Chapter 45 – The New Normal

With all threats to them currently handled, Reina took care of a few things, then she and her party went back to sleep. It was still the middle of the night.

When Reina woke up in the morning, a few things were apparent to her. First, she was incredibly hungry. Second, she was tired, but the smell of much needed food woke her up. She'd almost forgotten the restriction on the Fire Spirit, mostly because she hadn't dealt with it for a few days now.

She got out of her bedroll and trudged over to the fire pit, where Vyrdrun was pouring bowls of stew for everyone. He wordlessly handed Reina hers when she sat down, along with a meat skewer. It took a few spoonfuls before she properly acknowledged her party. Vyrdrun, of course, got the first acknowledgement when he gave her breakfast.

Next was Maria, who looked her way for only a moment. Her usual clothes didn't fit properly, but they were tied in the back with a casting of Prestidigitation and would make do until she could…well, that was something to talk about. As it was, Reina still needed to speak with her about the spell. She'd gone to bed with a nervous look, no doubt wondering what Reina had seen from her. At least she'd gotten over her sickness from the rain.

Grim was next. He was looking much better than last night, also with no trace of sickness from the rain lingering, even if it was just from being near it. In fact, he seemed to be in a rather good mood. A wide smile was on his face as he sat nearly across from her. Reina wondered what that was about.

"Father. May I have more meat?"

"Sure."

Reina spat out her mouthful of stew at hearing the voices. Vyrdrun, who was also across from her, raised an eyebrow before pulling a few skewers from near the fire. He then extended his arm, handing them to the person sitting next to her.

"Thank you." The person who accepted the food, who Reina didn't even notice until just then, was a young boy. Reina froze at the sight. There were a number of reasons for this. One could be the fact that the boy, no older than 10, was without a shirt, his lower half covered by one of Vyrdrun's pelts. When he reached over to take the skewer, Reina noticed he wasn't wearing anything below either.

The second, most obvious, and more concerning reason, was what features this boy had. He had long, white hair that reached halfway down his back. That itself wasn't an issue, but the black wings on either side of his hair were, along with black-scaled tail from his lower back. What he held the meat skewer with was a claw-like hand, which had a little webbing near the base of the fingers. Horns protruded from the front of his head, and his eyes below them were a brilliant shade of gold.

"Are you…" Reina's mouth felt dry as she tried to speak. "Are you one of Derdir's children?"

The boy looked at her, his head tilted to the side ever so slightly. "Are you feeling well, Mother?" He asked.

Reina moved her mouth to speak, but no words came out. She simply couldn't process what she was hearing. Instead, she turned to the most calm, rational person in the group. "Vyrdrun?"

He had poured the last of the stew in one of his clay bowls and changed the pot back into a rod, resting the enchanted metal against his hip. "Kuromo."

At hearing the name, Reina realized she hadn't seen her dragon since she went to sleep last night. She looked around, swiveling her head this way and that, scanning every part of the hut.

"Next to you." Vyrdrun added. When Reina looked at him again, he was pointing to the boy sitting next to her.

"K-Kuromo?" She hesitantly asked, the bowl in her hands shaking.

"Yes, Mother?" The boy replied.

Again, Reina had no words. She could blame it on the lack of sleep—due in part to the Fire Spirit's contract—or the fact that they had a fight for their lives last night and the previous adrenaline crash threw her off. But no, the situation was just too strange.

"…How?" A single word was all she could utter.

"How what, Mother?" Kuromo asked.

That was enough to break the spell over her mind. "Are you really Kuromo? Why do you look like Derdir's children? Why is your hair white? How did this happen?" The questions came out quickly and with little pause.

Kuromo blinked up at her a couple times before responding. "Yes, I do not know, it just is, and…I do not know." If not for the straight delivery and even voice, Reina would have suspected the young boy of being sassy.

"Is this really Kuromo?" Reina asked Vyrdrun next.

"He is." Vyrdrun nodded after eating a little of his stew. "He feels similar, but different."

"Just check your status." Grim said, a smile still on his face. No doubt he was enjoying this.

