Ah, Selenia... I have no idea where I pulled her 14-year-old personality from. Really, I don't. I know where her 23-year-old personality came from. But 14? No clue... And I'm honestly not sure I want to know.

Oh well.

Anyone else ever noticed how... irritated... Glenn McGovern always sounds in the game? I've officially blamed that on Jade. You'll find out exactly why next chapter, but it's hinted at this chapter.

Also, Kairi's nineteenth birthday falls sometime between this chapter and the next. So, as far as updating is concerned, the story's only lagging a few weeks behind real life!

Hehe... Enjoy!

"And you said you wouldn't make a good knight." –Selenia

Reighn stared at Jade like the colonel had grown a new head (as if he needed one, one brain was more than enough for him). –Selenia

Chapter 5.1 – Almost War
Part 48

Selenia's POV

I forced a smile as Grams got into the cart. Grandpa and Papa were still at the military headquarters. They'd be among the last to leave.

That didn't mean I couldn't get her out, though.

"You'll come with the next group, won't you?" Grams asked. I shook my head.

"No, Grams. I'm not leaving until Papa is."

"But Selenia..."

"I can fight. I won't leave him behind."

"Your papa, or Sync?" I felt the heat rise in my cheeks as Grams laughed. "You'll make a good girl for some boy, some day, but you're both a bit young now, don't you think?"

I took a deep breath. "He's my best friend, Grams. I'm not leaving him behind. And if we ever do decide to go farther... Well. Are you going to care?"

Grams smiled, though it was really more of a smirk. "Just not too young, dear. Just not too young."

"Next group!" the blue-haired man, Reighn, called. The wagon in front of me started moving, but before I could wave Grams off, I was lifted off my feet and deposited next to her.

I whirled around to see who the perpetrator was, and didn't even hold back the glare I was directing at Colonel Curtiss. Damn him if he thinks I'm leaving right now!

I jumped out of the cart, dashing over the staff that I'd leaned against a nearby building and grabbing it up. "Selenia, get back in the cart!"

"Forget it!" I argued. "I'm not leaving until Papa does." Jade made an irritated face, before grabbing me and dragging me after the carts. "No!"

"Why don't you let the poor girl go, Jade? If she wants to die with the rest of these worms, let her."

Two pairs of lens-covered eyes glared up at a third. Jade released his grip and stepped away, giving himself enough space to summon his spear if necessary, probably.

"I don't recall asking your opinion," Jade snapped back.

Flashes of blue out of the corner of my eye attracted my attention, and my eyes widened when I realized what it was. "Jade!"

Flying honey-brown hair told me that Jade had spotted it too.

Reighn had his scythe out, blade still not active, and was, it seemed, reluctantly fighting someone else. That 'someone else' also had blue hair, though hers was shorter and lighter. Dark blue eyes seemed to mock the man, and her clothing...

"Damn! Reighn!"

Pained silver eyes shot a glance toward us before Reighn jumped out of the way of a Turbulence. Jade moved towards them, only for a large and obnoxiously-painted robot to land in our way. I glanced around. Jade was a fonist. I'm a fonist. Reighn prefers to act as a fonist.

Where are Sync and that liger he was with when you need them?

"That fonbot is weak to water. I'll see what I can do about getting to Reighn. It's not fair to ask him to fight his own sister," Jade said. I nodded and started casting. It was a good thing I'd mastered this one recently.

"O vile geyser! Spread!"

The robot went into the air, not liking the water at all, and I giggled a bit at how utterly goofy it looked before casting again. By this time, Jade had managed to position himself between Reighn and his sister... Poor guy.

I let loose one Spread after another, while Reighn set off a Crackle. A Turbulence went off underneath me, sending me flying. I curled up midair, not quite sure what to do. This was going to hurt...

Arms wrapped around me, and then I heard a grunt as whoever caught me fell on his butt.

I reluctantly opened my eyes... And then grinned, happily clambering out of Sync's arms to help him to his feet. "And you said you wouldn't make a good knight," I teased.

Sync's face turned pink as I pulled him up, and then he was running off, throwing a dagger at Aerith to stop her casting. I giggled and started casting again, noting that there was a nice, solid field of fonons under where Dist's robot had been. I ran over and pulled them in.

"Drown in the abyss, o blackened soul! Tidal Wave!"

The robot made a few really worrying noises as the water slammed into it before the ugly thing finally started falling apart. I smirked. "Down and out. Next?"

