FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

Of Similar Blood

(Typhlosion's POV)

I never understood how Junior's mind ticked. Even being as close as possible I never understood. He obviously had a different point of view on the human than the rest of us. Obviously, I was skeptical of him. He was just a random passerby, but due to his alleged memory loss, he joined our group.

Zoroark took a measly minute to fix the stranger's wound. He moved his newly fixed arm and chuckled.

"Thanks. Um.. Zoroark?" He inquired. The fox nodded his head confirming that that was indeed his name/species. That actually got me to think. Why didn't Junior give us nicknames? For our entire life, he only referred us by our species. My ears twitched at the thought of another name.

Maybe Flame? No, that's kinda dumb. Eruption... Volcanic... Lava... Ugh, my head hurts. I held my forehead and groaned. Junior and Axel glanced over at me curiously. I chuckled and played it off as nothing. Unfortunately, it was my mate I was trying to fool.

"What's wrong love?" He asked in a hushed tone.

"Nothing.. just that my head hurts." I stated. I wasn't lying it did in fact hurt. "But... since I have your attention, when will we continue down the road?" Junior chuckled and pat my head.

"In a bit. Once Zoroark is done patching up that man's arm then we'll continue. Can you wait?" I nodded against Junior's inquiry. He smiled at me before walking over to talk with Axel and Tyranitar about the man. I loved my mate's smile. It always gave me a happy feeling as well as a tingling feeling in my chest. Probably since I love him but it had that effect even before I realized my feelings.

My gaze was still set on the hybrid but when Zoroark looked over I averted my eyes. It was hard to contain the secret when I had urges to just kiss, hug and nuzzle my mate. Naturally, I held them back but it was difficult. It also didn't help whenever the two of us were alone.

I growled softly, but not soft enough. Lucario glanced over at me.

"What's wrong?" He asked sincerely. I shook my head to signal that I didn't want to talk. Luckily, he took it as it was and nodded his head.

"OK.. not in the mood to talk. I get it.. but if I can help let me know-"

"Lucario..." I interrupted. "It's nothing that I can't solve myself.. but do you trust that guy?" My inquiry caught the canine off guard but he shook his head.

"To be blunt, I really don't. It also doesn't help that... I can't get a read on him." He stated. My interests peaked. A human who was immune to Lucario's telepathic abilities wasn't common, in fact, I didn't even know that was possible.

Curiously, I decided to ask about it.

"How were you not able to read his mind?" The jackal just shrugged against my question. It did seem odd. The slightest bit of trust in me toward the unknown man quickly faded away. Now, I was on high alert.

....

I waited about another half hour before anything actually happened. The man sighed and got to his feet (since he needed to sit down so that Zoroark would help him).

"So where are you guys heading?" He asked nobody in particular. My eyes went toward my mate since he yawned.

"We're going to Geosenge town. It should be another half hour of a walk, more or less. By the time we get there, we should be able to find out why the Gym Leaders all rallied up there."

"...Gym Leaders?" He asked slowly. I facepalmed. Junior chuckled nervously.

"Uh... topic for another day. Um... everybody ready to head out?" I swiftly nodded my head, speaking (actually acting) for the others. I walked on all fours toward the glade entrance and waited. While everybody got up and stretched, Junior scratched my head. I growled out in bliss.

"I love when you pet me." I stated, earning an adorable chuckle from him. "I know. You tell me that every time." He replied. Junior continued to pet me until a fake cough was heard behind him. Our ears perked up.

"Does he enjoy that?" The unnamed man asked. He scanned the situation carefully before walking up to me. He boldly placed his hand on my head and began petting me. My ears perked up. A sudden strange feeling flushed my body and I fell to the forest floor, smiling from glee.

Junior gasped then started shaking me. I only growled softly. It wasn't out of anger, but rather, out of bliss. The feeling felt the same as a comfy bed or Junior's fur. I felt warmness grow in my belly. It continued to grow, making my eyes droopy. Next thing I knew, I fell asleep.

(????'s POV)

I pulled my hand back once the creature fell. Apparently, to sleep. His trainer shook him before realizing he hit the hay. Sighing, he took out a tennis ball-shaped item and absorbed the creature into it. That surprised me.

"What'd you do?" He asked me. To his inquiry, I shrugged. My gaze went toward my hands. What DID I do? I thought concernedly. I didn't remember being able to do that, but then again, I didn't remember anything.

