Here it was. The lovely city of Marigold. After a long journey, Rinni Faithe had finally made it home. She stood there in awe of everything around her. The streets were far busier than she had left them. For a moment, she wondered if she was in the right place. Of course, she knew she was. For one, was the welcome sign. For another was the newly erected Guild Hall that she forgot about. She had seen it when it first opened,  but she never did catch the name of the Guild in question. She was more of an introvert that preferred her privacy with a quiet book, a stroll through the woods, and snuggle time with her companion. Not to say she wasn't social. She loved her family dearly and didn't mind making friends. She was just so shy and awkward... she didn't really have a lot of friends.

To be honest, there was only one person so far that even came close to being considered a friend. That was Tomoe Tanaka. He was so kind to her and helpful. She could only hope to encounter more people like him.  She slowly walked along the streets of Marigold, looking around in surprised confusion of all the activities occurring around her. It was so peaceful when she left; now it was full of visitors from all across Fiore. All races and walks of life, shopping, sparring, holding events, and games.

'What the heck happened while I was gone?' She wondered as she looked around. She wondered if her parents were at home, waiting for her; or out looking for her. Her eyes subconsciously scanned the streets for any sign of her older brother Masado. There was so much going on, she doubted she could spot him even if he was in plain sight. "Knowing Mom and Dad, they probably have Masado out looking for me..."

The noise and activity of the streets had both excited and intrigued the curiosity of her Snow Vulpix. The adorable little animal was looking around with blue eyes widened from curiosity. Six white wispy tails waved from side to side in excitement. White ears with blue inside them twitched at every sound, a tiny blue nose wiggling at every smell. Just as she was about to dart into the crowd, a pair of arms scooped her off the ground.

She whined and struggled, pale blue paws pushing against her captor. "Oh no you don't, Winter. Remember what happened in Orchidia?" Rinni chided. Orchidia wasn't even crowded; if the little fox-creature got loose here, she'd never find her. Winter struggled and whined before finally surrendering with a pout, her ears drooping.

Winter:

Crissandra smiled happily as she was able to easily hide within the crowded streets of Merigold. there must have been a Festival going on, or a Holiday of some kind. The young wood elfs shoeless feet barely touched the ground as she danced through the crowd with a natural lithness to her. Her elven body afforded her an unnatural body and grace. But as she moved through the street she was careful to stay away from alleys and the darker corners, she might be graceful, but she had been abused by the hands of humans before. Thankfully, she felt safe in the crowd given the presence of guards. Even then she still kept an eye out for any humans who may wish her arm.

She was happy she had found Jan Ren when she had. She had been reminded of how nice humans could be. It had helped her get the confidence to go with him into the city itself. She looked around wondering here and there, trying the free samples she was offered with a gleeful happiness. She was happy to keep eating the small snacks as she walked. She might even take a nap in a park if she was feeling tired. She stretched and happily watched the performers and various street acts as she started to sway back and forth.

Further away from the two a man wearing almost entirely white, and with a large sword on his hip walked through the crowd looking for his little sister Rinni.

Rinni made her way through the crowd. She wasn't too fond of crowds, and as such, she felt very uncomfortable. There were so many people around, she almost felt suffocated. She kept a grip on Winter not willing to misplace her companion amidst so many people. Almost everyone in the crowd was human. There was maybe a handful of other races blending into the crowd. With so many people around she didn't even see the young Wood Elf hidden among the crowd. She silently and carefully moved through the various people, attempting to find an end to the crowd and an exit into open space.

She muttered apologies of all sorts as she squeezed through the crowd. She was about halfway through when she bumped into someone. Looking to see who it was as she quickly apologized, she found herself face to face with a young girl. The Encan girl found herself to be eye level with this child. By looking at her, she'd guess her to be between at 8 and 13. The girl had weird burn like markings on her body and the Encan teen could barely make out what appeared to be elf ears hidden beneath her oddly colored hair.

"I'm sorry! I didn't hurt you did I? I was just trying to find my way out of this crowd." She looked around frantically, growing more eager by the minute. It was obvious that being boxed in by so many people was causing the girl anxiety. Winter looked up at the teen with concern in her big blue eyes. She made a tiny yip noise as she licked Rinni's chin comfortingly.

