Vamps and Ronins

Chapter Eleven: Nature's Love, Nature's Soul, Nature's Call, Prophecies Unfold

Written By: Tiasha

~

I spent a day by the river

It was quiet and the wind stood still

I spent some time with nature

To remind me of all that's real

It'sfunny how silence speaks sometimes when you're alone

And remember that you feel

Creed, "Faceless Man"

~

The rain had started nearly half an hour ago, around the same time when she had taken her seat out here in the sunroom. Robyn listened to the soft patter of rain on the glass and siding, staring ruefully at the surreal landscape bathed in the misty rain. Even the earth had to remind her of how pure it was, untainted by the evil of man. She sadly watched as a few sparrows twittered across the large lawn to the forest, seeking shelter from the gentle yet large raindrops.

She traced a raindrop on the glass as she heard murmuring inside. She caught only a few words of the conversation but her lips twitched upward as she heard Kento whine about how hungry he was. She frowned however, as a dull pain flooded her head and she quickly took another sip of her tea. Cody had refilled her cup only five minutes ago and she was grateful. The tea soothed her nerves though she was not suffering from a migraine the way Mariko and Sage were, but she felt immensely guilty, for they were suffering because of her.

The sounds of bantering continued and Robyn was pretty sure that she heard Rowen and Cody arguing again; though she personally wouldn't call it arguing, more like flirting. Robyn smiled at the fact that Cody had come out of her own shell. She had noticed how the bearer of Gaea was uncomfortable dropping her soldier façade but it seemed that as they all spent a little more time together, everyone was dropping the tough soldier act, all but Sage that is. He was still being indifferent as always, which did not surprise her in the least actually. Everyone else was willing to forget what was going on if only for a few moments of peace and normalcy, no one even hinting that they were all in danger still. They were all tired and more than eager to accept some friendly bickering and fun.

But Robyn could not help but remember those bodies lying motionless on the floor. She had never wished to hurt them; she had just wanted them to leave her alone. She had wanted to come home and not worry about anything but graduation, exams, and make-up work. But she had killed them, not injured, killed. And she felt no better than Dragon or Talpa…

Robyn stood abruptly, letting the afghan fall to the futon without a second thought. Even though it was nearing summer and the weather was quite warm, Robyn had been cold, cold from the inside out. The fact of knowing that she carried a spawn of evil inside of her body had chilled her soul and the afghan had provided some comfort. But as she now placed her tea on the coffee table and moved to the porch door, she felt almost rejuvenated, wanting nothing more than to run without limitations and without worries.

She opened the screen door and stepped outside into the rain, raising her head to the sky. The rain kissed her face as droplets cascaded down her cheeks and nose, her clothes becoming damp. She stepped down the stairs and off the porch silently, not bothering to tell anyone she was going. She knew they would either insist she stay put or someone go with her if she did, but all she wanted was to be alone. As she stepped onto the wet grass, she stared at the scene before her. It was so beautiful.

She walked across the lawn to the forest, remotely wondering how upset Cye would be when he found her missing from the sunroom. Her socks were now soaked, creating a slight squishy sound as she continued on. When she was a few yards away from the forest, Robyn broke out into a run, her footsteps hurried as she raced into the heart of nature and away from man.

Robyn dodged a few low branches as she finally slowed to a walk. She had no idea how long or far she had ran, but she felt better despite various cuts across her face, arms and legs from branches and bramble. It was almost as if a slight burden had been lifted and she felt cleansed. She meandered on, feeling free of worries and a surreal sense of peace soothed her frazzled nerves. Nature was trying to help her forget and she smiled.

She paused when the underbrush lightened and a clearing came before her. It's serene atmosphere filled her with extra energy and she smiled again. Her smile quickly turned to a frown as she heard an eerie howl resonate through the forest. She ignored it upon realizing how distant it was and stepped into the middle of the clearing, lifting her head up to stare at the gray sky through the patches of foliage. Droplets of water continued to fall but they had now slowed to a drizzle and Robyn stood there for a time allowing her clothes to become thoroughly soaked by the falling water.

The same eerie howl reached her ears five minutes later and Robyn realized that it was now a bit closer than before. She quickly decided that it was time to head back. No sense in becoming some animal's meal just because she had to get away and be alone. She turned and took a step to retrace her path but stopped as she heard a rustle in the underbrush off to her left. Whipping her head in that direction, she stared into the foliage, watching intently for some sign of movement. Nothing.