Reina did just that. Part of having a monster under her command was allowing her to know exactly where it was, provided it was within range. When she activated the tracking feature, it pointed right at the boy. She even leaned back and forth from her raised-earth seat to see if it continued to point at him. It did.

"Okay. You're Kuromo." Reina concluded. Here eyes were drawn to behind Kuromo. It wasn't for any vulgar reason. When a scaly, two-foot-long tail starts to wag, it just draws attention. Despite his apparent pleasure at being recognized, his face remained impassive. "But how did this happen?"

"Not a clue." Grim shrugged. "I've seen a lot traveling with Master, some things that even made me question my sanity, but never this." He shifted, returning to his meal.

"I've never heard of a dragon transforming, but they weren't an area I studied a lot." Maria mentioned. Incidentally, while Kuromo kept his face the same, his tail thumped heavily against the ground while he looked at Maria. It seemed he still didn't quite like the woman…the girl that Reina was in love…

"One problem at a time." Reina pushed those thoughts aside for now.

"It is likely due to the mystic rain he drank yesterday, combined with being struck by lightning." Vyrdrun said. "Perhaps him being connected to a hero plays a part as well."

"The first empress had a dragon, too, right?" Grim asked. "A gold one?"

"She befriended one." Maria added. "Maybe a dragon needs to be raised by a hero? I don't remember any stories of her doing that."

It was as good an explanation as any.

Of all the problems to have, this one was at least manageable. Sure, Kuromo wasn't a large dragon anymore, so being able to fly on him…actually, could she? He transformed sometime during the night. Maybe he could transform back. Strong dragons in her game could do that, though Reina wasn't going to assume anything. They could find out after breakfast. They had a lot of things to figure out.

Before her mood could sour, Reina had to hold back a shiver as something passed around her hip. She was about to call out to Maria, but the girl was too far away. From the coolness seeping in past her shirt, Reina realized it was Kuromo's tail, wrapped around her hip with the tip resting on her thigh.

"You should eat more, Mother." He said, holding up his skewer to her face. His other hand was beneath his bowl, him drinking his stew while his head was turned away.

"I…Thank you, Kuromo. I have my own share." She replied.

Kuromo slowly retracted the offered food, though he did lean against Reina. Just like before, his face remained neutral.

"Did I raise a tsundere?" Reina wondered. It was too early to tell, though some of his aggressive-standoffish behavior before added to the evidence. Also, she was going to completely ignore the fact that Kuromo was calling her 'mother', and Vyrdrun 'father'.

Instead, she wanted to focus on another topic.

"Maria." She began after taking a few more spoonfuls of her stew. "About before…with that spell…" Already, she was losing her nerve.

The girl in question flinched at her words. She looked at Reina with a mix of fear and accusation. "What did you see?"

Reina regretted bringing it up, but she knew she'd have to address it at some point. Better to get it over with. "There was a woman, a maid. She taught you how to use magic. And…your mother killed her for it."

A few emotions played out on Maria's face in quick succession. Realization, fear, anger, and then settling on fear again. "What else?" She then asked.

"That's it." Reina said. Maria waited for Reina to continue, so she did. "And that you're a noble, I guess. Your mother really hates magic."

"Mages." Maria said, anger in her voice. "She hates mages."

Killing a maid that taught her magic and despising what she's good at, it was no wonder Maria ran away. Two years, was it? That's how long ago it was when Maria left. That meant she was 11 years old at the time.

There was a lot Reina wanted to ask, but the way Maria acted said the girl didn't want to explain any more than she already did. It was just as well. That part of Maria wasn't at the forefront of Reina's thoughts.

"You don't know who she is, do you?" Maria asked, a little bit of panic in her voice. "Who my mother is?"

"No." Reina shook her head.

Maria stared at her for a few moments, then nodded. "Good. I don't want you to know."

"I do." Grim spoke up, causing Maria to flinch again. "I'm pretty impressed I figured it out, actually. I didn't know exactly who at first, but after seeing how old you are—"

"Shut up!" Maria yelled at the top of her lungs. Grim just held up his hands in surrender, though he was still smiling.