She hadn't even noticed the familiar figure in the crowd.

Crissandra was suddenly bumpoed into from behind. she regained her standing and turned with a smile to apologize. However, upon seeing and almost feeling the girls anxiety Crissandra grabbed her hand quickly and dragged her away from the crowd. she took her out of the main area and they were finally able to stand without people right next to them. She smiled at her and looked at her small strange fox. She giggled.

"My name is Crissandra." She pet the fox softly, as Masado made his way slowly through the crowd. He had felt it, his sisters energy. Despite their age difference, they had a strange connection between the two of them. He was fully cloaked by his white cloak, the mans long blond hair flowed behind him as he made his way toward where the two were at. But he was slowed by the crowd.

Crissandra looked up at her new friend. "Sorry for dragging you away like that. But you felt off... As if you were buzzing with bees." She giggled and smiled softly. "Your fox is very cute! whats her name?" despite her limited world knowledge, her uncle had made sure she was well versed in the cutest of animals. He said having a cute pet was often a good way to attract people into a conversation. But more importantly, it was a good way to manage stress and anxiety.

Before Rinni had time to react to her surroundings any further, the girl grabbed her hand and dragged her out of the crowd and into a much more open section of the street. Her anxiety slowly relaxed, her heartbeat slowing. Once calm, she thanked the girl for her help. The child then proceeded to introduce herself as Crissandra. Rinni nodded and smiled at the girl.

"I'm Rinni. This is my Snow Vulpix, Winter." The Encan nodded her head toward the white six-tailed fox who was currently enjoying the pats she was receiving from Crissandra.

Now that they were out in a more relaxed setting, the teen was able to focus more on her surroundings and on herself. With the anxiety gone, she felt a chill run down her spine as she felt a familiar presence slowly drawing closer. She recognized this familiar presence right away. It was her brother. Her brother who she was very close to yet never bothered to inform that she was leaving. This was further confirmed by the cool, chilling calm he was eluding. She vaguely picked up on a mood; annoyance? Anger? Whatever it was, he wasn't in a happy mood.

'I'm so gonna get it when he finds me... The teen thought, her eye twitching as all color drained from her. She glanced into the crowd, actively searching for Masado. She couldn't see him. There were too many people. Though she did think she saw the top of his head at one point, however, she wasn't sure. Slowly backing away, she hugged Winter close to her chest. She really didn't want to face Masado just right now. She needed more time to plan for how she'd talk to him. And she really didn't need him to discover her injury. It was covered well by her clothing, but still.

"Well, it was nice meeting you, Crissandra, but I gotta run! Bye!" She then quickly turned in an attempt to escape the wrath of her big brother.

But just as she turned away, she would find herself infront of her big brother. He had felt her presence and tracked her down easily enough. He looked down at her with harsh eyes. Despite his normally lovely demeanor he was in a foul mood after having to leave his military post in bosco to come find her.

"There you are." He said with a cold lightning fanged voice. Masado would reach to grab her before a large wooden pillory shot out of the ground and slammed into his body sending him flying backwards. He had managed to get his shield up in time and hadn't taken any damage.

Crissandra grabbed the girls hand and forcibly dragged her away. She went into the back alleys she herself hated. Her sense of direction would help her avoid getting to lost down dead in. "Come on!"

Masado himself growled and activated his magic. The crowd moved a ways away as he gently jumped higher then any normal person could. But he landed delicately. His steps carried him far as he searched for his sister and the girl who had just kidnapped her. "Damn it Rinni. What have you gotten Into..."

Bumping into her brother caused Rinni to gasp and turn beat red as she looked like a child who got caught with her hand in the cookie jar just before dinner. As she suspected, Masado wasn't all too happy with her. Her parents were calm in comparison. The worst she got at home was a crushing hug from her mother. But this? Oh boy, she had no idea what to expect from her big brother. The harshness in her tone caused her to step back, her face screwing up into an oh shit kind of look. Before she could respond to him, the actions to follow happened in quick succession.

