Human or Monster

by Zrocker119

When one forgets what it means to be human, sometimes, they just need a helping hand. It could be the one thing that keeps them from becoming a monster.

2. Chapter 2

Zrocker119: Well now. I can honestly say that I'm surprised by how positively received the first chapter was. This is a pretty niche combination of settings, but I'm glad that people seem to be enjoying it. Anyway, I've spent a lot of time planning this chapter out so please, if you've got the time, give it a read-through and let me know what you think XD

-Chapter 2-

Start

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"Steady."

"..."

"Steady."

"..."

"Steady-"

"If you say steady one more time, I swear to whatever god will listen that I'll-"

There was a wet Splat sound that echoed throughout the house.

"...You weren't steady."

Doing her best to stave off a Yuji-induced headache, Irene calmly tossed away the now crushed tomato into the nearby garbage can. That had been her third one in the last five minutes. Grabbing a hand towel, she wiped the juices from her face before glaring at Yuji with as much heat as physically possible.

Yuji, despite having tomato guts and juice dripping from his face, still sported an innocent smile. One that seemed to glow as he looked to the side of the island that took up the center of the kitchen.

"At least Erza seems to be having fun."

Blinking, Irene looked over and saw her little girl in her baby seat, playfully slapping at stray puddles of juice and pits of tomato that landed within her tiny reach. The simple sounds of her giggling caused all of the annoyance in Irene to evaporate instantly.

Eight months had passed since Irene had given birth. Eight months since they had been taken in by Yuji. Eight months since she had begun relearning what it was to be human. To say that it was a struggle would be an understatement.

The tomatoes she had incidentally crushed this afternoon were far from the only casualties while learning to rein in her monstrous strength. In this month alone she had broken two tables, 7 chairs, the countertop, dozens of cups, and nine doors.

This all happened within two weeks of the current month.

Every time she broke something, Yuji would simply laugh it off, replace what was broken, and then they would continue from where they had left off. How he continued to conjure up the funds to repair all of the damage confounded her.

But that was just one of the many questions she had about him.

Even after the extensive amount of time that they had spent together, Irene still had yet to learn much about him. And everything that she had pieced together could be written on a single napkin and she'd still have room to spare.

Yuji was simply an enigma to her, but she had been too distracted in struggling to hone her abilities and raising her daughter to truly begin solving the mystery that surrounded him. But that was something that could wait. He had been nothing but kind to her and her child, and that spoke volumes of his character.

One thing that Irene considered a godsend was that he is incredibly good with kids. While Erza wasn't the fussiest of children, she was a baby at the end of the day and prone to little fits here and there. Irene was usually capable of calming her down, but in the rare instances that she couldn't, Yuji was always there to intervene.

Said moments usually involved some sort of little gag that only Yuji himself seemed to understand, but Erza found them entertaining enough that she would always calm down.

"Pretty sure that was the last of our tomatoes," Irene noted with a small amount of embarrassment. They had just gone shopping earlier that week after all.

"It's no biggy. I was going to make a grocery run later anyway." Yuji waved off her concern before he began to wipe down the counter with a wet rag.

As he finished cleaning up, Yuji saw traces of frustration in his housemate's gaze. He could empathize with her. Attempting to take the strength of a creature as legendary as a dragon a restrain it to a human form was no small task. Sure the "training" that he was having her undergo could be boiled down to basic household chores such as cooking and cleaning, but with the caveat that she couldn't damage anything.

Something that was much easier said than done when Irene could, quite literally, bring the entire house down on them should her control slip too far. But so far they had only covered the strength aspects of the training.

The real challenge came when they worked on repressing Irene's heightened senses. Even now, should her concentration slip, even the slightest pinch of spices could result in her having a sneezing fit. Which was a shame, because they had discovered that only the spiciest of foods registered on her palate. Talk about a double edge sword.

Not to mention there was that time her shoddy control over her hearing resulted in her unintentionally eavesdropping on the neighbors when they had been in the middle of an…intimate moment. Irene was no virgin, obviously, but even her face had been as red as her hair for the rest of the day when that happened.