A growl was emitted from the other side and Robyn turned, gasping as she saw a pack of wolves emerge from the edge of the clearing. They paced around her, all thirteen of them forming an elaborate circle with her in the middle and Robyn watched terrified as many of the wolves licked their muzzles. One prepared to jump and Robyn backed up a step as it launched itself at her. She raised her arm in front of her face, screaming as she was left helpless to these beasts. All she could do was hope that she would die quickly.

---

They all stared at it with such wariness that one would believe they were afraid it would jump up and bite them. Mariko finally moved to the table, relinquishing her spot on the wall for Cody to have as the younger twin now entered the room, curious as to why almost everyone was at the kitchen table. The eldest twin picked up the marble-like object, turning it over and over in her hand, contemplating what the kanji was. Hogo.

Mariko turned to look at her sister, "Cody, get my dictionary will you?"

Cody raised an eyebrow at the request, pushing of the wall as a sigh of resignation but halted as Rowen spoke.

"It means protection," he stated from his seat next to Ryo. Mariko turned to look at him and then at the marble before placing it on the table.

"No wonder she kept on having a streak of good luck," Mariko laughed.

"Good luck? She's been threatened, stalked, shot at, kidnapped and for the love of Anubis you call that good?!" Cye yelled, slamming his palms on the table, standing. "I don't know where you get your definitions but the last time I looked, good was something totally different!"

Mariko stared at him calmly, assessing his sudden outburst. "Well, Robyn is alive is she not? The fact that she wasn't killed in all of that proves that the armor reacted to her. She had it with her every time."

"She told me that the guy who sold her the marble also gave her a wooden cross and said that that would protect her," Rowen said, frowning. "Is it possible that the guy was wrong?"

Mariko blanched, "He said what? No wonder Matt was so antsy when he got near her!"

"What? Because of the cross?" Kento asked, remembering how vampires were always afraid of crosses in the movies.

"No, the wood."

"The wood? I thought it was a stake through the heart?"

"Close…any wood objects, excluding trees and shrubs and things of that sort. Wood can kill him if he's not careful."

Silence reigned for a moment, Cye now sitting back down in his chair and a few of them looked up when the screen door out in the sunroom opened and closed. Rowen raised an eyebrow and strained to see around the corner but with no luck.

"Think someone should check on her?" Kento asked, preparing to get up.

Ryo shook his head, "Nah, it's probably just White Blaze wanting in now that he's all wet."

"What's a White Blaze?" Cody asked anxiously, eyeing them all worriedly.

"A really big kitty," Mia joked and the Ronins laughed. White Blaze was definitely a really BIG kitty. They frowned when Mariko and Cody looked at each other apprehensively; the two seemed to know something they did not.

"Why? What's the big deal?" Kento asked frowning as they two smiled weakly at them all. Cody moved to the sunroom a bit too quickly for their comfort.

"No reason," the twins answered in unison rather quickly. Cody was just about to turn the corner when Mia spoke.

"The two animals will be fine Cody. I'm sure of it," the brunette explained.

"Uh, not if Shadow attacks it!" Cody responded.

"Shadow? What's a Shadow?" Rowen mimicked and Cody glared.

"A really BIG puppy!" the younger twin announced with nervousness.

Kento and Rowen cringed at the answer and mental picture. A tiger versus a wolf? Oh yeah…not a good thing, especially the outcome of such a fight.

"When did you get a wolf?" Ryo inquired curious as to how another person had acquired such an…exotic pet.

Cody was about to answer when a faint, eerie howl reached their ears. Cody grinned ruefully, "That would be my precious now. She can never keep her muzzle shut. I found my little precious when I found my armor. Shadow was the guardian of my armor and she was only a pup at the time, poor thing. She was so exhausted and malnourished when she came to me. So I nursed her back to health and she has been with me ever since," the bearer of Gaea explained. She then sighed in exasperation, "Can I go now?"

"I don't know, can you?" Mariko teased.

"Har har…may I go now little Miss Grammar Perfectionist?"

"Kaijuu."

"Perra."

"Dotashimashite imoto."

"De nada."