"Easy, easy." He motioned with his hands. "I already told you, it's none of my concern, even now. That's for you to say, if and when you want."

Grim went back to eating his breakfast, as if nothing had happened. Maria continued to glare at him.

"That said…Reina." When Grim spoke up again, Maria looked ready to rush him and tackle him to the ground, however pointless the attempt would be. "I get the feeling something more is on your mind."

"Y-Yeah…" Reina admitted, earning a worried look from Maria.

"Just know that, in Hascain, an arrangement with someone as young as Maria isn't exactly frowned upon." He said, swishing his wooden spoon in the air. "That's compounded by your own age. Sure, there would be gossip in court about a hero looking at someone so young, but—"

"Shut up!" This time, it was Reina's turn for an outburst. Grim just continued to smile, returning to his food again.

An awkward silence descended on the party as they ate. Grim's comment didn't do much to alleviate Reina's concerns about any of this, but it did remind her of what Maria said before. She was promised to another noble for marriage, at the age of 11.

Reina could see how the events played out, though not necessarily the order. Perhaps the marriage was arranged first, then Maria had someone close to her killed, making her lose a great comfort and driving her to leave. Or, Maria's secret magic tutor was killed, then she was promised to another noble, maybe to 'fix' her desire to learn magic.

There were still more immediate questions she wanted answered. Why did Maria dress the way she did, with such a revealing outfit? Where did she learn to flirt? How could she possibly think doing that with Reina was a good idea?

Still, Maria was a mage, a wizard. Depending on who was asked, she might even be considered an archmage. All at the age of 13. She was probably a genius, or at least a savant. Maria did know a good amount about politics and different nations, and spoke the Gromnar language.

"A girl her age still shouldn't be dressed like that…" Yes. Reina couldn't ignore her girlfriend's age, no matter how she looked, no matter how she acted…no matter how much she wanted to.

The rest of breakfast was spent in silence.

When they were finished, it was time to pack up and get their gear on. Most of them were already set, with Reina being the only one out of her armor. She did wake up the latest, after all.

First, there was another issue that needed addressing. "Kuromo, are you able to transform?" Reina asked.

"Of course, Mother." He replied.

A burst of thick, black smoke spread from Kuromo before it disappeared just as quickly. In the place of the young boy was a large black dragon, just like Reina remembered him.

"Good." Reina nodded, though her satisfaction was short-lived. Kuromo transformed again, returning to his boy form. Reina covered her eyes with her hand as she turned away. "Please change back!"

"I want to walk next to you." Kuromo replied.

"You can do that as a dragon!" Reina pointed out.

"But it is easier like this." Kuromo retorted.

"You're naked." Vyrdrun, thankfully, brought up Reina's main concern.

"Oh." Though Reina couldn't see, she could hear Kuromo's tail swish against the ground once. "Mother, may I have some clothes to wear?"

"Yes, okay, fine!" Reina didn't bother to look through her item drops, just letting every piece of clothing fall from her weapon's gem. She didn't have anything that would fit a child, which was an issue, but also a really, really good thing.

After a few minutes of rustling fabric, and a few tearing sounds, Kuromo decided on what to wear and told Reina. When she looked, she saw him wearing a bloody tunic that was far too big for him. His wings came out of the back, a pair of holes torn open for them. Though she couldn't see, Reina was pretty sure he wasn't wearing anything else underneath. They could fix that later…maybe. She doubted clothes could survive the transformation.

Then again, the two Demon Lords in Keston transformed, and their clothes were fine. That meant some could be made for Kuromo. Well, Meru's clothes were torn apart, but she didn't seem to care. She did say they were a prop or something, right?

There was one last thing Kuromo wore, and Reina nearly cried out at seeing it. "Why are you wearing that!?" She then did cry out.

What she was pointing furiously at was the hat on top of Kuromo's head. It was a very specific hat, one she got very early on here. One that Reina wished she didn't pull from her item drops. One that had brought her great shame in wearing, even if it was only once. A hat that, when worn, blended in with her hair near the back. The same was true here. Even though it was black, it seemed to blend effortlessly with Kuromo's white hair. It almost looked like an extension of his hair, or his hair was an extension of the hat.