"I can go and buy some more," offered Irene. Taking Erza out of her booster chair, she rested her in the crook of her arm. When Yuji opened his mouth, she cut him off. "I can handle grabbing some groceries, Yuji. Especially if I have Erza with me."

That was another thing that the two of them had discovered. If Irene happened to be holding Erza while doing any sort of task, she never lost control. At least when it came to her strength that is. They believed that it had something to do with her instinctual need to protect her child that triggered something within her to reign in her powers.

While this was useful information, it also held the risk of Irene becoming entirely dependent on Erza for her to function in human society. This was something that both Irene and Yuji were aware of, so they tried to keep situations where said reliance was required to a minimum.

And in this instance, Yuji didn't think it was necessary.

"Nope," he stated with extra emphasis on the P, "you went last time remember? So that means it's my turn! Right, Erza!?"

"Baah," Erza exclaimed before knawing on a strand of her mother's hair.

Yuji practically melted at the sight, doing a silly little dance that made him look like a sentient noodle more than anything before whipping out a camera from seemingly nowhere and snapping a picture.

"That's another one for the photo album," he yelled even as he sprinted backward and out the door, it slamming shut behind.

Freeing her hair from the baby's mouth, Irene couldn't help but roll her eyes at Yuji's antics. How he managed to switch between somewhat serious and childish behavior would forever be a mystery to her.

Shaking her head, Irene looked at Erza with a small smile. "He sure is a strange one, isn't he?"

Erza merely threw her hands in the air, "Baaba!"

Irene brought her closer and rubbed their noses together, making the baby laugh joyously. "Now then, let's get you changed. I can smell the mess you've made."

After getting Erza into a fresh diaper, Irene set her in the little play area that she and Yuji put together in the living room. With her distracted with stuffed animals and other toys appropriate for a child her age, Irene sat nearby, her legs crossed into a meditative position, and closed her eyes.

She took deep, even breaths.

In and out.

In and out.

Once she had found her center, Irene allowed her sense to expand to their outermost limits. Focusing on her sense of smell, she could detect the most minuscule scents for miles upon miles in any given direction. Even ones that would normally be blocked by things such as doors and walls.

Across town at the market, she could detect the citrus in the lemons and oranges that were at one of the stalls. Same with the scent of tomatoes and other fresh produce. Probably even the very ones that Yuji had headed out to purchase.

Feeling her nose start to itch, Irene did her best to reign it in and got it back to manageable levels. But, just as she was about to switch over and focus on her hearing, her nose picked up a powerful, coppery scent.

One that she had grown intimately familiar with throughout the Dragon War. It was a powerful scent of blood. One that was close. Very close.

Irene's eyes shot open as she realized that whatever was the source of the smell was growing closer. Shooting to her feet, Irene looked at Erza, who had noticed her sudden movements. Staring up at her with wide, brown eyes, Erza laughed, her arms outstretched toward her.

Snatching up her child, Irene turned and headed for the front door. Just as she reached for the knob, the door opened. She lept back, putting as much distance between them and the now open door as physically possible. Even with her senses suppressed, she instinctively knew that the man standing in the doorway was the source of the scent.

The man was tall with long, stringy black hair that was pulled back into two high ponytails that jut upward and outward. His eyes were small, dark purple, and had thin eyebrows. A blood-red mark extended from one cheek, across the bridge of his nose, and to the other. Though it had the appearance of a tattoo, Irene could smell that the mark was indeed made up of fresh blood, but for some reason or another was being held static.

His clothes were rather plain and unassuming. Just a loose, light-tan robe underneath a purplish-grey, gi-like vest that covered his chest in a 'V" shape, with a lower section that extended down to cover his waist and groin. Lastly was the round scarf around his neck and brown boots protecting his feet.

The man wore a bored expression as he stepped inside, calmly closing the door behind him. Once he turned around and saw Irene standing with her child on the opposite side of the house, his eyes widened by a fraction. He let go of the door nob, his hands disappearing into his sleeves, and simply stared.

Irene for her part shifted her stance to put more of herself between the man and her child, who was completely oblivious to the potential danger and continued to play with her mother's hair.

