Elizabeth Brisby and Justin Strauss stood at the spot by the rosebush entrance, blinking their eyes in bewilderment as soon as they arrived at the Brisby manor.

"Will someone explain to us why my guards are tied up with…strings?" the captain of the IM-Human guards asked.

Brutus and several guards were tied up either upside down, to the side, or in other bizarre positions with strong colorful strings and mouths covered. Muffled out for help. Although, Mrs. Brisby somewhat figured out how that happened as she sighed before allowing one guard to speak.

"Oh! Oh, thank you, ma'am," the IM-Human guard sighed in relief thanking her, then turned to see his employer, "AH! Good morning, Captain Strauss!"

"How did you all end up tied and hung up? What is your alibi?" Justin raised his eyebrow, inquired in a slight authoritative tone as he crossed his arms.

"There's a crazy middle aged woman in the Brisby manor…! She tied us up in these traps with the crow spirit…!" the guard explained while Elizabeth untied Brutus.

"She's strong, sir… a shieldmaiden of the house…," Brutus hissed as he rubbed his wrists, "...no wonder Mr. Ages couldn't raise his voice at her."

"And the SHIELDMAIDEN of this house is her aunt." the said woman, Sue Bates, stood by the door.

All guards JUMPED in surprise as Auntie Shrew walked down the entrance, making her way to Elizabeth as Jeremy peeked with a guilty look on his face.

"Auntie…!" Elizabeth blinked.

"Eliza, dear, are you hurt? Mr. Ages just finished tending Timothy's fever," Mrs. Brisby's auntie turned to glare at Justin, "...and WHO are YOU, young man?"

With a calm and good-natured smile, Justin gave a salute and a bow.

"Captain Justin Strauss, ma'am," he greeted politely, "I apologize if my men had offended you with any rude behavior. But, I promise they mean no harm."

Auntie Shrew scrutinized him up and down with skepticism, to check if there was any sign that he is up to any trouble or harm to the Brisby family or her niece. Seeing no sign of malice, nor suspicious trait, the woman huffed a bit.

"At least, this one has manners unlike normal captains…," she then looked at the guards, "I'm surprised these blood-sucking kinds were not dead from the sunlight…"

"Auntie…, they are IM-Humans… the people who overcame the sunlight…" Elizabeth informed her aunt.

"Ah. The same kind as Mr. Ages. And, you all think the world owes you a life, right?" Auntie Shrew continued to glare at the guards.

"Uhh…., right…?" One replied, unsure.

"WRONG."

The guards immediately kept their mouths shut.

"Eliza, now, do get inside," Sue then whispered to Mrs. Brisby, "It's unlikely for a lady to wear just a nightdress."

With a surprised gasp in embarrassment, Elizabeth let out a squeak and raced inside the house much to the confusion of Justin and the soldiers. Teresa and Martin peeked from the doorway as the guard captain spotted them.

"Hello, little ones," Justin smiled gently, "did we wake you?"

Teresa shook her head no, feeling shy in presence of a man who was not her late father, Jeremy, nor Mr. Ages who was still checking on Timothy. In fact, she has never seen a man who was just as tall as her father Jonathan Brisby.

"Gee, you're really tall," Martin gazed all the way up, "a bit taller than dad."

Justin chuckled, then heard a small sneeze behind Teresa. His smile brightened more to see the youngest daughter Cynthia popping out curiously with her eyes big in awe. The captain of the guards can see these three are children of Elizabeth and her late husband. The firstborn Teresa had a striking resemblance of her fair mother as Martin and Cynthia inherited their late father Jonathan's silver hair and brown eyes.

"Hello, mister~," the youngest daughter waved, "are you daddy's friend?"

He kneeled and smiled at the four years old little girl.

"Aye, I am. And I'm here to protect your mother and everyone in the house."

"If you're dad's friend…, that means you're a soldier too? Dad was a soldier!" Martin pointed out.

"I was," with a friendly salute, Justin greeted, "forgive me, young ones… I'm Justin Strauss. Captain of the guards."

"Captain~?" Martin's eyes sparkled, growing excited.

Auntie Shrew sighed. The children… They tend to be so curious and easily open up to strangers, sometimes it worries Elizabeth's aunt. She then heard the footsteps coming downstairs and turned her head to see her niece properly dressed in her casual scarlet dress.

"Children, please get inside," Mrs. Brisby watched her children entering the house before turning to the guards, "I'm sorry for inconvenience… but please, come in. You all must have been famished from your duties."

Elizabeth politely gestured to them to enter her house as Auntie Shrew let out a shriek of "WHAT?!" until she relented with a huff. The guards glanced at one another. Being invited to the house of Jonathan Brisby?

"Oh, ma'am, I…I, that, I don't know what to say…," Justin rubbed his neck, feeling flustered, "if…, your children, if they don't mind…"

"Well, come on in! It'd be rude to reject the lady's offer." Auntie Shrew impatiently smacked his back and pushed him in a house.

Justin almost flinched at the stinging pain on the back. Despite being a human, Elizabeth's aunt does have a strength that could bring several men down. Well, she has tied up all of his men to protect the house.

"I'll be getting more from groceries," then she looked up at the upstairs window having an intense glare match with Mr. Ages, "And as for you, Arthur Ages, keep these men out of trouble."

"BAH, I am fully aware of what I am doing, woman! We are working together for the greater good!"

