A/N: It's ALIVE! Yes, I am in fact taking this up once more. For those who follow my other work I have been messing around with small stuff to get back in the writing groove.

I'll start off saying that this is not my best chapter. Truth is I'm out of practice, but I have tried to finish this chapter and given up on the story so many times I think its imperative I just get it out and move on. That said, please don't hold back on the constructive criticism. I need it more than ever to get going again.

I can't promise when the next chapter will be out. I'll be working on it every day for at least an hour at a time. But I'm still not back in my serious writing groove yet, so I can't promise how fast that'll be.

I would like to make a special mention to my Beta, A Dark Alias. No, he's more like an editor. The guy does excellent work all around and when I contact him after half a year of silence, he just picks right on up editing. So here's to you, A Dark Alias.

Chapter 13: Reuniting

The ground was damp with melted snow. Saito's boots sunk slightly into the loose earth as though the strange place he had come to belong was trying to keep him from leaving. Belong… it was still odd to accept what that meant. Back in Japan, Saito had been an unremarkable young man. Average grades, average athleticism, and an average family. He was a bit thick at times, but even that didn't particularly define him. His family was loving, but hardly expected much from him; heck, he hadn't expected much from himself either.

Then one day he had ended up in some fantasy setting as the familiar of a half-elf with ridiculously large breasts. At the time he had thought that meant he was about to be asked to save the world with the elf and a surly dwarf and other fantastic companions they'd meet along the way. Instead, Tiffania had explained that it was all a mistake, and how she was quite intent on continuing to watch over her orphans. Saito had scoffed at the silliness of the anti-climactic scenario, but tried to make the best of his situation anyway. It didn't take long for him to realize that this is what he wanted; helping these kids and living peacefully. It was tough, stressful, and often times just plain tiresome to watch after the many orphans of Westwood Village, but it felt good. It felt right.

But now… now he had to leave. Saito kept his breath even and quelled the anxiety within his chest. He would need to be strong for Tiffania. The half-elf herself was busy giving a hug and a kiss to each of her children.. Some cried, some made her promise to come back soon, and others looked at her with stubborn blame. Tiffania patiently bid farewell to all her children, comforting each of them and promising that she would return as much to herself as to them. She was loving. Saito could think of no better description for his master.

Caught up in watching Tiffania, Saito didn't notice little Lily until she tugged his sleeve. Looking down, Saito immediately smiled for the small girl. She looked up and asked, "You'll come back too?"

Saito's heart seized a little at the young girl's question. Kneeling down, he embraced Lily and spoke slowly; so as to keep his voice from cracking. "Of course, we'll both come back. I promise." Apparently that had been enough to draw the other children to Saito, and soon enough those who had already said their goodbyes to Tiffania were lining up to do the same for Saito.

The loving scene only made Montmorency more anxious to leave. It was irrational, but the children were making her feel like the bad guy for taking Tiffania and Saito from them, even though it was Tiffania who asked to come with them. Holding her tongue, Montmorency inspected the other members of their would-be travelling party. Cattleya waited serenely in the back, checking the straps on the tower shield Matilda had transmuted for her and stealing happy glances at her sister. Said sister Louise was speaking with Matilda, the elder woman pointing to a map as they went over the travel plans one last time. Montmorency herself checked her bag's straps again, for lack of anything else to do. She half wanted to get out the mortar and pestle Matilda had transmuted for her and grind some herbs to relieve the stress. It was too bad Matilda had to stay behind; a triangle class earth mage had turned out to be very useful.

When the children finally broke away from the two residents of Westwood Village, Saito and Tiffania picked up their own bags and joined the group. Each offered little waves to the assembled children that watched them. Louise, noticing that they were ready to leave, rolled up the map Matilda had given her and bid a formal farewell to her one time captor. Matilda herself intercepted her sister, "You keep safe Tiffania." The half-elf embraced her sister in kind and gripped hard. Only muffled promises escaped her throat, still choked up from speaking to her children.

"I'll come back, Sister Matilda. I promise." The two sisters of Westwood village embraced firmly. When they broke apart, Matilda held her sister at arm's length and stared into her eyes. With a nod, Matilda found what she was looking for.

Turning to Saito, Matilda steeled her voice. "You keep your head about you, kid. I taught you what I could, remember it." Saito nodded, accepting his teacher's command. Matilda grasped the younger boy's shoulders. "Protect Tiffania." She ordered.