Luckily, the guy wasn't mad or annoyed at me. "Guess he was tired.. you need to teach me what you did to him. It'll... come in handy sometimes." He chuckled playfully. I felt weird around the guy. He seemed cheerful and friendly toward me when we only met about half an hour ago. It didn't seem healthy to immediately think of me as an ally or friend. He should've been cautious of me. Hell, I wouldn't even trust me. But, it was nice of him that he did.

It took a few seconds before the jackal, fox, and blonde regrouped with the hooded guy. The hooded guy pointed forward and everybody followed. He must've been the leader. I think his name was Junior... yeah, odd.. that name sounds vaguely familiar.. I thought to myself. Junior guided us down the path and talked with his two creature friends. The other kid glared at me.

"What?" I asked somewhat aggressively.

"I don't trust you." He stated rudely. That made me chuckle. I could've ignored that and focus on my memory.. but I didn't.

"And why's that? You feel intimidated around a mysterious one such as I kid?" I teased. The young boy grumbled.

"It's Axel... not kid."

"Aww, is the kid upset now? Does he want to be left alone?" Axel blushed from embarrassment. He muttered something rude and walked faster toward the large stone-like creature he had. It glared back at me. Note to self, don't find myself in a dark corner with that thing. I thought rationally.

The rest of the walk was to an extent, calm. I mostly stayed behind everybody else to think. I didn't get much of it once I heard the hooded man talk.

"Looks like we're here." Junior exclaimed. I would've asked where but a sign that was beside him read Geosenge City. So it was a fact, I had the ability to read. A part of me was afraid that I'd only embarrass myself if I'd read it out loud. I really didn't want to mispronounce the damn city.

"The Gym Leaders should be rallied up in the PokeCenter. Zoroark," The fox's ears perked up. He replied with a questioning repeat of his name. "Can you come with me so we can figure out what was happening? Lucario, Tyranitar and Axel, you three stay here and keep an eye on our guest." They nodded but Axel groaned. Luckily, Junior didn't hear it and walked away with Zoroark. Lucario walked up to me and poked my chest to which I didn't protest.

"Cario?" He inquired. I shrugged.

"I don't understand you." I stated. He placed his paw on his chin and thought for a moment before his ears perked. He had this odd look in his eye right before closing them. Then, his weird appendages began to glow blue. Seconds later, a cold feeling embodied me before it diminished. Lucario's eyes opened and he tilted his head. Another questioned Cario emitted from his muzzle.

"What did you try to do?" I asked the canine. He tapped his forehead with his paw then tapped mine. I put two and two together and sighed.

"You have Psychic abilities right?" He nodded his head slowly. OK that might've been a retarded question to ask, but I didn't know if he did/didn't. Heck, I wasn't even sure if Lucario was a guy... now that got me curious.

"You're a guy right?" That made Lucario blush deeply. The ears on top of his head flattened and then he growled. But, it only made him look adorable. After that Lucario left me alone. It wasn't even a day and I already managed to get on two of the team's bad sides. Asking Lucario what his sex was wasn't me teasing him. I was actually curious!

Sighing, I ran to catch up to it and called their name.

"Lucario, look it wasn't to upset you. I honestly can't tell so-" He (I'm guessing Lucario's a he) cut me off by raising his right paw in a shut up way. He grabbed a nearby stick and drew something on the ground. The word male was spelled out. I chuckled nervously. "Sorry... dude."

(Lucario's POV)

I grumbled at his ignorance. That was the first time anybody was confused about me being male. If he understood me I would've yelled at him. But I was nice enough not to, even if he did deserve it. Heck, I already didn't trust him so he wasn't helping with his suspicious meter. I couldn't even connect to his mind to even talk to him. It was a first for me. I could've let not reading his mind slip by but I was completely locked out. Only people with strong needs to hide something can prevent my telepathy.

Groaning, I asked Tyranitar to watch over the man. He happily agreed and somehow convinced Axel to help too. I leaned myself against a tree and close my eyes to think. Since Zoroark couldn't help me with this I had to put the pieces together by myself. OK.. so he appeared out of nowhere, knows Junior's name but not his own and I can't reach him through telepathy. Yup, we can't trust him he could be an assassin. I thought cautiously. If we turn our backs on him for even a second he'll stab us in the back. My ears perked up which disturbed my thoughts. I opened my eyes and immediately my tail wagged at the sight of seeing Junior return. He walked beside Zoroark and two other trainers. One of them was... well, quite large. His eyes were brown. Much like his hair, his shirt was black. A Vanillite was on the front of his shirt. His shorts were orange. His shoes a combination of white, black and yellow. A yellow strap went along his chest which belonged to his small backpack. The other kid was much smaller and had orange hair. His shirt and pants were a similar shade of grey. Both his bag and shoes were shades of green. Even the Pokedex that hung around his neck was green. By my guess he must've liked the color green.