Kento blinked, "What did you guys just say? I caught the 'monster' and 'thank you, little sister' part."

Mariko and Cody grinned at them as if it were their own little secret. "Sorry, my lips are sealed," Mariko joked and Cody nodded saying ditto for herself.

"Yeah well mine aren't," Rowen began, "After 'monster' Cody said 'bitch' in Spanish and then 'your welcome' also in Spanish."

The two twins blinked in surprise and shock. "What are you? A human translator for fifty different languages?" Cody snapped.

"Maybe but at least I'm not a witch doctor."

"Salot!"

"What?! I am not a slut! I'm not even the right gender to be one thank you!"

"Maybe…but at least I'm not gay."

"Ooooh…below the belt there Cody. Speaking of below the belt, 'when a man wears his pants that tight, they tend to pinch his balls, and that tends to pinch his temper.' Wouldn't you agree imoto?" Mariko teased, quoting from one of her favorite books.

Cody busted out laughing upon hearing the quote, while all of the males looked at Mariko with an unappreciative look, even a few glares. Mariko proceeded to apologize and explain the situation in the book and that it was nothing personal to any of them.

The younger twin smiled upon deciding to do a quote herself from the same book. "Yes, I do agree; in fact, 'he snarled a lot and kept telling me to keep my hands off him since he's married man. He didn't want to get undressed, but I pointed out that, since he was married, he should know better than to try to get into a bed wearing boots in that condition. While we wrestled with the boots, we pondered how that little fish got wedged under the laces. And Saetan asked, How did it get under the laces. Surreal replied, He has no idea. So I gave the fish a proper burial at sea, so to speak, convinced Lucivar that stripping to the waist was not improper since I'm family, and let what was left of him fall into bed." I remember a few times when I had to do that with you oneesan. In fact you did the same thing to Josh; if I recall correctly you even attempted to hit him upside the head with a pillow."

Mariko presently became flustered, "I did no such thing imoto!"

"How would you know? You were drunk, remember? You almost never remember anything when you're drunk," Cody quipped.

"Damn it, that's right…not fair! Though I do recall a few times when you actually got a bit tipsy. Now that's a funny site."

Cody presently ignored her sister's last comment as she now noticed the slightly mortified expression on Cye's face. "Uh, Cye…you okay?"

"Burial at sea? As in flushed the fish down the toilet?!" he squeaked, the stricken look still present on his handsome face and eyes wide.

The twins nodded slowly and then realized the error of their ways. The two immediately apologized redundantly but Cody stopped to look out at the sunroom when a second eerie howl was heard. She suddenly tensed, hearing something unpleasantly familiar in the howl. It was her Shadow, she knew that, but it was a warning…a warning to invaders of territory, a warning to other packs usually. Cody knew very well that Shadow would stay off of other pack territory and not bother chasing packs off her own unless they came to close to the house. But with what was going on, it was very possible that Shadow was warning humans away.

"Something's not right, guys," she whispered, "I'm going to check on Shadow real quick. That howl was a warning and I doubt it was towards your White Blaze."

"I'll check on Robyn," Cye said, standing and pushing his chair back. Everyone paused and stared at the sunroom in fear as a familiar scream echoed into the house.

---

Robyn clenched her eyes shut as she felt fur brush across her arm and waited for the sharp canine teeth to sink into her. Instead she heard a yip of pain and deep feminine growl. She opened her eyes to see an extremely large, black wolf standing in front of her protectively. The black wolf's head came up to her chest, much higher than any normal wolf and even higher than where White Blaze stood! White Blaze came to about the middle of her ribs and yet here was a black wolf larger than her kitty friend!

The wolf continued to growl menacingly at the circling pack of wolves and then to Robyn's surprise, curled its lips back and spoke!

"Stay away from the human, you dogs! You're out of your territory! I will not let you harm the human, is that clear?!" the wolf growled in a warning to tone that brooked no argument. After her initial shock of hearing a wolf speak, Robyn realized that wolf was female.

"You can speak," she whispered in awe to the she-wolf. The she-wolf turned suddenly and made as if to attack and Robyn stumbled backwards, falling onto her rear end. She threw her arms up to cover her face and again felt fur brush across her arms, followed by a savage howl and a pitiful yelp of pain. Robyn looked up and found that the she-wolf had jumped over her in order to protect her from an unseen attack.