This, of course, was the hat that seemed to function like a certain Stand user's from her favorite anime.

"I thought it looked nice." Kuromo said, showing no concern for Reina's frantic behavior.

"B-But that's…It's the…" Reina stammered out.

Kuromo just sighed deeply as he looked up slightly to Reina. "Good grief, Mother. It is just a hat."

Reina, once more, was at a loss for words. "Maybe him calling me 'mother' isn't so weird. Huh. Didn't Maria say I should name him 'Jotaro' as a joke? Almost wish I did now." Hearing the usual phrase of that character put a smile on her face, though she quickly covered her mouth to hide it.

"Fine. You can keep the hat." She said. Kuromo's face kept its even look, but his wagging tail betrayed how he really felt about it.

With Kuromo's clothing situation fixed, the party finished packing up. With everyone's gear in order, they left the hut. Vyrdrun collapsed the hut like normal, and then they were off.

~Forging Legends~

It was nearly an hour later, and they were making decent time. At this rate, they should arrive at the capital before noon tomorrow. And really, they couldn't arrive soon enough.

The entire walk so far was spent in…well, it wasn't silence. They discussed the man they fought last night. How could he be out in the rain like that? How could he direct it? Before, Vyrdrun thought it was some strange magic item he couldn't detect, but nothing on the man appeared magical. His sword was good quality, so that could be sold, but nothing on him indicated how he was able to do that.

But Reina knew. She'd told her party as well. It wasn't until this morning, after they were well rested, that she told them what she got last night.

Storm Chimera Crosier
(abilities locked) Equip Bonus: Skill "Mana Flare"
Equip Effect: Magic Depletion

Sabien was a chimera, just like the Demon Lord they encountered in the last Wave here. He looked completely human, so whatever changes were just on the inside. Reina didn't know how he became that way, though she guessed this mysterious boss of his was the reason.

The crosier looked like twisted bones, nice and straight up to the top, which was adorned with a skull. If that wasn't bad enough, the skull had three eye holes, the third one being on the forehead. Sabien didn't have a third eye, so this was a bit strange.

Reina wasn't able to test the skill, since it was an attack skill. The equip effect was pretty intuitive, based on the name and where she got the weapon from. With this weapon equipped, her magic stat was reduced to 0. It was odd, since her crosier weapon forms had the highest magic stats; the rest of the stats were higher than most of her other crosier weapons, so she wasn't complaining.

That wasn't the only weapon she got from last night…

"Mother. Father is tired." Kuromo said.

Reina looked at the back of the party to see Vyrdrun breathing heavily, almost panting. Despite what he said earlier, Kuromo had slowed down a little to walk next to Vyrdrun instead. He looked ready to catch Vyrdrun if he fell over.

"Vyrdrun? Are you alright?" Reina asked, stopping. Maria and Grim turned to look as well.

He nodded slowly. "Just need…to catch…my breath."

With a quick look, Reina saw a large rock Vyrdrun could sit on. She directed her party there, where everyone else took a seat on the ground. Vyrdrun had his hands on his knees, his eyes half-lidded.

"You aren't alright." Reina concluded. "Is this from last night?"

Vyrdrun nodded again. "The potion…" He said, catching his breath a little before explaining further.

There were two types of potions Vyrdrun made from boiling violet rain. The components were the same, it was just a matter of variety. The simple one was just boiled violet rain, which would extend the time a normal Gromnar could spend in the rain and lessen any aftereffects. Since it was still violet rain, a human couldn't drink it without most likely dying.

The second one was boiled violet rain…from several rains. Every rain was different, but some were more different. It had something to do with the flow of magic in the clouds. There were seven different 'types' of violet rain, though that only really mattered to Gromnar. If one waited long enough, each type of rain would pass over the same area eventually, which was what he needed to make the potion.