"With my life." Saito answered honestly. He did not see the blonde blush behind his back, but Matilda did. Rolling her eyes, she offered a smile to Saito. "Off with you kids. While there is still light out." With that, the remaining residents of Westwood village waved and called out to the five travelers until they had disappeared into the forest. Heard only to herself, Matilda whispered. "Come back, both of you."

With the snow melted and the morning sun shining, the journey through the forest progressed much faster than their last excursion. Saito and Tiffania remained silent, obviously still drained from their departure, though Montmorency had joined them in silence, something that drew Louise's attention. Was the girl still anxious about what they had talked about that night? That foolish familiar of hers had certainly been a bit harsh. Id himself was trailing the party, his eyes only averting when Louise caught them. Louise did not get to think long, as Derflinger broke the silence tactlessly. "So why haven't you summoned a familiar?" It asked Cattleya out of the blue.

A slight falter in Cattleya's step was noticed only by Louise as she was the only one who knew to expect it. "I summoned a familiar long ago, when I was a child." Cattleya spoke softly, a hint of sadness in her voice. "His name was Jibble. He was the cutest field mouse you ever saw." Only Louise's eyes remained averted from Cattleya, she had been too young to remember Jibble, but she knew how the story ended. "I was sick back then and I could rarely leave my bed, but Jibble kept me company." Cattleya smiled at the memory. "However, I was too sick to maintain the summoning contract properly, so I couldn't grant him a familiar's longevity. He died about a year after I summoned him. I decided then not to summon another familiar, instead I started taking in animals and helping them like Jibble helped me." The sad fondness in Cattleya's voice commanded silence from the group.

Well, silence from all save a certain tactless sword. "So? You are a Void mage now, so you'll summon a human familiar… or something close to a human, not an animal."

Turning her head to look at the sword, Cattleya offered a gentle smile and shook her head. "All the more reason not to summon a familiar. Saito was lucky to have wanted to be summoned, there is no promise I will not steal someone from their family."

Derflinger rattled in response to Cattleya's kind selflessness. "Bah! You are a void mage, you should summon! I'll help you right now. You don't even need a magic circle as a void mage. Just call out for a familiar and your magic will react! Maybe even the Gandalfr will be summoned!"

At the mention of Gandalfr, Saito unslung his sword and glared at it. "So that's what this is about. You just want to find the Gandalfr." Smacking his forehead in shame of his sword, Saito looked apologetically to Cattleya.

Again Derflinger rattled. "I am the great Derflinger! I am meant to be wielded by the Gandalfr, not some useless dud!" Saito slammed the sword down into its sheath in response, wrestling with the animate weapon. The two shot insults back and forth. 'Rusty kitchen knife' and 'musket lover' were the loudest among them.

The insults only stopped when a giggle escaped Cattleya's lips. With the two's attention drawn to the giggling Valliere, she spoke, "You two are quite good friends." Saito's eyebrow rose incredulously before he slung the sword back over his shoulder. Averting his gaze from the giggling Valliere.

"Hardly." Derflinger spoke, "He is just an acceptable partner for now. Maybe someday he'll be worthy of wielding me."

Cattleya's continued giggle only drew more indignant grunts from Saito and his sword. Concerned for her familiar, Tiffania spoke up, "I'm sure Saito will be a worthy swordsman for you Mr. Derflinger. He is very strong." Saito's annoyance was forgotten at Tiffania's praise.

Blushing, Saito hid a smile and hurried forward. "Right then!" He nearly shouted, "Where to first?" Saito asked, still much too loud, when he fell in line with Louise at the head of the party.

Louise smirked to herself and allowed the boy to hide his affections, "Actually, we are about to reach our first stop." As she spoke, the party left the tree line and entered a clearing. There, tethered to a tree, a large raft hovered. Saito let out a low whistle. He had seen airships in the distance before, but never up close. Raising her finger, Louise began lecturing to the less travelled members of the party. "This landing boat that Matilda's," Louise paused and tried to think of the best way to say shady underworld connections, "er… friends provided has enough power left in its windstones to coast to Tristain from the edge of Albion. Then we'll make for Tarbes, Montmorency and I have friends near there and that will give us a safe place to rest."