"Who are you," she questioned, one hand held out and glowing with magic energy. This stranger was a mage. There was no denying that. His energy was suppressed to a level that even the most competent mages would believe him to be an ordinary citizen. But she was more than just a run-of-the-mill mage.

"What are you doing in my home!?"

Even without her draconic senses running rampant, she could tell from the very first glance that this man was an experienced fighter. While his posture appeared relaxed, she could tell that he was ready to jump into action at a moment's notice.

"I could as you the same questions." The man asked, his expression not shifting in the slightest. He grabbed one of the pictures hanging on the wall nearby. The one he happened to be looking at was one that Yuji had taken a month prior and was off Irene failing to meditate with a smiling Erza sitting in her lap. Yuji had stuck his head in the corner at the last second, a goofy smile plastered across his lips.

The man's stone-cold expression cracked, softening as he placed the picture back where it was. As he returned to his neutral-looking stance, Irene was surprised to see that the tension from before had all but vanished. "Normally, I'd question what a mother and her child were doing in my brother's home, but I can see from these pictures that the two of you are close to Yuji."

Irene nearly tripped over herself. Did this man just claim that he was Yuji's brother? But the two of them didn't look alike in the slightest. Yes, she knew that not all family members were identical or anything like that, but they should have shared at least one of two characteristics! If anything the only thing this man had going for him was his height, but that meant little in the scope of things!

"Brother," she asked skeptically, refusing to lower her guard for a moment.

"The oldest of 10," he said with a small smile, "but it's only been me and Yuji for a long, long time."

Though he smiled, Irene could detect a hint of sadness in his voice and she felt her guard lower ever so slightly. She was better at reading people than most and she could tell that he was not faking his remorse. "If you really are Yuji's brother, then how come he's never mentioned you before?"

The man could only offer a shrug. Knowing his brother, the fact had probably slipped his mind. Freeing a hand from his sleeve, the stranger stroked his chin in thought. All the while staring at Irene. "I can sense that the baby isn't Yuji's so that potentially rules out you two being lovers."

Irene's cheeks went cherry red with embarrassment. She couldn't deny that the thought hadn't crossed her mind, Yuji is an attractive man after all, but she had much more important things to focus on than pursuing potential relationships. The ones at the forefront of her mind are raising her daughter to the best of her ability and gaining full control over her draconic abilities.

Until both were accomplished, nothing else mattered.

Speaking of Erza, the little redhead had lost interest in tugging at her mother's long, scarlet locks. Now she instead found a new target for her seemingly insatiable curiosity. Gurgling out her usually baby gibberish, Erza held her hands out towards the funny-looking person, her tiny fingers opening and closing.

Seeing this, the man let out a chuckle but before he could comment the door behind him flew open, striking him in the back and sending him flying across the house. Irene had the foresight to step aside as the man flew by at near mach speed, hers and Erza's hair whipping in the created breeze. Erza simply giggled and clapped at it all even as the man crashed through their bedroom door.

"I'm back," Yuji announced from behind the large pile of grocery bags he was carrying. "So, I was thinking while shopping and figured that we would give that curry recipe Ms. Mikazuchi recommended-"

"Ouch."

Yuji froze mid-step at the sound of the strangers' groans. The bags rustled momentarily before his face poked between two. His eyes seemed to shine with a level of joy that Irene typically only saw in her daughters.

"Choso!"

Yuji shot forward at even greater speeds than his brother achieved with his impromptu flight, the bags in his arms completely forgotten as he tackled his apparent brother, sending him crashing back down to the floor.

Irene sighed and caught the groceries with her magic before they could hit the ground. Well…at least she knew the man's name now.

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"Well then. You've certainly been keeping yourself busy, Yuji. And I understand why I haven't seen you making your usual rounds as of late."

The three of them sat at the dinner table, with empty plates before them and their stomachs full. With Choso there to help, prepping dinner had been a much simpler affair. Not that it was extremely difficult, as Yuji was a capable cook, but it had still been less stressful for Irene as the Choso had offered to handle the spices.

Hey, if it meant lowering the risk of her sneezing up a storm then Irene was all for it.