The she-wolf now loomed over a much smaller wolf that lay unmoving. The she-wolf licked her bloody muzzle until it was clean and then lunged to snap at other wolves that had dared to break circle and attack Robyn. Robyn was absolutely speechless nor could she think of a means to escape.

"Just like a male! Never around when you need them! Blaze where are you?!" the she-wolf growled aloud, almost yelling as she paced around in front of Robyn. Robyn still sat unmoving. The she-wolf moved to stand with Robyn underneath her, like a mother wolf would to protect her pups. A sudden wave of security washed over her and Robyn knew that no matter what happened, this wolf would not let any harm come to her.

Two wolves couched side by side and sprang at them but out of nowhere, White Blaze knocked the two down, roaring at the others in warning. Now Robyn felt even safer with White Blaze, for where there was White Blaze, there were the guys. And how could they NOT have heard her scream?

"It's about time! Did you think I could take a whole pack on by myself with a human to protect as well?" the she-wolf questioned White Blaze. White Blaze merely glanced at her and growled his answer.

"Yes, you're right, now is not the time to discuss this!"

Robyn blinked; how was it the she-wolf could talk anyway?

"When I say go, I want you to run like the devil, understand Empress?" the she-wolf announced after chasing a few more of the beasts away from her. Empress? Robyn remembered how Dragon had called her the Dark Mother Empress. She cringed, was that going to be her new title now, because if it was, she sure as Hell wanted to change it!

Robyn barely had time to respond before she was told to run and she clumsily stumbled back the way she had come. She tore through the branches and under brush, breathing jaggedly as she heard other bodies crash through the forest behind her. She ordered herself not to scream as the sound of their panting grew nearer and pushed herself harder. If she could get closer to the house then maybe the guys would be close enough to hear her.

Her resolve not to scream failed when she tripped over a decaying log and landed hard on her arm. She had pushed herself into a sitting position just in time to see the wolves that had followed her. The nearest one lunged at her and Robyn crab-crawled backward, screaming in fear. She saw a flash of orange and white followed by a painful yelp. She cried out her savior's name with relief and joy as he knocked the second wolf away.

"Kento!" Robyn stood and wrapped her arms around him in a bear hug and he returned the gesture. "You have no idea how happy I am to see you!"

"Well, I can take a wild guess, right?" he joked as Ryo crashed through the branches to him. The two were in their sub-armor and Ryo went ahead to where White Blaze and the she-wolf were. It was not until now that Robyn heard the menacing animalistic battle going on. White Blaze roared presently and she winced as she felt a sudden body breeze past her at an impossible speed. All she saw was a black and brown blur. She surmised that it was Cody; only Cody had black and brown sub-armor.

"Robyn!" a familiar British accented voice called. Robyn turned and embraced Cye as he approached her and Kento. "Robyn, are you all right?"

She nodded, not letting go. She had thought she was going to die! No one was with her and it had scared the shit out of her! To die alone…

"I'm fine," she partially lied. She was still intact so that was where she could truthfully say she was all right, but to almost die alone…she never wanted that to happen! Especially not out in the wilderness by savage wolves!

"It doesn't make much sense though," Rowen commented as he and Sage arrived, all in sub-armor. Robyn noticed that Mariko was not with them; perhaps the eldest twin had passed by already and she had not known? Or the more logical answer was that the bearer of Phoenix was with Mia.

"What doesn't?" Kento asked, not seeing the reasoning Rowen was using.

"Wolves don't come this close to civilization, even Mia said they had never come this close before," Rowen answered.

"So you're saying that something influenced them to pass the boundary they had set for themselves and attack Robyn?" Sage questioned the blue-haired youth. Rowen nodded in answer and looked around them.

"Should we check to make sure this something isn't still around?" Cye suggested, still cradling her. She had listened passively, being comforted by Cye's protective embrace.

Sage nodded and Rowen agreed that would be the best action to take. Robyn heard her childhood friend sigh and ask Kento to take her back to the house. She docilely let Cye go and watched the three scatter in a blur of white, green, dark blue and light blue. Turning, she grabbed onto Kento's arm, needing to feel safe and he wrapped an armored arm around her slender shoulders. The two walked back to the house in silence until Kento broke it.