The walk from the clearing to the edge of Albion was much easier with their bags stowed in the landing boat. Hovering as it was, the raft required little force to move. Soon enough, the group had arrived at the edge of Albion. Rivers ran off the edge of the sheer cliff face. The waterfalls fell through the clouds that floated below like a vast ocean of slowly shifting cotton. Birds flitted in and around the cliff face, landing in their precarious nests to feed their young. For a moment the group forgot the task at hand and simply took in the view. "This really is a fantasy world… Flying an airship off the edge of a floating country." Saito spoke in wonder.

Mutely, Louise corrected him. "Landing boat; it only coasts downward." She would have explained the minute details of windstone alchemy but the view was truly mesmerizing. Once the moment had ended, she steeled herself for the task at hand. Reaching to take hold of the rope attached to the raft, she found Montmorency had already grabbed it. From the look on her face, she was struggling with something. Concerned, Louise caught her friend's eye and shot her an unspoken question.

With a steadied breath, Montmorency began. "Everyone." The weight of her tone drew the attention of the rest. "I have something to say. You are all going to agree to this, or I am not letting you go on this journey." Three stiffened at Montmorency's anxious, yet steeled voice. "This goes for you as well Louise." Now all four stiffened. Turning to Saito, Montmorency accused, "Saito, you said you would defend Tiffania with your life." Then she turned to Cattleya, "You stood against an army of 70,000, buying time for others with your life." Finally, she rounded on Louise, "You tried to sacrifice yourself when the Cardinal was attacking us." Despite speaking of heroic acts, only distaste filled Montmorency's voice. "If any of you succeed in sacrificing your life for someone else, how do you think they would feel? I know I wouldn't have been able to go on if Louise had died for me." Anxiousness faded and courage filled Montmorency's voice. "None of you are allowed to sacrifice yourselves. We all survive; we always take the option where we all survive." Montmorency's eyes locked onto Louise's own pink, seeking acceptance.

As the weight of Montmorency's demand fell on the group, they all began to realize she was right. Tiffania could not bear the thought of Saito sacrificing himself, and Louise knew Cattleya would lay down her life for her. Such thoughts were filled with fear. Finally, it was Saito who spoke up and broke the silence. "So we're going for the golden ending then? I can get behind that." The lightness of his tone broke the heavy atmosphere.

Free from her heavy thoughts, Louise nodded. "Agreed, I promise not to sacrifice myself, Montmorency."

"Me too." Cattleya spoke up, beaming at Montmorency.

"I as well." Tiffania agreed, stealing a glance at Saito.

For the briefest of moments, Montmorency studied the group. Then, accepting that they were serious, allowed herself a relieved smile. "Good, then let's go."

With that, two magical girls, two humans, one half-elf, a sword, and an Incubator boarded the life raft and left Albion behind, descending into the clouds below; ready for what was waiting in the future.

Descending in the raft turned out to be far from the pleasant downward drift Louise had imagined. Falling through the cloud layer had dampened everything with condensed rainwater, and the strong winds that came after chilled everyone all the more with their wet clothing. Huddled to one side, Tiffania and Saito held each other for warmth, though from Saito's flushed face, the cold was far from his mind. Cattleya sat in the back, one hand on the boat rail and another on the rudder, keeping it straight and keeping their group on course. Montmorency sat across from the elder Valliere, giving Cattleya an odd look. Until Cattleya had taken over, Montmorency had been on rudder duty. Louise suppressed the urge to sigh. Despite Montmorency's fear of her growing strength, she still felt the need to do all the heavy lifting. That blockhead could be so stubborn sometimes.

One check of Louise's compass confirmed they were still on course. Turning toward Cattleya, Louise offered a thankful smile for her sister's work. Looking at Cattleya warmed Louise. Her sister, healthy and vibrant, really made it seem like all the trouble Louise had been through was worth it. To think her sister, Cattleya the sickly Valliere, had become a hero of Tristain's army; it was unreal. Thinking of Cattleya fighting was an odd thought; one Louise wasn't entirely comfortable with. Even knowing that Cattleya was healed by her and took up arms for her, the idea of her gentle idol inflicting harm caused Louise's eyes to fall. As they fell, Louise noticed Cattleya's sword-wand at her hip and stopped. It looked strangely familiar. Raising her voice, Louise spoke over the winds, "That sword. We had to pry it from your hand." Louise stewed on the idea of her sister using a weapon.