He reached to grab her, but before his fingers could so much as brush her a strange spell she had never seen before slammed into him. She gasped, but before she could speak the young girl from early had grabbed her hand and was dragging her away with or without her consent. Did this girl assume she was saving Rinni? Of course, to anyone who didn't know them, this would appear as though she were in some sort of trouble. The tone of his voice and the fact he reached to grab her would set off alarm bells to almost anyone. Rinni knew she wasn't in danger... but this girl might be after pulling the stunt she did.

While half running and half stumbling behind the young girl who had caught her off guard, she caught a glimpse of her ears and realized the child was an Elf of some kind. Based on her skin color and appearance, if she had to guess, she'd say she was a Wood Elf. Why she was out here on her own and why she opted to interfere with a stranger was anyone's guess. After running several meters into the alley, Rinni jerked free from Crissandra's grasp. She was much stronger than her and could have easily resisted her if it wasn't for the fact she took her by surprise.

"What are you doing, Crissandra? I wasn't in any real danger. That was my brother! And now you put yourself in danger by kidnapping me! And... running away won't work! He can find me pretty easily!" The older teen scolded the younger girl. She then sighed and ran a hand through her hair. The girl was the same height as herself and appeared to be lighter than the Ranger.

"Okay. Time to play Hide and Seek with my brother. Just like when we were kids."Rinni grabbed Crissandra and placed her on her back. It was awkward as they were both 5'4" but Rinni was sure she could handle the extra weight. "Hold on."

With that, Rinni jumped to the rooftops and took off running. She was already in deep shit, might as well go all in, right? Besides, she needed to get Crissandra to safety so she could explain things to Masado without him trying to hurt the clueless child.

Crissandra had managed to get her a decent distance away. As she explained it was her brother she even blushed and furiously tried to apologies. But no sooner the. She tried was she suddenly on her new friends back and they were in the air before landing on the roof. Crissandra wiggles free and smile. "You dont have to carry me! Come on! Let's play." She would happily run and jump to te next roof with the ease and grace only an elf could have. She smiled and laughed as she did. "Come on!"

Masado himself was already on the roofs. But he was a decent distance away as he saw the two running for the distance. He follows after and has his sword sheathed, but his shield was still out. Why was she running from him? What had she done that she couldnt have told him she was leaving without telling anyone. He cursed under his breath and pours more mana into his body. He wasnt as strong or fast as some of the generals he had served under, but he was fast enough to do the job.

Theres the sound of thunder as Masado finds himself infront of the two. His sword drawn and his shield raised. He looked from his sister to the elf. "That's quite enough rinni! What ever you have yourself in it stops right now. You are coming home."his blade was charged with lightning. But he wasnt looking at masado. He was looking at the elf. He was ready to kill her.

Rinni was surprised as the girl wiggled off her back laughing and running on ahead. Did she really think this was a game? How could she be that nieve? She didn't look much younger than Rinni! Yet, she acted like a small child. Did elves grow differently than humans? Or was this just an elf thing in general? Either way, this child was in very real danger if Masado would capture her without Rinni present to stop him. Thankfully, the Ranger was fast and could easily keep pace with Crissandra. She was in fact faster than the Wood Elf, but she kept her pace even so as not to leave her behind. She couldn't risk her brother doing something he'd regret.

After jumping and racing across several rooftops, the two girls were stopped by Masado as he landed gracefully in front of them. He was clearly angry based on the harshness behind his words. She really should have told him what she was doing. Why she was leaving. He should have been the first person she went to after...

She narrowed her eyes and quickly positioned herself between her brother and the elf. As he raised his sword, she raised her bow and released an electric blue arrow that shot past his head. She then drew back the string as a new arrow materialized. This time she aimed at her brother. She loved him and didn't want to hurt him. Heck, she couldn't hurt him. He was stronger than her. He was doing this Mage thing way before she ever started.

"You can't do that, big brother! You can't come here and tell me what to do! I'm not a little kid anymore! Now, lower your sword or I swear the next one won't miss!" Her heart thundered in her chest. She had never stood up to Masado like this before. She always loved and respected him. But now, she was growing up. And after what she experienced in the Sieghart Mountains, she wasn't afraid to fight if she had to. "This girl didn't do anything wrong! She thought she was helping me. She didn't know who you was and you looked like a threat!"

If Masado chose to lower his sword, Rinni responded in kind by lowering her bow. She sighed and eased her stance. If Rinni wanted Masado to respect and trust her in the future, it was time to be brutally honest with him.