"Robyn…why were you out that far into the woods?"

She contemplated his question and the answer she would give him, for she hardly knew the answer herself. "I wanted to get away," she whispered softly.

"Away from what?"

"Everything…"

"You know we wouldn't let anything happen to you, right?"

Anger suddenly flared inside of her as she realized how many times they had promised her that…and yet she was now carrying an evil seed within her. They had promised her and she was still getting into trouble and still getting hurt! The anger quickly died as Kento stopped and made her look at him, his eyes searching hers worriedly. It was then that she realized she had not answered him and he was still waiting for her to answer.

"We wouldn't let anything hurt you, you've gotta believe me," he assured her and she shook her head.

"Where you guys when they did this to me?" she whispered, placing a hand on her abdomen. She could feel its energy beneath her palm and she jerked it away, still unused to the new sensitivity she had gained with energies.

Robyn watched Kento's face take on a helpless look and she immediately regretted asking the question. She knew they had all been busy making sure she would be safe here at Mia's that they had forgotten if she would be safe by herself at the hospital. It wasn't their fault, she reminded herself.

"I'm sorry Robyn…I-" he began but she cut him off.

"No, I'm sorry. It's all my fault. If I had just given Mariko that stupid marble in the very beginning none of this would have happened."

"But we promised-"

"How about this, you say you're sorry, I'll say I'm sorry and we'll call it even. Deal?" she bargained, keeping a light tone and held out her hand.

Kento grinned and they shook on it. Robyn smiled and was grateful that Kento did not bring up the 'broken' promise again as they walked back to Mia's. She just wanted to forget about it, have a nice shower since her clothes were soaked and the temperature had dropped, and go to bed.

---

Ryo stared in bewilderment for a moment as he saw how large this black wolf really was. After reaching White Blaze and fending off a few other wolves Cody had joined them, knocking away a few wolves of her own. She had then thrust her fist into the ground and said something in what he guessed was Spanish since she seemed fluent in that language. The ground had shook and all the wolves had paused to regard the sudden earthquake in surprise before yelping and prancing around has vines had shot out of the earth and tethered them to trees and the ground.

"Shadow! You're hurt!" Cody now exclaimed, having finished dealing with the pack of wolves. The bearer of Gaea fussed over the wound her pet had received and Ryo took the time to check on White Blaze. Thankfully the white tiger had gained no injuries during his fight and Ryo patted the tiger's shoulder for a job well done as he and White Blaze waited on Cody.

He was stunned as Cody waved her hand in a circle towards a few trees and watched as the mud flowed towards her like a river, carrying leaves and flowers in its currents. The mud-river halted and Cody plucked a few flowers from it and held them to the wolf's muzzle. The wolf sniffed the flora and promptly snorted in refusal.

"Oh now don't you be a pain! Eat!" Cody ordered and glared at her pet wolf as it again snorted in refusal. "Shadow," Cody warned and the wolf curled back its lips.

"Do you have any idea how foul those things taste?" the wolf asked in a feminine voice and Ryo staggered backwards in surprise. How could a wolf talk?!

"I don't care how crappy it tastes, it's for your own good. It'll dull the pain," Cody answered, unphased by the question. She again forced the flowers towards the wolf's muzzle and the she-wolf ate them.

While Ryo attempted to fathom how this wolf could talk when it was absolutely improbable, Cody had set to work making a paste out of the other leaves and flowers the little mud-river had brought her. She was soon done and stood to face him, giving him a quizzical look as he stared at the she-wolf.

"What?" she asked him as the she-wolf came and stood beside her. The wolf stood at the middle of her ribs and she seemed to have no problem with that fact.

"It talked-" Ryo began but stopped as the she-wolf growled at him in annoyance.

"Well of course I can talk! All guardians can talk, whether they are human or not! Don't you orijinarus know anything?" the she-wolf questioned and Cody patted her pet on the head none too gently.

"Shadow! Manners!" the bearer of Gaea scolded and looked at Ryo apologetically. "Sorry about that, usually she prefers to stay silent. She's right though, whether it is human or not a Guardian can speak. Phoenix's guardian, Fala, can as well. Speaking of which, where is that bird?"

"Who knows, that pigeon goes where she wants to go. She doesn't give a thought to if Mariko-san will need her or not," the she-wolf replied and yawned, licking her muzzle.