Looking down at the blade, Cattleya smiled. Her warm smile was dimmed only slightly as a gust of wind tossed a handful of her own hair up into her face. "It was Mother's. I took it without asking. I shudder to think what she'd do if I lost it after stealing it!" Though Cattleya chuckled at the rebellious memory, Louise paled. For better or worse, Cattleya had never truly seen their mother angry. The thought of her mother took Louise's smile from her. Eyes downcast, Louise wondered what her mother thought of her. A lich on the run. "Mother loves you!" Cattleya called out over the wind, as if reading her younger sibling's mind.

It was a statement of fact. So sure was Cattleya's voice it shocked Louise out of her worry. Once again, a smile returned to Louise's face. "Thank you." Shaking off the cold, Louise decided to be active. Best to work off those worries after all. Shuffling over to Cattleya, Louise reached forward for the rudder. "Here, let me take a turn."

As Louise's hands closed around the rudder and Cattleya released, Montmorency spoke up in a worried voice. "Louise, I wouldn't-" Montmorency's warning came too late as a gust of wind whipped the rudder from Louise's hands. The craft jolted, swerving madly without control. With inhuman reflexes, Montmorency's hands caught the rudder in an instant and held the boat steady. As quickly as the mad tumble had started, it ended. The five travelers let out nervous breaths, letting their tightened muscles relax. "It's harder than it looks." Montmorency finished with a pained voice.

Nerves still shaken, Louise smiled nervously at her mistake. Looking at her hands, and then to Cattleya, she nervously joked. "Just how strong are you?"

Though Cattleya responded with an equally shaken smile, another voice answered. "As strong as is physically possible for a human, maybe more." Silent throughout, it finally decides to speak. Turning to her familiar, Louise quirked an eyebrow. "You wished for her to be healthier without words, without a defined end. The more despair a girl has, the stronger her wish; and you had an inordinately despair filled life. Even if that despair was simply the product of entitled assumptions of your high social status." Ignoring the obvious attempt to rattle her emotions once again, Louise thought on her familiar's words. With no end goal, she had just put all the power of her wish into making Cattleya healthier? The idea of limits on a wish also intrigued Louise, but she discarded the idea. She wouldn't be letting Id contract any more girls. Realizing Louise was more intrigued than depressed, Id's tail swished for a moment before it turned and looked away.

Louise turned back to Cattleya to find her strangely withdrawn. Yet before Louise could inquire, Montmorency spoke up. "I see the forest, everyone get ready to land." With her train of thought broken, Louise found a handhold and looked over the edge of the boat. Sure enough, a familiar forest was in full view. Pensive as she was, Louise could not help but smile at the thought of seeing Professor Colbert and Siesta again.

Leaving a drained and useless landing boat behind, Louise and Montmorency led the group deeper into the woods. While Tarbes hadn't seen much snow, the heavy rainfalls of winter had thoroughly soaked the pine forest. No longer worried about setting the raft on fire, Louise went about drying the groups clothing with a small flame spell. Something Cattleya praised her to no end for. Hiding a blush, Louise quickened the group's pace.

The journey through the tunnel was far easier now that they had made the journey once. With a small ball of flame before her, Louise pretended not to notice Saito's embarrassed discomfort as Tiffania clung to his arm for fear of slipping on the uneven terrain. Time crept by as the group made the underground journey with only idle chat passing between them. With each step, Louise and Montmorency became slightly more hurried, eager to return to their old friends.

By the time the group exited the tunnel and entered the valley forest, they were practically at a light trot. A smile passed between the two girls as they hurried, group in tow, toward the hangar. With a small bit of glee, the two girls broke through the treeline and into a familiar clearing. Yet as they gazed upon the first real safe haven they had found on their journey, their hearts sank. The hangar doors stood open, and the Dragon's Raiment was gone. While that that chilled Louise's heart, what her eyes found next completely froze it.

Two unmarked gravestones were planted to the right of the hangar.

"Don't move." A cold voice sounded from behind Louise. Cold, yet also familiar. Turning, Louise's surprised eyes met the equally surprised eyes of Tabitha. "Louise." Tabitha spoke, lowering her staff as she did. In silence, the five travelers turned to Tabitha with varying degrees of recognition.

"Miss Valliere?" The second familiar voice Louise heard caused her heart to leap with joy. Peeking out from behind a tree, Siesta stood with a slowly growing smile. "Miss Valliere!" She called happily.

