to ensure she never crossed paths with any boys. Ever. Not that she minded- what use had she for romance? She had other things to occupy her time- her ever lasting training, improving her skills, sharpening her blades.

And yet now, here she was, sitting so close to a boy she could feel the heat of his skin, sense his fingers close to hers on the floor. Feel his warm breath on her face- it smelled pleasantly like cherries. She kept her eyes focused hard on the three bloody marks on his check, ignoring his piercing side gaze. She forced herself not to look- for if she did, she'd find herself unable to move. His eyes were just so oddly colored- as if she were one to talk! While she despised him so, she had to admit, his eyes were quite the sight. They were deep and calculating, intelligent and witty, and portrayed knowledge far beyond his young form- she wondered how old he really was. And their color… they weren't that cold, cruel red people often stereotyped the 'bad guys' to have. They were shiny and bright, the sharp color of rubies. But… they weren't naturally cold. They were calm, serene. They were…

"There ya go." She smoothed her cloth across his cheek a final time, taking her eyes off his intense red ones- he'd caught her staring. And none of her best lying would convince him otherwise. "Yer all clean'd up… Ah'd ge' some mint an eldah'berry root on i', it'll help when i' starts ta sting." She scooted back a little too hastily, feeling nervous again. "Why aren' theh closin up?"

He could only shrug helplessly. "I- I do not know." For once, he didn't sound threatening. Then again, it was a mere statement- what would be the point of hostility? Who would it be directed at? "Though I intend to find out."

Raz nodded, standing up. He came up with her, though she noticed with curiosity he stumbled a little. She had nothing better to do, so she followed him to the library. What could she say, she was a curious person. She wanted to know what was up with him. Why was he acting so strangely? Even if it concerned herself none, Raz was hardly one to care. She wanted to know, so dang it, she was going to find out!

She watched him pull off the different scrolls one by one, wondering why he didn't just use his magic. She soon got her answer; an irritated groan of complaint from Zalim. "Perfect… absolutely perfect." He hissed to himself, leaning over his scroll, fingers pressed into his temples viciously.

Raz approached. "Wha'?"

His voice was a terrified whisper, struck with horror, disbelief, and anger all thrown into one. "My magic…"

"Wot 'bout it?"

"I- I've drained so much…"

"And?" She quirked a brow. "Whas tha mean?"

"And" he turned to look her full on in the face. "it means that I can no longer… I can't…"

"Can't what?"

"I can no long perform my magic! I- I…"

Her eyes widened just the tiniest bit. "Ya mean… iss' gone? Forever?"

There! Next chapter! I hope ya'll are satisfied! Please review! A special thanks to those who did! I'm really enjoying writing this- I hope you guys are enjoying read it. And I guarantee none of you will guess the true part of the gryphons… if you can, I will bow before you and kiss the ground. You'd have to be magic yourself to guess right! XD

Seriously though, try!