"I left on a journey of discovery. You, Mom, and Dad were driving me nuts. You guys never listen to me! You never take me seriously! While I was out... I helped a village. I killed two werewolves by myself! One... one of them bit me." She glanced toward her right shoulder which was covered by her clothing. "I met someone while I was away. A man who invited me to join his guild. I'm thinking of looking for him later... and accepting his offer. And you can't stop me!"

Crissandra was safe behind the girl. She didnt attempt to attack but she was ready to grab the girl and move her out of danger if she needed too. She didnt like the harsh look the man had. Brother or not, his eyes were missing something. She wasnt sure if it but it felt as if he wasnt looking at them. He was seeing them for certain she could feel his gaze watching her, but she knew he wasnt seeing them with his eyes.

Masado looked at his younger sister and let her explain. He understood her entirely and would have probably done the same has he been her age. In fact, he had. But he had made sure to tell his parents amd get their blessing. It wasnt a matter of hurt feelings and teary eyes. It was a tradition of their people. If she had died out here fighting, or if she had been taken by some savage beast, their people would never have known. Her story would have gone untold because it was unfinished. A fate worse then death to their clan. To allow ones life to end without anyone knowing would be tantamount to having a grave with no headstone.

"Do you understand how scared mother and father were?" He said as the air around all three grew heavy with the scent and presence of electricity. The magic surrounding his sword grew in size as it appeared a massive lightning bolt was crawling it's way up the sky. "If you had died out here you would have been forgotten! Left to drift away in the hall songs of our people!" The magic grew so intense it destroyed her bow with ease. "Do you understand how scared I was?! That I might have to let your name die on mg tongue until my death?!" He look at her, a single line of tears ran down his face. But he stopped the magic. And put his sword away. He walked over to his sister and looked down at her before hugging her.

"Dont ever do that again. Please for all the gods never again."

Rinni trembled at the power coming from her brother, yet still she stood her ground against him. He was family; She knew he wouldn't hurt her. He proceeded to scold her in a very harsh tone, driving her to feel guilt for terrifying their parents. He was right. She hadn't really thought things through. And she did almost die fighting a massive werewolf. She watched the lightning trail and in an instant her bow shattered causing her to gasp. Great. She'd have to repair that later. She put the broken pieces aside and faced her brother as he lectured her on safety, life, and death.

She saw tears in his eyes and she realized how badly she messed up. He was right. She should have told him what she was doing. When he spoke about the possibility of her dying and never being found, she tensed at that reality as tears formed in her eyes. Her eyes quivered as she gazed at her big brother. In the next second Masado had pulled her into his embrace and was hugging her as though he had already lost her once.

He begged her to never do that again. Nuzzling into his chest she wrapped her arms around his waist in a sisterly hug. "I'm so so sorry, Masado. Y-you're right. You're totally right. I promise, I won't do that again."

Winter had sat there in a state of confusion unsure who was friend or foe in this situation. Turned out no one was the foe this time. After hugging for a few more minutes, Rinni pulled free of her brother and turned toward the elf girl and the fox. "Masado, this is my companion Winter. You don't have to worry about me so much with her by my side." She scratched the fox's ears then looked at the girl. "Crissandra, was it? Try to be careful in the future, okay? My brother could have killed you. You're very lucky I was here."

The two embraced and as they did crissandra smiled. She made her way out view as the two were distracted. She had already gotten what she wanted. Which was an adventure. She hoped she could meet the two after they got their meeting done. They seemed quite fun. She was already down on the floor and moving away toward the crowd again.

Masado smiled happy and turned to look as his sister did. But finding her gone he laughed. "She was strong I'll give her that. That wooden fist she hit me with hurt alot I wont lie." He smiled and pet his sisters hair. "Come on. Let's go get some food."

Crissandra was walking the other way of the two as she on her way to the guild she had been told about. Her new friend hadn't been able to take her but she knew the way to this guild. She was good with following directions after all.

Soon shed be able to take jobs and have a proper bed... she didnt really know what that meant but jan had told her all about it. The guild would even give her new clothing. Though she disnt think she needed anything more then what she had.

Exit