Once all of the food had been properly demolished and Erza had been put down for her usual nap, Yuji had brought his brother up to speed about who Irene was and why she and her daughter were living with him. While she had been hesitant to inform him of her situation, she had been pleasantly surprised to not see any hint of judgment in the older brother's gaze.

Maybe Choso was more like his brother than she initially thought.

"You certainly have lived quite the interesting life, Ms. Belserion," Choso spoke, chin resting atop his interweaved fingers. After a moment, a twinkle appeared in his eyes and he turned to Yuji. "Why not bring them to the next reunion?"

Yuji, who had been taking a drink, promptly did a spit take and would've showered Irene had she not reacted fast enough to cast an enchantment that caused the offending droplets to slide off of her. Still gross though.

Seeing her unimpressed look, Yuji offered a sheepish apology before redirecting his attention to his brother. "Are sure that would be a good idea? I already know that you wouldn't have a problem with it, Bro. But what about the others?"

"What about the others," Choso countered, pointing a finger at him. "Regardless of how you may feel about it, you are the King. Whatever decision you make the others will follow your lead. Unless you think they'll challenge you for the position."

While Yuji seemed to deflate in his seat, Irene was thoroughly confused by what she was hearing. What on Earthland was Choso talking about? Yuji? A King? While his reaction seemed to offer some credence to the statement, Irene struggled with the mental image of him being the head of anything, let alone a king.

"Yuji?"

The duel-haired man offered her an apologetic look. "It's a long, long story."

Leaning back so that his chair's two front legs were off the ground, Yuji sighed and thought about his brothers' suggestion. Contrary to what Choso may think, the idea of introducing Irene to the others had crossed his mind before.

"Remind me of when the next reunion is?"

"Just over six months."

"Hmm," Yuji rested his chin against his knuckles and nodded. Given how much progress Irene had made in the last eight months, while she wouldn't have them completely mastered, she should have more than enough control over her draconic abilities by then. "Alright then. If Irene is okay with it, she and Erza can tag along."

'I still have no idea what the hell is going on thought,' Irene sweat-dropped. Coughing into her fist, she succeeded in gaining the men's attention. "Can somebody please explain to me just what you two are talking about? Who are these others? And what's this about Yuji being a King? I met my fair share of Kings four hundred years ago and he definitely doesn't have that kind of…aura about him."

Yuji deflated once again.

"I'll be the first to admit that Yuji is far from the ideal candidate."

Choso's words caused Yuji to wither away even further, now resembling nothing more than a poorly drawn, paper version of himself…somehow. Irene was sure that magic was involved, but she had yet to detect even a spark from him. Maybe it was some form of discrete Take Over magic?

"What is this, pick on Yuji day," she heard Yuji mutter depressingly to himself, having slipped out of his chair and now lying on the floor all dejectedly.

Looking more than a bit amused, Choso resumed speaking. "Regardless of how we may feel about it, Yuji is the strongest of our little group. And if there's one thing that we respect, it's strength. And if the bits and pieces I'm sensing off of you are anything to go by, Irene, then you would be close to...fifth. Maybe fourth, if you regain complete control of your powers that is."

Irene blinked. While she had theorized that Yuji was strong, given how easily he had managed to avoid getting killed the first time they had met, she hadn't believed him to be stronger than herself. Because as much as she loathed being stuck as what she is, her dragon physiology had bolstered her already immense level of magic energy to neigh unimaginable heights as well as her physical strength.

She didn't think anyone but Acnologia himself was capable of besting her.

But if Choso was to be believed, and she didn't figure him for a liar as he seemed to have an above-average level of intelligence, then Yuji was evidently much more powerful than he let on. Not only that, but he had an unknown number of followers that valued strength above all else. And amongst them, she was only ranked the fifth strongest.

The fact that Yuji didn't seem to disagree added some validity to the statement as he was very much aware of how strong she was. With that being the case, then just how powerful were these friends of his!?

Now that she thought about it, Yuji might not be a King in the literal sense, but may instead be the Guild Master of a select group of mages, and they simply chose the title King as a personal preference. When she looked at it from that angle, things suddenly began to make a bit more sense. But even so, why has Yuji never brought this up before now?