Yet another voice joined the group as a high, theatrical voice cried out. "Worthless Vagabonds! You'll find no hapless victims here!" Kirche Zerbst jumped out from the hanger with her usual flair for theatrics. "Montmorency? Zero? Ha ha!" She cried out triumphantly, lowering her wand. "Tabitha you were right! They did come back here!"

Tension gone, Tabitha planted her staff upon the ground and nodded. "Indeed."

After introductions and promises that everyone was friendly and not 'vagabonds' the group found themselves resting around a quickly conjured fire with the current residents of the hidden valley. Louise, still anxious from before, was quick to voice her worries, "I'm glad you are alright Siesta, when I saw those gravestones, I thought… Is Professor Colbert okay?" She almost wished she hadn't asked, the possible answers scared Louise.

A pained look crossed Siesta's face, "Professor Colbert left not long after you did. The church came back in larger numbers and took the Dragon's Raiment, saying it was cursed. He left soon after that…" Siesta felt a hint of betrayal, then more pain for such feelings. Professor Colbert was a noble; he couldn't hang around protecting a maid his whole life. "Those gravestones, they belong to…"

Tabitha, of all people, interrupted, "People who don't deserve any words." There was a look of distaste on the usually immutable girls face.

Speaking up, Siesta tried to explain, "Some men arrived a few days after Professor Colbert left. They didn't say his name; Count Mott was definitely their employer. I don't know what I would have done if Miss Tabitha and Miss Zerbst hadn't shown up." The way Siesta refused to meet Louise's eyes said it all.

Montmorency barely repressed a snarl. With no way to help, her anger just broiled within her. "Men like that…" She spat under her breath. Montmorency knew just what would have happened if Tabitha hadn't intervened. "Wait," Montmorency realized, "What are you doing here anyway?"

"We arrived, found you had been here. We waited." Succinct and barely understandable, Tabitha spoke her piece.

Knowing that a better explanation was needed, Kirche burst in with her definitely not prepared speech. "We came to find you two of course!" The tan Germanian nearly sang, "Two of our dear friends, cast out by the church, on the run for their lives! We couldn't help but come to your aid!" The silence that followed was punctuated by the disbelieving stares of all but Cattleya and Tiffania; who, for their part, were very much moved. It was Tabitha's quirked eyebrow that tipped the scale. Deflating, Kirche explained, "Both Gallia and Germania are on tense terms with the church. Gallia may be more open about it but that doesn't change the facts. You two were declared liches. If we prove you are not liches that will be grounds to deny any further inquisitions, and maybe limit Romalia's abuse of its power." Once again raising her voice, Kirche sang, "But we would still help if that were not the case! Did we not come to your aid with that rogue Fouquet? If we let you perish now, all that effort would have been for naught! Besides, it's not like you're actually liches."

If only a bit, Louise was moved by Kirche's heartfelt thoughts. So before she really thought it through, she interrupted, "About that…"

What followed involved many gasps from Siesta, slight adjusts of glasses from Tabitha, and over the top howls of compassion from Kirche as Louise explained just what exactly had happened to Montmorency and herself. Saying nothing would have led Tabitha to think them liches, and Louise couldn't bear to lie to those whom had at one time risked their lives to save hers. She did leave out Cardinal Thomas' untimely demise. As it was Saito he dealt the killing blow, she wasn't about to divulge what was technically murder of a Cardinal.

"I'm glad." Siesta clasped Louise's hands in her own. "I know you will find a way to heal yourselves." Louise couldn't help but be warmed by Siesta's optimism. A small smile graced her lips after the trial of once again relaying her story.

The hints of tears in Louise's eyes were outclassed by Kirche's however. Wiping away her tears, Kirche stood up in a flash. "That just makes me as doubly sure! Tabitha and I will accompany you!" A nod from Tabitha confirmed her agreement.

Looking to Montmorency, Louise found wary eyes. "Listen, Kirche. Montmorency and I are thankful for your support, but traveling with a group of five is hard enough to go unnoticed. Seven would be-"

Louise was cut off by that haughty laugh of Kirche's she used to hate. "OH ho ho ho ho! Louise, do you really think you can get rid of us that easily? Besides, we are two nobles. Nobles that can go anywhere without raising an eyebrow. Moreover, you don't have a choice but to make your party eight." Eight? The number was not lost on Louise. "Yes, seeing Siesta in such a predicament filled my soul with compassion. I requested a covered wagon some days ago and by your great fortune it arrived this morning. If Siesta may no longer work as a maid, I will simply make a fine Germainian merchant out of her!" Dancing over to Siesta, Kirche grabbed the girl's shoulders, drawing an embarrassed blush. "First lesson of Germanian trading? Smuggling of course! As Siesta's first lesson, we'll smuggle you and your group across Tristain."