"And you do? That's a first, the only time you give my sister a lot of attention is when you're her model," Cody quipped and turned back to Ryo, pointedly ignoring her pet's response. "Sorry, you were saying?"

"Let's get back and check on Robyn," Ryo said, digesting this new information. So far there were two of these 'guardians' and could speak even though they were not human. He chuckled as the two of them walked back to the house each with their animal companion by their side. Rowen was going to flip when he heard 'Shadow' speak; he wouldn't be able to think of a witty comeback for the she-wolf for a few moments that was for sure!

~*~~*~~~*~~~~*~~~~~*

"Ah! It talks!" Rowen yelled in surprise as the black she-wolf yawned and tipped her head at him curiously. "What the-how in the-I don't believe-"

"Is it really so hard to believe that I can speak?" the she-wolf growled in annoyance as she moved and flopped down near White Blaze. At least with him she wouldn't have to speak the Human Language to be understood.

"Ah! It did it again!" Rowen yelled and backed away from the large, black beast in surprise.

"Shadow, wolves just normally don't talk. You know that!" Cody laughed as she watched her pet shake her head from side to side.

"Mm, still! They should have known that I could at least. I mean, you did tell them I was the Guardian of Gaea, did you not?"

"Yes, but they did not know that even if the Guardian was not human, it could still speak."

"What? How can they not know-oh how ignorant these orijinarus are. I swear, if the Ancient One had just done what my ancestor had advised him to do then they would have known."

Cody sighed, "Shadow, don't start that again. It's late and we're all tired."

The wolf yawned again and placed her head on her crossed paws, a sign that meant she had retired from speaking for the rest of the evening. Cody smiled in relief and then laughed at Rowen's expression, which was a mixture of awe, surprise, shock, and was that a little bit of fear?

Rowen promptly turned and glared at her, "What are you laughing at?"

"Oh, just that a brave warrior is frightened by a canine," she replied mildly. She was thoroughly enjoying this.

"Yeah, well that canine is large and can talk! Anybody would freak out if they saw a talking wolf!"

"Rowen, for Christ's sake shut up about the talking wolf and help me with this trig question!" Robyn snapped at the blue-haired youth from her chair. She had just recently exited the shower, her hair French-braided for the night, and was now lounging in an armchair, trying to catch up on homework. "Please," she added as an afterthought.

Rowen looked at the redhead doubtfully as he moved to see the question. Cody left the room as the blue-haired youth started helping Robyn with the question. Trigonometry was not her strong point; no math was really, except for Geometry. Geometry was the one class that Mariko had done terribly in, no matter what she did. Speaking of Mariko…

Cody glanced around but found her sister nowhere in sight. She frowned at that and stretched her senses through her armor, trying to reach her sister that way. She found Phoenix's aura in the sunroom and Cody pulled back from her armor. Having Earth as one's elements had it's advantages, like being able to sense bodies even through concrete and sheetrock.

As she had concluded, Mariko was out in the sunroom, hanging a few hammocks up. The futon was pulled out, covered in sheets and pillows and Cody tipped her head curiously. She watched her sister place the last hammock up and then turn to her, smiling.

"I figured you'd want the futon since you don't exactly like the floating feeling hammocks give," her sister announced and Cody nodded her thanks. Silence reigned for a moment before Cody frowned at the look her sister was giving her.

"What?" she asked defensively as she recognized the look. It was an almost maternal look and Cody usually hated it. She hated being the baby and she was not fond of being babied, though she did tolerate it when need be.

"Do you want to talk about it?"

Cody blinked and took a step back; what was she referring to?

"You know, about which ever Ronin?" her sister coaxed. Cody blanched; she had totally forgot that she had wanted help getting out of her soldier façade, and the offer Strata had made her. What was Mariko talking about now thought? Did her sister see something that she did not?

"Cody, come sit," her sister again coaxed.

Cody docilely sat down next to her sister on the futon, waiting for whatever embarrassment or anger to strike. "What is it you see?" Cody finally asked.

"You and Rowen are arguing more often," was the answer the younger twin received. She huffed; her sister was going to be cryptic again and she did NOT appreciate it.

"So? It's too easy to pick on him."

"Really? You don't think it is something else?"