Before anything else could be said, the three of them heard Erza start fussing from the bedroom. Irene made to get up but before she could even begin to move, Choso was already out of his chair. "Please, allow me."

Irene looked to Yuji, who gave a reassuring nod. Letting out a small sigh, she turned back to Choso and smiled. "I'd appreciate it. Thank you."

Tucking his hands into his sleeves, Choso nodded before stepping out of sight.

"Don't worry about Erza," she looked to see Yuji staring in the direction of the bedroom. A gentle smile graced his lips. "Choso's a total mother hen. She's in good hands."

"Speaking from experience?"

Though his smile stayed in place, a haze seemed to overtake Yuji's gaze. One that she was all too familiar with as she had seen the same haze in her own whenever she thought back on her past. "Oh yeah. Once he learned that we were related, it was all I could do to find some time to myself."

The haze disappeared and he focused on her. "But even so, I couldn't have asked for a better brother. Even if the entire world was against us, I can always count on him to have my back."

An unintentional spike of jealousy suddenly shot down Irene's spine. The sheer amount of confidence in his words. The certainly of his statement.

There was a time when Irene held her husband in a similar light. That the bond they had managed to form would see them through to the end of the world itself. But then the process of her dragonfication began and that bond and everything she believed in came crumbling down.

"Irene?"

Blinking, Irene felt something wet running down her cheek and realized she had begun to cry. Wiping at her dampening cheeks, she got a hold of herself and gave what she hoped was a reassuring smile.

"Sorry about that." By the gods, she hated how weak she must have looked just now.

"Hey now," reaching across the table, Yuji gave her hand a gentle squeeze. "You're not alone anymore, remember? You don't need to hold anything in."

Wiping her cheeks one more time for good measure, Irene grabbed his other hand and returned the gesture. "I…I was just thinking. About how things might have been if I had someone to be there for me like Choso is for you."

Yuji shook his head. "That kind of thinking will only lead down a path filled with nothing but pain and regrets. The past is just that, the past. Why waste time and effort on something already set in stone when it could be put to better use?"

Irene smiled softly. "Speaking from experience again?"

"...Yeah. Even with Choso there to help, it…it took a long time for me to find myself again."

"...Can you tell me about your guild?"

Yuji blinked. Completely thrown off by the sudden change in conversation. "My what?"

"Your guild," repeated Irene. "The one Choso mentioned?"

"Ah…that," Yuji scratched his reddening cheek in embarrassment. "I ah, I wouldn't really call us a guild. I know that those are a big thing nowadays, but we really aren't one."

"What do you mean by that?"

"It's hard to explain."

"Really," Irene questioned, a single, delicate brow raised. What was so difficult about being the head of a guild.

"Really really. You'll understand what I mean when you meet the others."

It was while staring at him incredulously that Irene realized that she was still holding his hands. With flushed cheeks, she hastily released him and leaned back into her seat, coughing into her fist.

"S-so I take it that you're not going to tell me anything until this reunion," she stated, her voice most certainly not a higher pitch than normal. Crossing her arms under her ample bosom, she turned her head away from him with a huff of mock anger. "You certainly know how to keep a woman waiting."

Yuji chuckled. He found her sudden shift in demeanor oddly adorable. It was instances like this that made him almost forget that Irene was over 400 years old.

"Well, I don't wanna take away from the surprise."

Letting out another huff, Irene got up from her chair and stomped into the living room, and resumed her meditative position from earlier. Well then. If that was going to be the case, then she would just have to work that much harder then. After all, her curiosity had been peaked, and she wouldn't want Yuji to think that she was too unstable to tag along with him when this reunion rolled around.

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Irene stared unblinkingly, unwilling to tear her gaze away from the sight before her.

"Come on. You can do it, Erza," Yuji spoke, holding the toddler up by her arms so that she stood on her pudgy legs. Ezra babbled incoherently, stomping on the carpet as she tried to find her footing. When he was certain that she had her balance, he let go. "Walk to mama."

Dropping to one knee, Irene held her arms out and beckoned her daughter to approach. Erza didn't require much incentive, the mere sight of the older redhead serving as more than enough motivation. And with exaggerated, unsteady steps, the baby slowly made her way toward her mother.