Junior called over Axel and the two kid started talking with them. Zoroark shrugged and walked over toward me. My tail wagged.

"Do you know what they're talking about?" I asked him. He shook his head.

"Don't even try reading Junior's mind. He wouldn't like it if he found out Lucario." Zorky warned me. My ears flattened. That was going to be the first thing I was gonna do. I whined but followed his warning. If Junior did find out I was intruding on his thoughts he'd be annoyed. Annoyed or very very pissed.

After a quick talk, Junior and Axel walked toward us with the two other trainers. Before they can even say anything, the orange haired boy screeched and ran toward us. He crouched in front of me and took multiple photos of me with his camera. I grumbled and rubbed my eyes from the powerful flash.

"Should've warned you about him... he blinded me so much I ran into a tree on the way back here.... I can still see the blinding flash." Zoroark said. While I was blinded, Junior's worried voice echoed in my mind.

You OK Lucario? Need a Lum Berry to cure that blindness? He asked sincerely. I nodded my head with my paws still rubbing my eyes. Distinct conversation between Axel and the other two trainers was drowned out by Junior rustling through his bag for the berry.

"Here." He grabbed my left paw and placed the berry in it. I immediately started eating it as he set his hand on my head reassuringly. After a few moments, my vision returned to me. I blushed at the sight of Junior's warm smile.

"Thatta boy." He chuckled. A nervous chuckle escaped my muzzle.

"Th-Thanks.. um.. your paw." I motioned toward him petting me. He got the message and pulled his hand away.

"At least you aren't blinded by that anymore." Zoroark stated. "Stung didn't it?" I nodded. The kid who flashed me (shut up) nudged his friend.

"So when do you guys think the gym leaders will solve the problem? I wanted to test my dancing team's power against them!" The big guy exclaimed. I tilted my head toward Junior. He shrugged before motioning toward the two new arrivals.

"He's Tierno," The big guy waved at us with a huge smile. "And he's Trevor." The orange haired kid smiled at us. "Zoroark and I met them while we talked to the gym leaders. Apparently, some of the gym leaders are worried about Pokemon around cities and towns going berserk and attacking their trainers so they're thinking of what is causing the problem. For now, we have to wait until they figure it out. " Once he said that I couldn't help but glance over at Tyranitar. Axel thought the same thing because he took a small step away from Tyranitar. Thankfully the rock type didn't notice any of it. As nice as he seemed, he was still tough-looking. Junior took note of my uneasiness and changed the subject.

"Now, Tierno and Trevor, you said Professor Sycamore sent you here?" Junior questioned. They both nodded.

"He said for us to figure out the situation about the gyms and try to find.. well, you." Tierno stated.

"Really? Why me?" Before Tierno could reply, Axel interrupted him.

"Is it about these Pokeballs we forgot to deliver?" Axel took out the red ball he held onto and Trevor nodded.

"Yeah. Tierno and I were supposed to be the ones to get them. They hold our starters Pokemon." Without hesitation Junior and Axel gave the two the pokeballs. They seemed really happy. Heck, who wouldn't be happy about getting the Pokemon that'll be with them throughout their journey? I mean, if you looked at Typhlosion and Junior, you'd easily tell how close of a friendship they had as starter and trainer. I actually felt jealous of Typhlosion sometimes. I didn't know the exact reason for being jealous of their friendship, but I was.

Heck, I must've been lost in thoughts because Zoroark waved his paw in front of my face. I flinched.

"What?" I asked. Instead of replying, the fox motioned toward our group. My ears perked up and I jogged toward them. Chuckling, Junior patted my head. I blushed under my fur. He smiled before taking out the Pokegear that man Morgan randomly gave him. He highlighted an area before showing us. My tail wagged happily.

(Zoroark's POV)

"Shalour City? Wait, that's where the nearest gym is?" I asked the hybrid. He nodded and Lucario's tail wagged at that.

"Does it have a gym leader there?"