"No, why?"

"Well, I was thinking…you're element is earth, his is air…you're an atarashii ronin and his is an orijinaru…"

"What are you getting at onesan?"

"Opposites attract."

"Excuse me?"

"You heard me imoto"

"Yes, but I wasn't sure if I heard you correctly. And what you're saying is absolutely impossible."

"How so?"

"He doesn't like me and I think I'd know if I liked him, which I don't."

"Cody-chan, you've never been in love, you've never dated and you've never had a boyfriend. How would you know?"

Cody had no answer for her sister. Was it even remotely possible that she and Rowen were not arguing but in fact flirting? It did not seem logical…Cody would know if she was flirting and she was sure that she was not.

Mariko shook her head at her sister, "Not necessarily imoto. One does not always realize that they are flirting."

Cody frowned at her sister, "Don't do that again."

"Do what?" Mariko asked, startled.

"Use our blood-relation and armors to read what I'm thinking. It's too weird."

"Fine, but I'm hardly any good at it and it only happens when you are confused, greatly confused might I add."

Cody frowned in thought as this new information sunk in. She supposed that it was possible that she and Rowen were flirting but…it just did not seem like it. Cody always received the impression that Rowen was interested in Robyn, and not in the friendly sense either. But Cody had no ill-feeling towards Robyn or Rowen and that was what continued to tell her that she and Rowen were not flirting.

Cody looked up suddenly as she realized that her sister had left the room already, leaving her alone with her thoughts. Cody brooded over what her sister had just said; one did not always realize that they were fighting…

Was it even possible? The thought triggered an odd feeling of excitement, but fear seemed to drown out all other emotions. She actually feared the possibility.

---

Sage calmly walked down the stairs of Mia's home, having just left a message on the machine at home, informing his parents that he would be spending the night at Mia's with the others. He did not doubt that they would be greatly alarmed by the sudden change of plans…but they would all need to come up with a cover story.

He turned the corner of the hallway and entered the den, only to pause in his tracks. He blinked and stared wide-eyed at the large canine predator that was staring at him a bit too intently. He knew he was paler than normal when Robyn asked him what was wrong. Sage did not bother to look away from the beast, nor answer his female friend. He heard her laugh after a moment and Sage broke eye contact with the black beast to whip his head in her direction, throwing a glare at her as she laughed even harder.

"Geez Sage, it's just a wolf," she said to him all too casually. Just a wolf? Was she blind?! The wolf was larger than White Blaze and yet she had made it sound as if it were a puppy!

Sage reminded himself that this was Robyn and she did have a tendency to treat every animal as if it were a baby of some sort. She seemed to love all animals, and he should not have found it shocking that she would act like the LARGE wolf was but a puppy.

"At least I'm not the only one who finds her intimidating," Rowen muttered from his seat on the sofa.

"Hush Blue-boy," Robyn replied. Rowen snorted at her order and went back to reading his book.

Sage watched as Robyn rolled her eyes and closed her Trigonometry book and crawled down onto the floor. White Blaze and the black wolf were lying on the floor next to her armchair, obviously not wanting to leave her alone. Robyn then buried her face in the large animal's fur. The wolf merely glanced at her, yawned, gave him a warning look and then placed its head on its paws, still watching him. The wolf had seemed to adopt Robyn as her own to be giving such a look of warning and Sage suppressed a shudder.

Robyn was oblivious to the looks the wolf was sending him as he moved to find Mia and inform her that he was no longer using the phone. The young redhead still had her face buried in the wolf's fur and only looked up when Rowen spoke to her.

"I thought you were going to do homework?" the blue-haired youth questioned. Robyn merely groaned and stuck her tongue at him before curling up next to the wolf as if to take a nap.

Sage quickly retreated to the study, glad to be out of the wolf's line of vision. The wolf unnerved him; he had never been fond of predator animals and with a wolf larger than White Blaze being inside the house did not ease his discomfort one bit.

Upon entering the study, Sage noticed that both Mariko and Mia were glued to a highly expensive laptop computer. Since when did Mia own a laptop? Mariko's eyes darted away from the screen to look at him before returning her attention to the computer. Mia did not even spare him a glance. The brunette was furiously typing away at the laptop and Sage wondered what had their undivided attention.