Throughout the process, Yuji was right behind her. Ready to catch her should she lose her balance. Erza had been only a few feet away, merely the length of the living room carpet, but to two adults watching, it might as well have been a walk across the village.

But slowly, Erza crept ever closer toward Irene. She almost made it the entire way, but as she came just outside of her mother's embrace, the strength in her legs gave out and she fell forward. She was spared any injury however when just before she hit the floor, her mother leaned forward and scooped her up.

"Ma!"

"That's right, sweety." Bringing her close, Irene rubbed their noses together before kissing her cheek, earning a bout of giggles. It had been shortly after Erza's first birthday that she had spoken her first words, that being Ma. It was a day that would forever hold close to her heart.

Erza flopped back till she was hanging upside down in her mother's embrace, clapping all the while. She caught sight of a cheering Yuji and held her hands out, tiny fingers clenching and unclenching.

"Yuyu!"

Yuji was in front of them in an instant, his arms splayed open in a not-so-subtle request to hold her. Rolling her eyes, Irene handed Erza to him. The moment she was in his arms, he was spinning around, laughing as he tossed her into the air to the toddlers' delight.

Irene wanted to do nothing more than watch the two but they had a schedule to keep. One that they were already behind on due to them being distracted by Erza's earlier attempts to walk. So, with great remorse, she turned her attention back to the bags that she had been in the middle of preparing.

Thankful she had been all but finished packing before she had gotten distracted. All that was left for her to grab was a couple of bottles of milk that she had prepared for Erza yesterday and they should be good to go.

Grabbing those from the fridge, she carefully set them in the bag before enchanting them so that they couldn't get tossed about while they traveled. Never hurt to be too careful. Really the only thing that she thought was questionable was Yuji's suggestion for them to bring swimwear.

The reason behind her confusion was simple. It was well into the winter season and most of the country was experiencing some of the heaviest snowfall in recent history. She had voiced such thoughts, but Yuji had insisted that all would make sense once they met up with Choso and the others.

His older brother had stopped by several times over the past six months since their first introduction and while she wasn't nearly as close to him as she was with Yuji, she did appreciate his more calm and collected disposition. So while she would be happy to see him again, she was less enthusiastic about meeting the rest of this mystery group of friends. She didn't believe for a moment that Yuji would bring either her or Erza into a situation where they could possibly be in danger, but a large part of herself was still hesitant.

"Okay. We're all set."

Irene turned around and saw that in the time that she had been double-checking everything, Yuji had managed to bundle Erza up in several layers of winter clothes. Maybe a bit too much if she were being honest, but her baby girl looked so adorable! She would enchant the clothes to be a bit colder if they were too much for the toddler.

"Alrighty then," holding Erza in the crook of his elbow, he pumped his free fist into the air. Though jostled slightly by the action, this didn't stop the baby from clapping happily. Ever the ball of sunshine.

Shaking her head in amusement, Irene threw on a winter coat of her own and tossed one of the bags onto her back before taking Erza, freeing Yuji's hands so that you could grab the rest of their things. As he did, she took a moment to look him over.

Over the fourteen months since they had known each other, she had never seen him wear anything other than casual clothes. But it would seem that the reunion called for him to dress somewhat professionally. Somewhat being the keyword because his current choice of clothing, while resembling a uniform of sorts, still had a dash of his usual casualness with the inclusion of a red hoody and shoes.

All in all, she thought that the look suited him. Although she also had to admit it didn't appear like it would hold up all that well to the fridged weather. Well, if he really needed it, she could just place an enchantment on him later.

"Okay," rather than head for the doorway as she had expected, Yuji instead clasped his hands together in front of his face and closed his eyes. "This might feel a bit funny."

That was all the warning Irene received before he was briefly enveloped in an aura of blue energy. She blinked and then they were no longer standing in their living room and the warmth of their home had been replaced with a gentle but cold breeze.

Fighting the urge to shiver, Irene held her daughter close as she looked around, finding them standing near the edge of a snow-covered plateau. Glancing tentatively over the edge, she saw a vast sea a forest around a hundred or so meters below them.

"Since when could you use teleportation magic?"