"Yup, her name is Korrina and she specializes in Fighting types." Junior informed. "I also heard she recently started doing double battles so I'm going to pick out our strategy on the way. But first, we need to head through Reflection Cave." Axel looked up from his Pokedex at the mention of Reflection Cave. A look of worry on his face. Guess Tyranitar beat me to the punch since he tapped his trainer's back. Axel stumbled forward from his immense strength.

"Why'd you push me Tyranitar?" He asked. The huge rock Pokemon whimpered.

"I-I didn't mean to... sorry Master." His apology got Lucario's attention. I haven't heard that word since Lucario's owner/Pokemon phase with Junior. It was always funny to hear Junior reteach Lucario that he wasn't a Master, but something much greater, a friend.

Junior glanced back for a second before looking back at the short walking road.

"He said he didn't mean to Axel.. also, he said Master." Junior pointed out.

"Wait, what? He calls me Master?" Axel's baffled question made his mon blush. The blonde's gaze traveled up to him. Tyranitar's blush made the boy chuckle.

"Have you always called me Master.. Tyranitar?" Axel got a sheepish nod as a response.

"Awww, is the big guy embarrassed?" The recently found man asked teasingly. I had actually forgotten he was here. The jerk's teasing made the shy rock type's whole face to turn as red as a Cheri Berry. Tyranitar whimpered (but it sounded a lot more like a submissive growl).

I walked over to the poor mon and patted his back reassuringly. I wasn't used to comforting others, but I had to try. He WAS turning red, even more than Lucario.

"Ignore him, he shouldn't be here for long." I stated. He looked at me and smiled.

"Thanks for the comfort Zoroark.." Tyranitar replied. Junior actually growled at the man, drawing attention to himself. Did he really risk his secret to protect Tyranitar? Mhmm.. classic Junior move. I thought.

"Did you just growl at me?" The man asked. He obviously looked confused.

"Yes, now stop teasing Tyranitar or else we'll dump you in the middle of nowhere and see how long you survive." Junior's threat made him grumble. Axel on the other hand didn't let the subject change.

"Wait, how were you able to growl like that? It actually sounded like a genuine dog." Junior stopped walking, causing Lucario to bump into him. He faced Axel and chuckled nervously. The hybrid rose an arm behind his head.

"Well, I practice.. never know when I'll need to, uh, growl to scare away other Pokemon." Lucario and I facepalmed. That was the stupidest reason ever. I doubted that Axel and... him would've bought it, but wouldn't you have it they were confused enough to drop the question. The half wolf noticed my annoyed snarl and shrugged. I wasn't mad at him. Actually far from it, I was just worried. Him growling could've been it. If Axel or the other guy didn't let that go, Junior might've been in trouble and inevitably found out. And the last thing we needed was to see our friend who sacrificed so much to be in danger. Typhlosion also would've been crucially heartbroken were anything to happen to him.

Lucario and I quickly sped up our pace until we were at both of the hybrid's sides. "Why'd you do that?" We both inquired somewhat angrily. Junior whimpered.

"W-Well, he was making fun of Tyranitar. Poor thing, blushed as red as a Tamato Berry." He spoke genuinely.

"It's in his nature." I stated. "But you need to learn when to protect others... and how. Also, when did you even learn to growl like that?" My inquiry toward the wolf fell toward a shrug. It was always a shrug or I don't know from him. He rarely had info on what he did.

"Then be more cautious buddy. The world can't find out what you are. We don't know what they'll do." Lucario said uneasily. Junior sighed with the same amount of uneasiness.

"OK.. I won't," The lupine's ears fell flat inside his hood. "Sorry." Lucario pat our trainer's head. It made Junior crack a short smile.

"Thatta boy." Lucario encouraged softly. My ears twitched at that saying. I rolled my eyes and looked in the cave we would soon explore. Odd as it was, I saw a reflection. Curiosity beat my willpower and I stepped inside while Axel and the other guy started to argue. Junior tried to split them apart while Lucario stepped inside with me. We were both dumbfounded at what we found.

I walked forward and placed my paw on the glass-like crystal wall. It felt solid but not as hard as actual glass. In fact, it was softer. Lucario placed his paw on the glass as well. He tilted his head before turning back at the entrance.

"Junior, you might wanna see this." His voice echoed throughout the cave. I held my ears and grumbled at how loud the echo was. It took only a second for Junior and the two humans to walk into the cave. Tyranitar followed close behind his trainer. All of them looked around in amazement.

"For a cave, it isn't that dark." Junior stated. Axel and the other two nodded. They walked toward us and examined the crystal wall. The man rubbed his chin before he spoke.