While Louise knew Kirche loved the sound of her own voice, this had gone on long enough. "You can't drag Siesta into this." Louise warned, annoyed at Kirche's constant presumptions.

"No." Siesta's low voice stopped Louise. "I have prayed for a way to repay you, Miss Valliere, I want to help. If I can just do this…" Louise held her tongue, having a hard time explaining that Siesta didn't owe her anything.

Nearly bursting with idealistic passion, Cattleya broke her peace. "Louise, you have such wonderful friends! How lucky you are!" Faced with her elder sister, Louise was unable to raise protest.

Floundering in the face of so many people insistent on helping, Louise couldn't find her voice. "One second." Montmorency, it seemed, had found hers. Grabbing Louise's hand, she towed her off into the woods and away from the group.

Once she was satisfied with their privacy, Montmorency whirled on Louise. "You aren't thinking of actually doing this, are you?"

Again, Louise floundered, "Maybe it wouldn't be such a bad idea..." Her weak smile did not satisfy Montmorency.

Raising one finger, Montmorency counted off her points, "We know how to travel unseen with two people, and even then we got caught. Five was pushing it, but we had no choice. Eight? There is no way we can move unnoticed. If that wagon is stopped by one patrol, it's game over." For a second, Louise tried to argue, only to be stared down by Montmorency.

"Actually-" A voice interrupted them, causing the two girls to jump with fright. Saito, moving from behind a tree, jumped at their surprise. "Er, sorry. I didn't mean to sneak up on you; I'm just used to moving silently in the woods." Two annoyed looks greeted him, but neither girl told him to leave. "Anyways, it might actually be a good idea, the covered wagon. Tiffania can use Mind Wipe and alter the memories of any patrols, and we can move faster. Plus, five people moving through the wilderness will leave tracks, no matter how we try to cover them."

For a moment, Montmorency sized Saito up. Louise herself found herself agreeing with the boy, and promised herself it was due to his logic, not her desire to please Cattleya. "Fine." Montmorency threw up her arms. "But I have a bad feeling about this, Louise." With no objections left, the three returned to the others.

Louise pinched the bridge of her nose yet again, trying to ignore the sing song instructions of Kirche to Siesta. The maid turned merchant mumbled an embarrassed response when Kirche leaned improperly close to adjust the reins on Siesta's hands. From where Louise sat in the back of the covered wagon, she did not envy the girl. Kirche could be a handful. The other passenger upfront offered no help, instead merely reading. For a brief moment, Louise wondered if that was how Tabitha dealt with the excitable Kirche. Just ignore her?

While not a carriage, the covered wagon was far preferable to walking. Silently, Louise thanked Brimir for their recent streak of traveling luck. First a landing boat and now a wagon. Things were looking up. Still, the ride was boring. Montmorency might be able to busy herself with alchemy and the others could get out and walk if they needed fresh air, but she was forbidden to show her face to the sky. What was worse, it had been Louise herself who had determined that was the safest course of action so she couldn't even complain to anyone.

There wasn't even anyone to chat with. Tiffania and Cattleya had been busily trying to teach each other void magic for the past hour, Montmorency was in alchemy mode, And Saito had decided to walk, or rather his sword had demanded he keep exercising. Who knew a sword could be such a strict trainer?

That left one conversation partner. One, loathsome, conversation partner. "Would it inspire any particular emotions if I were to tell you that pink wasn't a real color? It's just a light shade of the primary color red." Id prodded.

"No Id, it would not." Louise replied to the familiar staring intently at her. "Besides, that's complete nonsense, Pink is a color."

Id tilted its head slightly. "Of course it is. But you have had negative reactions to deception in the past so I am practicing it to maximize emotional output."Oh of course. Practicing lying. Well, at least it was better than practicing insults.

"Your intelligence is incredibly low." Ah, there it was. Really, Louise missed the days when Id didn't say a word.

Still, Louise did pride herself on her brains. Haughtily, she replied, "I know I am smart, Id. If you are trying to get a rise out of me, you might want to try something I am insecure about." If Louise thought Id could actually be insulting, she wouldn't have offered that piece of advice.