Once mixed into this complex potion, it was used for two things. The first was to unlock a Gromnar's shaman abilities when they're young, assuming they have the right traits to become a shaman. As an aside, Reina asked him about it before. The mortality rate of young prospective shamans who drank that was at around 50%. That was outrageous to her, and she'd made that known at the time, but was simply how it was.

The second was to do what Vyrdrun did last night: become empowered by the rain.

"There are many abilities my old master told me of, though I didn't get much chance to practice them. With the potion, I have accelerated healing and heightened stats, and they both increase the longer I'm in the mystic rain. It also lets me manipulate the lightning from the mystic rain." He explained.

"That's how you were able to beat him." Reina nodded along. He'd said before that Gromnar magic wasn't usually flashy, but that was one of the flashiest things she'd seen him do.

"It also affects my emotions." Vyrdrun said with a grimace. "I…admit I wanted to toy with the littling…the human. I was only barely able to restrain myself from doing so."

"He was arrogant for walking around in the rain, Father. You simply showed him his place." Kuromo stated. Reina wasn't sure if that was Kuromo's pride as a dragon talking, since he too could be in the rain.

Vyrdrun patted him on the head as he continued. "Using the potion was bad enough, but invoking the lightning to strengthen it…"

"The bolt that struck you." Reina realized what he meant.

Again, he nodded. "It was taking too long for the mystic rain to aid me. I'm still young for a shaman. If it was my master, he would have been even stronger much more quickly, without even needing to enhance it."

Gromnar shamans were scary. It would be yet another reason humans feared Gromnar, though Reina didn't think many knew of that ability. Maybe they assumed all Gromnar were stronger in the rain. What Sabien said could imply that.

"What's the cost?" Reina asked. Having such power couldn't come without a cost, Vyrdrun's exhaustion being a clear indicator of that.

Vyrdrun turned his head to the side. "My stats…"

"What?" Reina leaned closer to hear his lowered speech.

"My stats…are reduced. At about three-quarters. They should return to normal in a few days."

"Vyrdrun!" Reina shouted. "Why didn't you say anything? What if we came across a strong monster?"

"To be fair, I don't think we would." Grim decided to chime in. "We've barely seen any people, let alone monsters."

That…was a fair point. If the rain was out so much…

That was a terrifying thought. Depending on where Sabien went, those villages could be full of people sick from the rain, or staying inside to avoid a sudden storm. That was the best-case scenario. They could all be dead for all she knew. She should have looked around more.

"But still," Reina went on, "this is something you should have told us."

"Mother." Kuromo scooted closer to Reina and whispered in her ear. "Father had to borrow power to fight, not using only his own strength. You should not chastise him more about this."

Again, Reina figured this was more of Kuromo's draconic pride, but it did make sense. Vyrdrun was usually quite confident, speaking mostly when he needed to. Maybe he really did want to keep his weakness hidden, however unnecessary it was.

"Okay." Reina sighed. "But please, in the future, let me know if something's wrong. We're all in this together."

Vyrdrun nodded.

She didn't want to chastise him. He saved all their lives last night, while she could do next to nothing to help. But that would change. It was the reason she got two additional weapon forms.

Spirit Ward Amulet (Abilities locked) Equip Bonus: magic rating adjustment (medium), magic resistance (medium), Skill "Mana Ward"

Spirit Bane Talisman (abilities locked) Equip Bonus: Spirit Slot 2, forge efficiency 3 Equip Effect: Anti-Magic Field

Reina didn't want to ask for those potions last night. She only asked for one, assuming there only was one type, but he handed both over nonetheless. To her, those potions were Vyrdrun's property alone, not something to ask of him. But after last night, after seeing Vyrdrun nearly get killed protecting them, Reina vowed to get stronger. She would never let her friends be in that much danger again.

Vyrdrun likely understood that in part, since he gave them to her without a single complaint.

The Spirit Ward Amulet came from the simple potion. Like its name suggested, it would protect her more against magic attacks and magic-rating attacks, like the rain. When she tested out the skill during their travel, it created a transparent sphere around her, extending a little more than five feet. She convinced Maria to shoot a weak spell at it, but it passed right through. Reina assumed it would protect against violet rain, but she would need to test it…carefully.