Jade huffed. "Get back inside. Sync, Twilight, Reighn, and I can handle Aerith. It looks like Dist has already run off."

I scowled. "Forget it," I argued, already pulling together third fonons. Jade grumbled something under his breath that didn't sound polite in the least.

"Grant mine enemies a final rest! Flame Burst!"

I couldn't help but smile. "O dancing wind! Air Thrust!" I paused as the winds started slicing into the girl and looked up at Jade. "Shall we go again?"

"Field of fonons?" he guessed. I just giggled, and he rolled his eyes. "Stubborn as your father."

"It runs on both sides of the family, apparently."

Jade dropped another Flame Burst, and then I unleashed the second Air Thrust I'd been preparing. Except, it sucked up the fifth fonons and created the illusion of feathers dancing around. "Take that! Phoenix Dance!"

Aerith screamed (well, it sounded more like a screech) and hit the ground. We all paused a moment, wondering if she was going to keep attacking or if she was going to be a smart little girl and run away.

I blinked. You know, I keep calling her a little girl, but she might actually be older than me...

Dark blue eyes glared up at the blue-haired man to my right. When he and Jade had settled in around me, I'm not sure, but oh well.

"You still don't get it, do you, Reighn? I don't even remember Hod, and I get it. But at least I remember Matthias. You don't anymore, do you?"

The girl then stood, shakily, and turned, only to fall again as the ground started shaking.

"Guy! Seth!"

The four of us plus Twilight turned around, and I gasped, running forward only to be restrained by Jade. Again.

Well... I can't really blame him this time.

"Let me go! Papa!" I slipped out of Jade's grip and ran to the edge of the city, kneeling there to look at the town square, which was, unfortunately, a good few yards below me now. "Papa! Grandpa!"

Papa looked up at me, relief across his face. "Selenia! You're alright. Where's Mother?"

I took a deep breath. "Grams made it out alright."

Grandpa nodded, and I noted that two of Jade's companions were also stuck down there. Reighn knelt next to me.

"What now? There are too many people for Tear to use a fonic hymn," he said, loud enough for the people below to hear. Guy looked like he'd been knocked on the head.

"Sheridan! They're doing flight experiments in Sheridan! Go see if you can borrow whatever they're using. You can pick up Kairi and the others too," he said. I frowned.

"Kairi? Why is she in Sheridan? And why's Sync here if that's the case?" I wondered. Sync chuckled.

"Just Kairi getting into her usual amounts of trouble." I rolled my eyes. Somehow, that didn't surprise me in the least.

"That's right," Ion said as I stood and stepped away from the edge. "I remember authorizing those experiments." Reighn nodded as well, while Jade crossed his arms.

"And what about Selenia? We can't just take her with us."

I growled. "Why not?"

Twilight growled something and nodded smartly, and I stared at him. The blonde girl (Natalia?) sighed. "I really wish we had Dark or Kairi here."

Twilight made a moaning sound. Probably agreeing with her.

"We can't take Selenia with us because she's a civilian. Ion's bad enough. We can put him on Twilight's back in a pinch. I'd rather not have two people slowing us down," Jade said. I scowled, but Sync beat me to the argument.

"She won't slow us down. She's a damn good fonist and she can outrun Asch any day," he said. Tear sighed.

"We might as well bring her with us, at least until we rescue the people down there. She can rejoin the citizens of St. Binah when we get them to safety."

Jade sighed at having lost the argument, and I smirked. "So? Let's get going."

Reighn helped Ion up onto his back, while Twilight and Sync moved to the front of the formation, Natalia, Anise, and Tear following them. Jade kept me back with him and Reighn. We were running, of course, which was why Reighn was carrying Ion for the time being until he got tired, since we needed Twilight up front.

"Why did you insist on staying behind instead of going with your grandmother?" Jade asked after a while, when we'd all slowed to a walk to conserve energy. I twirled my staff around a bit.

"Well... Grams is always asking me to fetch herbs and stuff from outside the city. I figure, I'm used to monsters and bandits. And Papa's always so busy, or worried, or tired, and... I just wanted to help him..."

"You thought you could help him hold the Kimlascan soldiers off until the rest of the city was safe," Reighn said. It wasn't so much a guess as it was a statement.

I nodded, reluctantly. "Also... I'm tired of people treating me like I'm just some weak little girl." I shot a pointed glare at Jade once I'd gotten that comment out. "I'm fourteen years old. I've been running around outside St. Binah since I was six, and I've been doing that just fine without supervision since I was eight. I know my limitations, I know how to counter them, and I don't need to be reminded of them every time I step outside my house."