"Am I crazy or do I see something on the other side of the glass?" He asked full of concern. Junior looked closer at the glass and shrugged.

"Nothin' you must be crazy." I chuckled at Junior's bluntness. Even Tyranitar smiled a bit. The man grumbled and went forward. Junior, Lucario, Axel and Tyranitar followed him. I decided to glance at the wall just to humor myself. My ears perked once the wall started to shimmer. I saw something blurry move in the wall. After a minute, it revealed a scene. It was a half wolf woman. Her fur was bright red. A black robe covered her entire body, leaving only a hole for her fluffy tail to sway back and forth. Unlike Junior, her hood was off which exposed blue tipped ears. Her black boots echoed in the shining glassed wall. She was holding a Pokemon egg in her arms while a Feraligatr walked behind her. The Feraligatr wrapped his arms gently around her and kissed her cheek.

"Love ya babe." He stated gleefully. The half wolf woman chuckled. Her wolf tail wagged.

"I know, I know. If you didn't, we wouldn't be waiting for our child to hatch. I just hope it's a girl." She even sounded quite similar to Junior. I stared at the two in the glass with disbelief for awhile before a distinct call of my name echoed throughout the cave. I still stared at them through the glass before getting up to rejoin the group. Those two aren't important. I told myself. I'm just going crazy. They aren't real, just a figment of my imagination. I shook the weird memory out of my head and focused on following my trainer. Little did I know that seeing those two would help us far later in the future.

(Junior's POV)

"What took you so long? Lucario was worried you got lost." I asked. I understood Lucario's anxiety. With what was happening nowadays it seemed only logical that Lucario would be afraid when his best friend wasn't near our group. Seeing Lucario worry about his closest friend made me feel obliged to do something. That's why I volunteered to find the illusion fox. When I did find him however, he looked confused. Maybe one of the Zubats in the cave felt threatened by him and used Confuse Ray but I wasn't sure. I didn't even know what he was doing but whatever it was took 15 minutes to do.

Zoroark shook his head and brushed past me."N-Nothing. Let's just go." He sounded like he was shown up. My ears twitched in the darkness of the cave. I didn't know what was wrong with Zoroark but I was going to find out right now.

I pulled his arm back and his ears perked up. His gaze quickly turned innocent.

"Wh-What?" His inquiry sounded forced but I shrugged it off as nothing.

"What happened right now? I know you're hiding something.. come on, tell me!" I egged him on. Zoroark shook his head. I growled.

"Zoroark, I'm going to find out sooner or later so why not-" My persuasion was cut short by a loud explosion deeper in the cave. Instincts told me my friends were in trouble. Zoroark thought it too as we ran to regroup with the others.

We made it back to the others and were confronted by a man wearing a black outfit. A black scarf was tied around his neck. He wore steel plated armor with spiked plates on his arms. His hair was a light brown and tied into what resembled a ponytail. His beard ended at a point. His chest showed a little out of his armor but that wasn't what I was focusing on. What got my attention was his brown belt. Instead of having Pokeballs on his belt, he had shurikens. Black, sharp deadly shurikens. He was at a standoff with the others. Tyranitar and Lucario had both of the humans behind them to hide them from danger. Lucario noticed Zoroark and I appear to their side. That split second he looked away, the assassin threw a shuriken at him. Tyranitar spotted it and blocked the hit with a Stone Edge. A loud clang echoed throughout the cave as it effortlessly fell toward the floor. Zoroark growled before running toward his friend.

"You OK Lucario?" He asked wholeheartedly. Lucario nodded reassuringly. I ran toward the others and the assassin noticed me. He got out another shuriken and growled at me.

"Ahh.. Junior, how pleasant it is to see you again." He stated threateningly. Lucario and Zoroark jumped in front of me, creating a Pokemon shield. Each of them growled.

"And you still have Pokemon who sacrifice themselves so that you can get away scott free. How vexing." His statement got to Zoroark and Lucario. They glanced back at me with questioning gazes before snapping back at the assassin.

"Lies! Our trainer wouldn't ever use us let alone hurt us. We.. believe in him as he does to us!" Lucario stated reassuringly. Zoroark nodded to the jackal's statement. A smile slowly grew on my face. I knew that they wouldn't let a lie from somebody who's trying to kill me influence them. The shuriken holding assassin only chuckled. He twirled another shuriken in a showy off fashion, his deep chuckle made me jerk up.