The Spirit Bane Talisman gave her another slot to make another forged spirit. She could still only bring out two at once, but she had another backup now. She could also spend Forge Points more efficiently. The equip effect, however, was the biggest prize. No magic would work, or be cast, within about 10 feet of her. That didn't mean it was dispelled, just muted. It was a double-edged effect, since that included party members. Plus, her forged spirit couldn't enter the field, though she could still forge one outside of it. Since it was an equip effect, it didn't consume any SP.

Reina would say it was a broken ability, if she wasn't level 50 now—along with Maria and Vyrdrun. The weapon probably wouldn't be available much lower. There was another weapon she was waiting to see, but her level wasn't high enough yet. It was one she got from…

"It isn't a problem, but there's one more feat I can do in mystic rain." Vyrdrun pulled her from her thoughts, and pulled his enchanted metal from his hip. "With the help of that potion, I would be able to shape this enchanted metal into any form I wish, and it would be stronger than what any blacksmith could make."

Reina's eyes widened. That would be a huge advantage if something like that happened again. In fact…

"Why didn't you use that last night, or ever before?" Reina asked. There wasn't any accusation in her voice, only curiosity. It seemed like there would be a drawback of some kind, aside from using that potion in the first place.

Vyrdrun shook his head. "I thought of using it against that human, but was able to think better of it. I have only done it once before and I was sound enough in mind to not attempt it under such circumstances." Reina really couldn't fault him for that. "And the weapon would only be strong as long as the mystic rain persisted. Once over, it would rapidly degrade in quality until it returned to its initial state."

"It seems like a bad weapon if it has to be used under such specific circumstances." Grim said.

"It would be, but…" Vyrdrun returned the metal to his hip, then flashed one of his potions from his pack. "That human isn't the only one who can conjure mystic rain. It would only be for a short while—a few minutes—and there would be no lightning, but I am capable of making a fake rain with this."

That was one of the simple potions, based on how it looked. It sounded a little bit like a last resort, combined with the complex potion. Or, more like a last line of defense. Reina could see a Gromnar village using the rain if it was attacked, with a shaman using a complex potion if the humans were resistant or otherwise protected. She never asked, but that would explain why there were tribal villages in countries that hate Gromnar, and why they weren't wiped out. And it explained why some humans got two tribes to fight one another before finishing off the survivors, like with Vyrdrun's tribe.

"Fake how?" Maria asked, joining the talk as well.

"The rain it makes won't be as strong, and it can't be reused to make more potions." Vyrdrun clarified.

Even if it wasn't as potent, it was still pretty useful. Reina could already think of one use for it in the coming weeks.

"Can you make violet rain easily with that?" She asked to be sure.

"I can…" Vyrdrun responded. Maybe Kuromo was right. The way Vyrdrun said that made it sound like he didn't want to have to resort to it.

"Then I might ask you to do that." Reina said. She wasn't concerned about fighting monsters with it. As a whole, they were more resistant to the rain than humans, some being even more resistant, like Gromnar—not that Gromnar were monsters. Some were practically immune, like Gromnar shamans and druids, and dragons. No, what weaponized rain would be used for was something more specific.

When they were teleported to Keston again, Reina had no doubt any templars they ran into would give them trouble. Even if there weren't any survivors from the Wave to say what happened, Grim and Lola—or, more accurately, Derdir—suspected they'd pin the town's destruction on her and likely come after her.

If and when they did, there would be three people to fight sick templars in the rain.

~Forging Legends~

They continued traveling for the rest of the day, making almost hourly stops for Vyrdrun. He didn't seem to be getting that much better, but it was only the first day. With the breaks, they would still arrive in the capital tomorrow, though closer to evening.

Just like yesterday, there was hardly anyone outside to see. The few villages they passed through did have some people working outside, but only close to buildings and not in the fields. Reina did stop in one village to ask what's been happening. Since about a week ago, there's been an alarming number of violet rain storms. Most of them were small, less than the size of the village, but could be seen from the village. That was a distance measured in many, many miles, and those were just the ones people could actually see from so far away.