"Which is why you're dressed the way you are."

I looked up at Reighn and blinked a few times. "Are you sure you're not telepathic?"

Reighn chuckled and reached down to mess up my hair. "You remind me a lot of me... Although I was a few years younger than you are now."

"Are you referring to how you ended up in Fon Master Evenos' service a full two months before you turned ten?"

Reighn stared at Jade like the colonel had grown a new head (as if he needed one, one brain was more than enough for him). "How did you...?"

"I managed to get a little research done before the Oracle Knights threw me in the dungeons. Most people in the Order don't realize that you're almost six months younger than they think you are. Ion said you were twenty-two back in Baticul. Your birthday isn't for another month yet, though, is it?"

Reighn smirked, and looked at where Ion and Anise were chatting away happily ahead of us. "Five weeks. Although I must say, if Ion chooses to and then manages to circumvent Mohs and appoint Anise as the head of his Fon Master Guards before Gnome-Redecan, she'll beat my record for youngest."

"Assuming he places her in charge," Jade added.

"She's been bugging me all day about what it's like being in charge. She seems to have appointed herself my apprentice or something of the sort. I hate to burst her bubble, but Star's the only girl I've ever come close to giving that title."

I crossed my arms. "Star? What happened to her, then?"

Reighn shrugged. "I'm not entirely sure. I left the Order to care for Aerith and Matthias, because Matthias was sick. He died, Ion was replicated, Star disappeared. I never went back... officially. Van had me working for him up until he tried to have Kairi killed."

Jade adjusted his glasses. "Well, we'll worry about that another time. Though I must admit I'm surprised you seem to think that Anise will be the next Head of the Fon Master Guardians."

Reighn gave him a look, one I couldn't really read. "What do you think?"

Jade didn't answer for a while, as if he was contemplating whether to answer or not. "I think you should go back. All of Ion's Fon Master Guardians were replaced two years ago. You know the truth. Ion knows that. And you've got more than thrice the experience of the rest of them. I think they need that experience now."

I thought about that and nodded. "I agree. Besides, you're already kinda acting the part."

Reighn blinked a few times, then chuckled. "Yeah, I guess I have been. Heh... Hard to get out of the habit of worrying over that kid. Him and Sync both, really."

Jade nodded. "Once a soldier, always a soldier. Which... is why I've been trying to keep you out of this mess, Selenia. War isn't a game."

I took a deep breath. "You think I don't know that? There's a reason why Papa's always cold around you. Mama was a soldier, too. She died in Northern Chesedonia."

Jade almost missed a step. "What? But, military protocol—"

"Mama never changed her last name. No one knew she was married to Papa, they all just thought they were good friends, up until Mama died and the MP had to bring her ashes back to us. They saw me, and Papa admitted to having married her, but by then it was too late."

Jade looked down at me with horror. "Second Lieutenant Maria Andres. That was your mother, wasn't it?" I nodded, and Jade looked away, taking a deep breath.

"Jade? Is something wrong?"

The three of us looked up at where Anise, Ion, and Sync were looking back. Ion and Anise looking concerned for Jade, Sync silently asking me if I was alright, by that look.

"Tear, is it alright if we stop here for the night?" Jade called to the girl who'd switched with Sync. She looked back at him, then at the sky. It wasn't quite dark yet, but...

"Alright. But we should leave early tomorrow morning," she agreed.

"That's fine," Jade said. "But I think Selenia and I both need to stop."

Natalia crossed her arms and gave Sync a look. "I thought you said she wouldn't slow us down?" she whined. Sync looked ready to reach over and slap her.

"Jade just figured out who her mother is, idiot!" he said. It had rather the same effect. Natalia looked like he'd physically hit her.

"What?"

Sync walked over to me and gently pulled me away from Jade, who also stepped away from the main group. In the opposite direction, I noted. I sat down against a tree and curled up, Sync sitting right next to me. Ion ended up on my other side, while Twilight laid in front of us.

I watched as Natalia followed Jade.

"Sel?" Sync whispered.

I let my head drop into my knees, and for the first time in five years, I cried.

Fun Fact: "You know, I keep calling her a little girl, but she might actually be older than me..." Yes, Selenia, she is older than you. By about a year. –sighs- Even though you look a little older than her...