Yuji shrugged before turning his gaze towards the forest. "For a while now. Really beats taking a train though, right!?"

Irene frowned at the casual answer. But then again, she hadn't actually taken the time to question him about his magic. All that she really knew about his capabilities was that he was fast enough to dodge her when caught off guard and that he could view the state of one's soul through touch.

Now that she thought back on it, other than what she witnessed on that first night, Irene had never seen him utilize any form of magic until he teleported them just now. Her musings were interrupted by the sound of her daughter cooing as she tried grabbing at the falling snow.

Bouncing the baby a bit, she turned her attention to Yuji who continued to stare out over the densely packed forest. It was only then that she noticed how the trees all retained their leaves, something that shouldn't have been possible in such cold weather.

"So where did you take us anyway?"

"The north-eastern part of Fiore. The Worth Woodsea. At least, that's what I believe it's called nowadays."

Nowadays? She found his choice of words odd. Had these woods gone by a different name until recently? Not that she would've known beforehand, for although she had lived in this country for the last 400 years, she had spent the entirety of it secluded in the mountains, so her information about the wider world was more than lacking.

She didn't have any more time to ponder as Yuji adjusted the straps of his packs before descending down a set of stone stairs that had been cut directly into the cliff face.

"Hold on! We're heading down there?"

He took a couple more steps before glancing back at her. "Ah, yeah. That's where everyone else is."

Irene could tell that he hadn't meant to come across as condescending as it didn't seem to be in his nature, but her face tightened nonetheless. "But why all the way out here?"

He shrugged. "The others don't really like civilization all that much. The further away from people the better. Besides," he looked to the forest. "It's nice and peaceful here."

Irene…understood the sentiment. Even with a better grasp on her senses, she still found life in the small remote village that she called home to be a struggle. But even so.

"But, why up here? Why couldn't you have teleported us closer?" She wasn't worried for herself of course. While she didn't have a resistance/immunity to a specific type of element like many dragons, she was, at the end of the day, a dragon in human form. And as such benefitted from their sturdy physiology.

So no, she wasn't worried for her own well-being, but for that of her daughters. And while she could bundle her up in as many layers of clothes and enchantments as she desired, it was better to be safe than sorry.

"It's part one of the rules that we established. We can come and visit one another whenever we like but, outside of special circumstances, we can't teleport within the boundaries of each other's territories. None of us wanna be rude after all."

Irene blinked. Territories? Just what kind of guild was he the master of? The more she learned the more questions she ended up having. Questions that she had to force herself to not asked at the moment. Because as curious as she was, she knew that it would be better for her, in the long run, to just roll with it.

Besides, she has trusted Yuji for this long and he had yet to do anything to make her question her judgment.

And so they continued on down the stairs uninterrupted, reaching the bottom in what seemed to be no time at all. From there they proceeded into the forest. Upon breaching the treelines, Irene noted that the temperature within the forest itself was noticeably warmer than outside of it. Mind that it wasn't enough to prevent snow from falling, but enough to be of note.

She also noticed that a strange energy seemed to permeate everything around them. It wasn't until they had been walking for almost half an hour that she realized that it was the same type of energy that she had felt wash over her when Yuji first pinpointed the source of her distress over a year ago. The only difference was that it wasn't focused solely on her person, but seemingly the entire forest.

"Yuji."

"Yeah," he didn't stop leading but did glance over his shoulder. "What's up?"

"What's this…energy I'm picking up from the plant life? I can see that it's the reason none of the greenery has shriveled up from the cold, but it's not ethernano. It feels similar to what I sense from you, but it has a different…texture…less…"

"Destructive?"

"I was going to say rough."

Yuji smiled and resumed looking forward. "You don't have to be gentle with me, Irene. I know better than anyone how my energy feels when left unchecked."

Irene winced. Though she had only seen it a handful of times, she didn't enjoy seeing Yuji with such a self-loathing expression. Such a look didn't belong on a person that was always so cheerful and carefree.

She wanted to speak. To say something that would wipe away the thoughts that had brought about this spark of depression. But as the words began to pass her lips, movement through the trees ahead of them caught their eyes.