"A Lucario trusts him? Wouldn't you be able to instantly recognize his deceiving ways and thoughts? Are you blinded by your loyalty?" He sounded dumbfounded. Before I could even defend my Pokemon, he groaned angrily.

"Why do I even care?! Fuck it, I'll take this chance!" He placed one arm on the floor and dashed toward me. Right as he moved, his body disappeared into thin air. Lucario, Zoroark, and everybody else glanced around in confusion. The two canines walked around me, both of them on high alert. Axel stepped forward but Tyranitar pulled him back. As much as he wanted to help, he didn't have any knowledge of the assassins. Neither did I, but he wasn't their main target. But if he tried to intervene, he'd be in danger.

A strange cold feeling shot down my spine. My ears suddenly perked in my hood. Weirdly, I turned around instinctively. The assassin was on the wall, clinging by one hand pressed to it. He instantly threw a shuriken at me. It flew at me as quick as the last one. A dreading purple liquid oozed from the tips of it. I jumped out of its range, growling at the man. The shuriken hit the floor and immediately broke. Everybody's gaze followed mine. Lucario growled and chucked an Aura Sphere at him. He easily jumped out of its way. The assassin threw another shuriken, but this time it wasn't aimed at me.

It hit Lucario's arm and he started to groan. The aura pokemon fell forward. Static started to spark from his body. It was Paralysis. The bastard rendered Lucario helpless. Thinking quick on my feet, I returned my friend into his Pokeball. The paralysis shuriken fell to the ground. Zoroark whimpered before he growled intimidatingly. He opened his muzzle and shot a Dark Pulse at the assassin. His chuckle echoed before easily leaping out of the way. While he was above us, he got out a bamboo-like tube. A silent shot from it hurt my ears. He landed in front of the path, a conceited smirk on his ugly face. Not even a second later, Zoroark slowly fell. The dart he shot was in his arm. "No.. I won't.. be silenced." He managed before falling unconscious. I growled through my teeth. I quickly returned Zoroark in his Pokeball. My ears flattened once again. Two of my friends were now out of battle and needed medical assistance. I contemplated running away, but with his speed he'd easily catch us. I also didn't want Axel or the other guy to be in any sort of danger. I looked at the assassin, who was twirling a shuriken.

"You should know I don't let my targets survive. You... I've been searching for you for over five years once I got the contract. Once you arrived, the last of us who survived got the last order. Kill you to save our home." He informed. He dashed at me and threw a shuriken. Unfortunately, I couldn't dodge in time and got hit in the leg. I groaned in pain. I doubled over and hit the floor. I couldn't move my body, my arms and legs were temporally paralyzed from the weapon's contact. Tyranitar and Axel took a step toward me, but a shuriken hitting the ground in front of them stopped their urge to help.

"Stay out of this. You don't know who he truly is." He saw the other man traveling with us and glared at him. He muttered something before smirking at me.

"You know, I thought you'd actually put up a fight. SOOO much more fun if you did! But sadly," He grabbed me by my amulet and slammed me down on the floor. The pain was indescribable. I was pretty sure I felt something break. I painfully got back up on my feet. My arms and legs started to bleed. The assassin chuckled. "This form is so much weaker, too bad you don't remember HOW to actually use the amulet. Oh well. Hope you like hell!" He swung at me with the shuriken in hand and I closed my eyes. This is where I die.. sorry Typhlosion... guess we won't be together as long as we thought.

"JUNIOR! NO!" A familiar voice echoed. Something pushed me to the side and a yell was heard. I opened my eyes and saw the robed figure, Morgan in front of me. His arms were raised so the attack cut away some of his robe, revealing light skin. The assassin growled and jumped backwards.

"You, I.. grr.. you won't be able to protect him forever! He will die soon! Mark my words!" He threw down a smoke bomb and instantly vanished. Hopefully for good.

Morgan turned to me and smiled. The assassin's swing cut away some of his robe and it revealed his arm. It bled, but he didn't care. It also revealed... an arm marking. He reached back and removed his hood to reveal... a white haired woman.

She pressed two fingers on her left cheek. Tears were racing down her face. She reached toward me and proceeded to remove my hood. I didn't object. Once free, my ears perked and she hugged me tight, but I didn't hug back.

"I'm so glad you're OK. I tried to stay away but I couldn't. I had to make sure you were always safe. I had to! He'd be proud of how far you made it on your own, wouldn't he?" Axel and the other two got closer as she pulled away from the hug. Her smile as big as she can possibly have it. "I love you."

"I-I love you too.. Mother."