"In your current state, your mammary glands will be insufficient for child-rearing." There was a slight bit of triumph in Id's tone.

The insult went far over Louise's head. "What?" She quirked an eyebrow, slowly trying to translate the Kyuubey talk. Yet, before she could translate the genuine insult, she was jolted over as the Wagon ground to a halt. Hurriedly hiding at the Kirche's hissed warning, Louise peeked across the wagon at Montmorency as they both scuttled beneath the benches.

The ring of metal sounded as Saito unsheathed Derflinger. Cattleya was quick to brace her tower shield lengthwise across the wagon's back entrance as she used her free hand to force Tiffania down behind her. The normally happy woman held a tense look as her military instincts took over. "Leave this to us." Tabitha commanded, her calm voice never wavering.

Outside, a man stood in the road with an unsheathed sword held loosely before him. "Good day, kind merchants." He spoke with a terrible impersonation of eloquence. "Me and my jolly band of law enforcers are here to collect on a certain reward." The magical girls within the wagon tensed, gripping their wands. How could they possibly have been caught already?! They hadn't even passed through a town. Sure, they could probably fight their way through. But who knows how many Church Paladins were on the way?!

Smiling, the man gestured around him as several other men stood up in the surrounding tall grass, muskets pointed at their quarry. "Count Mott is quite interested in you, my dear. You must have done something quite terrible." Wait, Count Mott? These men were after Siesta.

The girl in question froze with fright, but kept her cool. The other two on the driving bench kept cool, but didn't suffer any fright. "Do you even have a mage?" Kirche wondered aloud in a tone one used on belligerent children.

Taken aback, the man replied, "Er… why would we even need one for the likes of a wayward maid?" At his signal, his men readied to fire.

Kirche was not impressed, "Tabitha, we should leave some alive this time. Otherwise we'll just run into the same problem."

With a nod, Tabitha replied with a spell. "Air guard." A shimmering dome of altered air was summoned around the wagon. Not expecting the action, a rifleman fired in surprise. The loud gunshot only served to startle his compatriots into joining him.

Louise could best describe the sound of bullets impacting the shield as a 'warble.' It was unique, if nothing else. The smoke began to clear revealing a rather bemused Kirche and a stoic Tabitha. "Honestly, attacking innocent maidens like us? I will not feel bad about this, then."

What men didn't run at Kirche's summoning of fire were quickly incapacitated by the fire and wind duo. Thoroughly beaten, the men darted away into the fields leaving their leader behind. The man in question was on his back as Tabitha hovered over him, looking down distastefully. She held her staff toward his neck and a grim expression crossed her face. She meant to kill him, the man realized.

"Wait!" It was Siesta's voice who stopped Tabitha. "I'm thankful for your protection, Miss Tabitha, but please allow him to leave." With a curt nod, Tabitha stepped back and allowed the man to scurry away, panicked thanks fading as he fled. A questioning look from Tabitha met Siesta. "I know he is my enemy, but I didn't want to see him die."

Tabitha only offered another nod. "I agree!" A new voice joined them. Cattleya didn't give Siesta time to turn to her, instead wrapping the maid in a great hug. "Even if it's hard, we must always endeavor to offer mercy to others! Doing the right thing its own reward!" Completely flummoxed, Siesta rambled incoherently in her embarrassment as Cattleya swung her around and around to the laugher of the rest. Even the Stoic Tabitha was forced to smile weakly at the scene.

Camp that night was a cheerful affair. Everyone was in good spirits with the way the day had gone, save for the completely exhausted Saito. Apparently just walking had not been enough for Derflinger, the boy was forced to run ahead at random intervals and perform various exercises. The sword was getting more and more into his taskmaster mindset. The enjoyment he got out of making his unreliable partner sweat probably had something to do with it. Maybe the boy would think twice about throwing him around next time!

Tiffania knelt next to the exhausted Saito, offering compliments to the blushing boy over his dedication. Kirche had taken a ride on Sylphid with Tabitha to scout the surrounding area for dangers, leaving Louise in charge of watching the camp. Something she had delegated to Id to keep the familiar out of her hair. "Siesta," Louise cut into the conversation between her sister and the maid. "Those men came from Count Mott, was firing you not enough?" While she didn't distrust Siesta, she did need to know how likely they were to have similar incursions.