Even with her enhanced eyesight, Irene could barely make out what it was through the foliage. Only that it was tall and had a humanoid shape. She immediately clutched Erza closer to her, slowly building up magic in her off-hand.

While she prepared for a potential fight, Yuji didn't emit a single ounce of hostility or surprise. Instead, his hollow expression vanished completely, replaced by a smile as he raised a hand in greeting.

"Yo! Sorry that we're late!"

There was the sound of rustling leaves, but Irene swore that there was something else. Had she heard a voice just then?

Coming up so that she stood shoulder to shoulder with Yuji, she saw him adopt a look of confusion. "Wait? What!? Choso didn't mention me bringing someone!?"

There was more rustling. Okay, now she was certain that she heard someone speaking.

"H-hello?" Irene greeted, not entirely certain if such an action was wise.

A moment passed when nothing but the sound of the wind could be heard. And then a voice spoke.

"Can you understand me now?"

Irene jumped slightly. The voice had come from inside her head. It was distinctively feminine, with a tone that almost reminded her of Belserion. A tone that carried a certain age and wisdom to it.

More than a little creeped out by what was happening, Irene forced herself to remain calm and nodded. "Yes. I can hear you. Are you one of Yuji's friends?"

Another pause. Not as long as the last one, but enough to cause some of her tension to return. Yuji must have noticed because he rolled his eyes. With an exaggerated sigh, he called out.

"You can stop trying to be so dramatic and come on out."

The figure hidden amongst the foliage disappeared. Then, the tree closest to them seemed to split open as something stepped out.

Scratch what she had said before. The thing wasn't just tall but massive with broad shoulders and a muscular frame. It was mostly tan with black lines running across its entire body. The exception to this was its left arm, which had the colors inverted and had a large, red flower sprouting out of its shoulder.

The being's face, if she was being completely honest with herself, was nothing short of terrifying. Its head had the appearance of a helmet. It had no eyes, but instead sported two small, upward-turning branches and lacked any sort of lips, leaving its teeth exposed in a permanent skeletal grin.

It wore little in the way of clothing, with only a pair of black, baggy pants that were held up with a white sash.

"You hide your fear well," the voice echoed in her head once again. The femininity of which was in direct opposition to its clearly masculine physique. She also noted that its jaw remained unmoving, even as it continued to speak. "Most human's either flee in terror or attack at the mere sight of me."

With a shake of her head, Irene allowed her magic to dissipate harmlessly and relaxed. "Sorry about that."

"Oh, don't apologize. I'm the one at fault in this instance." the being crossed its arms. Irene realized then that it sounded amused. "It's not every day that our King decides to bring a guest, let alone a human infant and…I'm sorry, but I'm not quite sure what to classify you as."

"I…was human at one point in time. But now my soul is that of a dragon."

The being rubbed its chin as it pondered her words. "I see. I understand now why Yuji saw fit to invite you. My name is Hanami."

Irene bowed her head in greeting. "Irene."

"Bah!"

They all turned to look at Erza, who had become restless and now had one of her mitten-covered hands outstretched towards the…mage? Irene wasn't sure what to call Hanami as he clearly wasn't human.

Hanami tilted his head in thought before uncrossing one of his arms with a finger pointed at the ground. The snow parted as a root sprouted from the soil, where it continued to grow until it was level with Erza. A flower bloomed into exitance from the tip, the sight of which threw Erza into a fit of giggles as she grabbed at it.

"To see one such as I and yet smile. Your child is a courageous one." Adjusting the flow of his energy, Hamani weakened the root enough so that the baby could pluck the flower. The child held her prize high, laughing further when her mother took it and placed it underneath her hat.

"Thank you," Irene smiled, rubbing her cheek against her daughters. "My little Erza's the only reason I keep going sometimes."

"The desire to see one's children flourish is one of the few traits I admire in humans, but I digress. The others are waiting for us."

Feeling an arm wrap around her shoulder, Irene looked to see Yuji smiling a wide, toothy smile.

"If Hanami surprised you, just wait until you meet the others! It's gonna be great!"

The enchantment mage blinked slowly. If Hanami was tame, as that the was implication she was picking up from Yuji, then just what was she getting herself into?

.

.

.

End