Reina didn't think a single person could be doing all that. Maybe he was, and he just threw clouds around wherever he wanted. Maybe only big storms could be around him. Whatever the case, she'd get more information in the capital. A few people traveled to the capital for aid, and Reina could only assume—no, hope—that those other villages were deserted as people sought better shelter in the capital.

As evening neared for the day, the party got off the road and found a good spot for Vyrdrun's hut. Once it was erected, Maria stood in the doorway.

"Are you sure you can do this?" Reina asked from behind.

"I'm fine, Boss." Maria replied, maintaining concentration.

If she was sure, Reina didn't want to bring it up any further. Seeing a 13-year-old girl doing magic…well, it was impressive, but also worrying. Reina didn't know if this would put a strain on her or not.

Of course, Reina realized how ridiculous that sounded. Maria had been maintaining a spell that made her look over 20 for as long as she knew her, and probably much longer. She could handle casting this spell.

Just like before, the outline for the door was made, and the portal of light stood in front of them. Just like before, when they went inside, a beautiful and ornate dining room sas the main room, with four doors leading to everyone's sleeping areas. Except, Kuromo never really used one before, opting to stay in the main area with the fireplace—which somehow worked. Now, though, they had five people with only four rooms.

"Kuromo, we'll take that room there." Reina pointed to the previously unused room.

"Okay, Mother." He responded. Reina was becoming more and more certain her 'son' was a tsundere. His reply was neutral, but his tail was wagging. That was another reminder he needed pants.

"Boss?" Maria looked over at her.

"I think we should sleep apart for now." Reina told her. She wished they didn't. She wished Maria wasn't as young as she was. She wished…she never learned the truth.

Reina knew how selfish that sounded, and how hypocritical. She wanted to know more about Maria, to grow closer to her. Now that she did, now that she knew another one of Maria's secrets…she couldn't help but admit the girl was right. Now she didn't want to be with…no, that was a lie. She did still want to be with Maria. But now, that wasn't an option. She knew the truth, so she had to act appropriately.

"Boss!" Maria, however, had other plans. She grabbed Reina's gauntlet-covered wrist and pulled. "Come with me."

"Maria—"

"Now!" Maria practically shouted, pulling Reina to the door she'd gone through before.

The door was thrown open, Maria pulling Reina along all the while. Once through, she slammed the door shut. Maria strode past Reina and stood near the center of the room, one hand clutching her hat at her side with the other gripping her oversized dress. Even with the little work Maria did with Prestidigitation to tie it up, it simply didn't fit right. Even though her slightly curvy figure was in the early stages of what Reina had seen her as previously…

"Stop that." She had to shake her head. No matter what, Maria was a child, and she refused to look at her like that.

"I'm not a child!" Maria shouted, head down and facing away from Reina. For a moment, she thought Maria read her mind, but then dismissed the idea.

"Maria, you are—"

"No, I'm not!" Maria whirled on her, throwing her hat to the side, tears in her eyes. "Not when my spell is working! All I have to do is cast it again, and then everything will be back to normal!"

Reina didn't know what to expect when she was pulled into this room. She was glad Maria didn't try to do anything with her. If she did…Reina didn't want to think about it.

"Even if you make yourself look like an adult, you're still a child. Changing your shape doesn't change that." Reina argued.

"Yes, it does!" Maria shot back. "I'm not shapeshifting or making an illusion, Boss. I'm aging my body with magic. I'm just as much of an adult as you or Grim!"

Reina really didn't expect that. Alter Self and Polymorph, sure. Even if it was from her games, they weren't that powerful of spells. But manipulating her growth? That was different…no. No, she couldn't think like that.

"No." Reina shook her head. "Even if that's true—"

"It is, Boss! I'm not lying!" Maria interjected.

"Even so, that's not all there is to being an adult. It's not just physical, but mental and emotional." Reina knew as much from school.