Siesta looked to the ground subconsciously letting her hand reach up to grab her other arm. "When I said I was fired, I didn't exactly stick around to get fired." She shrugged weakly, "Count Mott would probably have done worse than firing me had I waited."

Somberly, Louise processed the news. It made sense. Now that Colbert was gone there was no longer a buffer between Siesta and Mott. Sure, the man couldn't lawfully abduct Siesta without possibly revealing his actions that led to this current situation. However, there were plenty of unscrupulous louts roaming the lands that could pursue her. A maid like her was easy prey to just about anyone.

The other Valliere did not take the news quite as somberly. "Siesta!" Cattleya grasped the maid's hands in her own. "Why would such a man pursue you in such a dastardly fashion?!" The genuine worry in Cattleya's voice was so intense Siesta was frozen in surprise for a breath.

Regaining herself, Siesta sighed and began, "Well…"

Siesta's story of escape from the clutches of Count Mott was filled with many an anguished gasp and tearful embrace. Cattleya's pure empathy was so intense by the end of it even Siesta was smiling as she told the others of the most painful memory she had. "And then I remembered Miss Louise and how she never gave up. How she stood up to Guiche with such nobility. So I punched his lights out and ran away that same night! That's why I'm so thankful for meeting Miss Louise. Her inspiration saved me in my most desperate moment." Louise's ears reddened in embarrassment at the praise. Siesta was giving her entirely too much credit.

That last line reignited Cattleya's inner fire two-fold. Cattleya leaned uncomfortably close to Siesta and clutched the maid's hands in her own. The stars in the sky had nothing on the stars in Cattleya's eyes. "I agree completely! You and I, we are friends from now on!" It wasn't an offer of friendship, but a command. Siesta could only nod in acceptance. Completely proud of her younger sister, Cattleya turned to Louise. "Isn't this wonderful Louise! Your friend was inspired by your Iron Will!"

Louise hid her blush and turned away from the scene. Those two idiots… She wasn't that amazing. "I-it's nothing really… I didn't even mean too." Montmorency that caught her eye, a terribly mischievous grin on the blonde's features. "Not a word…" Louise warned, blushing harder.

Raising her eyebrows, Montmorency's grin only widened. "Whatever you say, Louise of the Iron Will."

By now Louise was redder than the fire itself. "It's got a nice ring to it." Saito contributed, enjoying embarrassing the girl. "Heroes always have to have a cool nickname." He rubbed his chin. "Louise of the Iron Will."

"Louise of the Iron Will." Tiffania piped up; completely missing her familiar's teasing tone.

Louise could only hunch down and hide her face as various jests and compliments were flung at her. At least Kirche wasn't here. The Zerbst would be having a field day.

Sylphid glided softly over the forest. Her wings cut through the night air with a barely audible whisp. With a quick dive and a hard flap, Sylphid landed in the clearing softly and silently, bowing low to allow Tabitha and Kirche to dismount. "You're too soft, you know." A snide voice called out as a figure appeared before them, appearing out of the night like a wraith. Tabitha stiffened and Kirche cocked back onto one hip, doing little to hide her distaste of the figure before them.

The ghostly woman continued, "I thought to spare you some trouble by tipping those bounty hunters off. Let them take the maid, maybe even kill the boy? You'll have to deal with them soon anyway." Kirche grit her teeth, but held her tongue. This was Tabitha's show.

The mage in question adjusted her glasses and stared unflinchingly at the woman before her. "Lich hunt. No one else." This woman, Sheffield, Tabitha would not buckle under her thumb that easily.

Shrugging nonchalantly, Sheffield flaunted her superiority over the two. "Yes, yes. You can handicap yourself all you want, just make sure not to strike before I say, little spy. There is more to the plan than a pawn like you knows." At Tabitha's leveled gaze, Sheffield shrugged and moved on to business. "We have located the woman your party is seeking. As it turns out she is staying rather close to our borders. So you will wait to strike until we can ensure the retrieval of our goal." Turning, Sheffield began to walk away into the night.

Kirche stopped her, "So we just continue to lie until then?" She half accused.

Not bothering with more than a look over her shoulder Sheffield replied, "You are welcome to ignore my orders, as long as you are willing to choose these heretics over your own mother, little Charlotte." Knowing the stoic girl was barely keeping her composure, Sheffield disappeared into the night leaving only echoing laughter behind. She had another project to attend to. This pawn was slightly more difficult to ply, but could very well be the solution to the Romalia problem.