He cleared his throat, "I'm done with the phone Mia."

"Thanks Sage," was the only reply.

Sage frowned, granted he did not appreciate all the attention he received but this was much less than normal and he found himself moving to look over Mariko's shoulder. The two were looking at what seemed to be a poem but only partially translated.

Sage frowned as he automatically began translating the rest of the poem in his head. It was quite mellow, depressing and morbid and the title baffled him. Perfect Harmony? Mother of Darkness? Demons arise? This poem almost sounded like a legend of some sort, or a prophecy…

Sage jerked backwards at that thought and read over one part of the poem again. Spring so fresh and green… Robyn's eyes were green and her hair was about as red as rose petals… This could not be a prophecy that involved Robyn, could it?

"Where did you find this?" he asked, startling Mia who must have assumed that he had left. Mariko crossed her arms and gave him a measuring glance before answering him.

"I found it when I went through the archives in the Palace. I had originally gone back to retrieve my valuables that I'd left when I fled from the Nether Realm during Talpa's invasion. I had also wanted to do a little research on my father's heritage and then came across this poem, along with two others. Kayura said she had never seen nor heard of them, so I took them with me when I left. I have yet to start translating the other two," the eldest twin explained. "Why? What have you deciphered from it?"

"I've merely translated all of it." Sage wanted to take the words back immediately when Mariko's ice blue eyes widened and then narrowed.

"Mia, let Sage have the computer," was all she said to the brunette before she abruptly grabbed his arm and shoved him into the computer chair. Sage had half a mind to tell her off but instead glared at her and reprimanded her for such a rude action.

"I have things to do, so if you both will excuse me," he said, preparing to stand; however, he froze like a statue when Mariko gently placed a hand on his hair. He watched her from the corner of his eye as she smiled smugly at him. The look reminded him all too much of the one his sister sometimes wore; he silently prayed to the Gods for mercy.

"Yes, you do have things to do," she said coolly, belaying any amusement seen on her face. "But this could be a matter of life and death for someone and I would personally like to know who, wouldn't you?"

Sage opened his mouth to protest and again stand up but froze once more as Mariko's hand began to apply pressure to his head. He glared at her again, realizing what she was actually threatening to do…she would mess up his hair if he got up now without even trying to help. He frowned, crossing his arms in defeat and looked over the poem once again before beginning to type the translations to the rest of the poem.

Mariko and Mia left him alone to work on the task at hand and he heard Mariko laugh as she entered the den with Mia chuckling. They must have seen Robyn curled up next to the large black beast, no doubt fast asleep.

"Robyn," he heard Mia begin to say, "Why don't you go on up to bed?"

"But it's nice and warm," came the redhead's slightly muffled reply. So she was not fast asleep after all, but she sounded like she would be out any moment now. He smiled slightly at that; both she and Rowen loved their sleep. His shoulders drooped slightly as fatigue slowly crept back into his mind. He still had been losing sleep because of that dream; and now with all that had happened, the dream was beginning to seem like more of an omen than a nightmare.

He heard Mia drop the subject as he continued to work and frowned as he realized that Rowen should have been the one to do this. The guy was better at translating word for word than he was. A startled cry from Cye however, reminded Sage that would much rather be here in the study than out there in that large wolf.

He had finished poem not long ago and now he stared at it, reading it over and over again as a sense of dread washed over him. Even though the poem did not specifically refer to Robyn as the Mother Empress, Sage could not shake the feeling that Robyn WAS this Mother Empress…

Oh God…she doesn't deserve this… he thought to himself as he stared blankly at the laptop screen. Hasn't she been through enough? Her parents having so many problems was enough torture for a child but this too?!

Sage took a deep breath and closed his eyes to try and calm his thoughts. The least he could do at this point was to be there for her when she needed them all. He now understood how she felt about her past having gone into her personal astral plane, which did not seem to worry him as much as he had originally thought it would. For to go to someone's astral plane was almost like reading their minds and emotions, like being a part of them. He had been raised to respect everyone's privacy, he cherished his own greatly, and he had never set foot anywhere near or in her room unless it had been necessary. He had been raised as a gentleman and gentleman he would continue to be.

But he now knew how deep those childhood wounds of hers ran, and like Cye, he would do everything in his power to protect Robyn from anymore pain.