"Everything changes with the spell." Maria continued to argue. "I know what I'm like now. I'm not like this when I'm older. I'm calmer, I can think more clearly. It's just like being an adult."

Reina held up her hands. "It's more than that. Age is important, but you have to experience life, too. You meet people, you do things, you learn things. You don't get that from a spell."

Maria's fists shook at her sides. "I'm an adult."

"Maria…" Reina spoke softly. In return, she was met with a harsh glare in Maria's eyes.

"Children don't survive on their own in the wild." She said angrily, taking slow, purposeful steps closer to Reina. "Children don't convince archmages to teach them. Children don't learn magic that even experienced mages have difficulty with. Children don't fight monsters or kill people who want to steal from them. I haven't been a child since my mother beheaded my only friend. She did it right in front of me." Maria stopped right in front of Reina, looking up slightly to stare into her eyes, tears still in her own. "I am not a child."

Reina understood her meaning. Maria meant that as a loss of innocence. She could no longer view the world as a child would. Sure, being a noble, Reina was sure Maria had obligations, such as learning what it meant to be nobility and all the responsibility and politics that came with it, but she must have changed a lot from seeing that one, single act.

"Look, Maria…" Reina paused to figure out how to word it. "I understand—no. I don't really understand. I know you see yourself as an adult, but I don't. To me, you're a kid. You've gone through terrible things, I get it, but that doesn't make you an adult. But it's not like I hate you or anything. You're still important to me, just not…I mean, I still…I just—"

As Reina tried to find the right words, Maria's arms wrapped around her head. The girl's face was right in front of hers, a fierce look in her eyes. Before Reina could say anything, Maria pressed her lips against hers.

Reina's eyes widened. She took a step back, colliding with the door to the room. "Maria—" Her words were cut off as Maria came at her again, giving her no time to argue. Her hands flexed, swiftly moving up and down as she tried to make sense of things. She tried to push her away, but Maria's Levitation spell was still active. All she accomplished was moving Maria around in the air a little.

After a few seconds more, Reina was able to collect herself enough. She spun around, still holding Maria, and pressed the girl against the wall. "Stop!" She shouted.

"What's the problem?" Maria demanded, held in place at her shoulders.

"This isn't right." Reina said with a sigh. "You know it's not."

"We did this all the time!" Maria argued.

"It's different now…" Reina argued back.

"No, it's not. You still want to do it. I can tell—"

"Damn it, Maria, I don't know what I want!" Reina finally shouted.

She was at war with herself. To this day, she still didn't know what all they did that one, special night together. She was always too afraid to ask, to find out exactly how far she went was she wasn't aware of herself. Now, however, she couldn't bear to know. Maria was a child.

And yet…she still wanted to be with Maria. She couldn't ignore what her heart was telling her, even if her mind screamed how wrong it was. She was barely able to stop Maria just now. If they kept going, Reina wasn't sure she would be able to stop again.

And that terrified her.

Would she really go that far now that she knew Maria was a child? She wanted to say no, but she couldn't say for certain, and it scared her. She could still see Maria as she was before, when her spell was still active. But then she saw her as a child. It flipped back and forth in her mind, driving her mad.

But still, she knew she shouldn't. For now, that part of her won, and she wanted to keep it that way.

"I'm leaving." Reina said with no room for discussion. She let Maria go, setting her back on the ground, and marched over to the door. With her hand on the knob, she pulled it open.

"Please don't leave me, Boss." Maria's voice came out as a whimper. Try as she might, Reina couldn't resist the urge to look over her shoulder. Maria stood there, one arm gripped tightly as she looked down, tears streaming down her face. "Please don't say you're done with me, not after everything we shared together."

What Reina said next was harder to say than what Maria could possibly realize. "I'm not going to throw you away or abandon you, Maria. But…we can't be together now."

With that, she stepped out of the room and closed the door behind her.

Author's Notes:

I don't really have much to say here. Introduced a new thing, explained a thing after the fact, and expanded on an existing thing.

This chapter went a bit longer than I intended, but I've basically given up on trying to get them the length that I want.