"Well, be glad the GREATEST GOOD is me letting you live," she then bowed lightly with a hint of sarcasm, "I shall…RETURN."

She then back-stepped into the shadows of woods, igniting a fear amongst the IM-Human soldiers as Mr. Ages rolled his eyes.

"Remind me of my ma…" Brutus shuddered.

In the kitchen, Elizabeth brought out food supplies to cook as Teresa approached to help. Soon, the oldest daughter noticed a necklace around her mother's neck.

"Mother, what's that?"

"Oh, this is a gift," Mrs. Brisby smiled, "the kind man we met last year, Nicodemus, he said your father made it."

Teresa's eyes widened, then smiled.

"Oh~! I remember him, mother~! He was the nicest person who helped us live here."

"Does that mean we would be seeing more from the place father came from?" Martin asked as he walked up.

"Yes, Martin. But, please, be nice to them."

"Well, I would have been nice if they were nice from the START." He crossed his arms, prideful and snarky.

Jeremy and Justin glanced at each other. Indeed, the firstborn was no doubt Jonathan's child. Martin has inherited stubbornness and cynical traits from his late father. And, they were pretty sure if the council members witnessed, their previous insult of questioning the lineage of Jonathan with the children would be eaten back in their mouth. For now, all they could do was wishing good luck to the IM-Humans who had offended this family at the funeral of Jonathan Brisby and wanted his fortune. Speaking for fortune…

"Ooh! Mrs. Briz," Jeremy then finally recognized the stone around her neck, "you got Jonathan's sparkly~!"

"His…what?" she blinked.

"His sparkly~," he pointed at the ruby gemstone, "last time he told me about it, he put magic there~! I guessed he already completed the making."

Elizabeth gazed at the ruby around her neck and Jeremy had given her a slight impression he knew about the Stone, too. Perhaps, he was there when Jonathan started making this jewelry, or even helped him. Especially, the amulet's golden strings seemed like the only person who can make it firm and hard to cut was none other than the crow spirit of fire. Silence filled the entire area the moment Jonathan's widow realized Jeremy had been staring at the gemstone for a long time. And the amulet's position was just the spot where it dangled on her covered cleavage.

"Umm…." she awkwardly snapped her fingers to get him out of a stance.

Justin simply pushed Jeremy's face away from her.

"Jeremy, it's rude to stare."

"Ah! Right, excuse me, pardon me," Jeremy shook his head, his eyes back to normal, "the sparkly, too shiny…"

The captain of the guards noticed his men stood by the couches, glanced around the interior as if they had just been transported into the world of mythical lore. Even the aloof Brutus's eyes even widened when the table was extended magically into a longer rectangle. As Elizabeth resumed to the kitchen to cook, Justin gazed still as she was holding several bowls and still attempted to get more from the pantries. He realized the stoves were in different sizes on both sides as the left side was higher compared to the right side. Justin could assume that his late friend Jonathan partook in the house chores as considering Eliabeth's height matching the right side of stove, Jonathan and Justin were abnormally tall. Then again, she used the foot stool to reach the pantry. So, the captain decided to intervene.

Sensing the presence of Justin, Teresa moved to the side, allowing him as he was behind her mother and once again impressed by his towering height. His reddish brown eyes paid attention to the Brisby widow's hands. Two small hands. Yet, slight callus formed on her palms. Mrs. Brisby nearly yelped in surprise to see Justin's hand holding the bowls she was carrying. Blinking her eyes, she gazed up to see him smiling.

"Let me help…" the tone of his voice was soft-spoken and gentle.

"Ah, but you are our guest…" she began, feeling nervous again.

However, that didn't loosen his grip on the bowls with a mock pout on his face as she knew he would insist on helping. So, without further objection, she nodded shyly with a small "Thank you", leading him to quickly smile again and proceed to set the bowls safely for her as she resumed back to cooking. Teresa was slicing the bread, as she was washing the fruits and vegetables after turning the stove on to brew tea. Perhaps, it was his presence or just herself thinking, but Elizabeth felt like this manor felt a bit more vibrant than it ever was.

Mr. Ages limped downstairs with the help of Martin and Cynthia, then noticed Justin and Elizabeth in the kitchen. Teresa was finished with salads as her mother placed her homemade sweets on each bowl and plates. She was seen asking him what meals his men enjoy and what she should avoid serving them, soon relieved when he explains they have no problem in eating anything. One small tray with a cup of hot chamomile tea, nicely sliced fruits that are for Timothy. Mr. Ages approached the kitchen table to retrieve them for his little patient as Elizabeth thanked him. Noticing the captain's close distance with her, the doctor simply rolled his eyes before returning upstairs.

"But the only treats I saved were cookies and simple cheesecakes…," her hand on her cheek, concerned again, "I should have thought of baking something better for you and your men…."

Glancing at small fruits, Elizabeth swiftly took some berries before topping them on the cheesecakes. The sparkles in her eyes of satisfaction are evident as she glanced up at him. With a small giggle escaping from her lips, she took some plates of the desserts and started placing them on tables, her eldest daughter assisting her. Justin watched with his eyes blinked, soon releasing a soft chuckle feeling the growing heat on his face. Though, he ceased his unheard laugh and the temperature of his cheek grew higher.

'May lord have mercy…,' he inwardly prayed, 'why my blood's boiling…and my heart beats for her…'