Rosemary was in her bush. She was shaking probably from the memory of the arrow in her wings. The stinging pain was still in her memory. The bush shook gently and she jumped as she fell back into a side of stickers. “Ow.” Two little eyes looked up at her. “Hello, Little One.” It was a young fawn with its many little spots. “Are you sure that this is okay?” She looked up to see the doe’s face staring at her.

The doe bowed its head as Rosemary took the fawn into her arms. “Thank you,” she brushed her lips against the top of its head as she held it close much like a stuffed animal. Her grip was soft and did not hurt the animal. It didn’t take long before Aeolus was calling out to her. She came out of the bush with the fawn in her arms. “I’m right here. I was hiding in the bush and this mama and her baby came to make sure I wasn’t too upset.” She looked behind her at the doe who was now distanced because of Aeolus. “It’s okay he is a friend.”

The doe approached and Rosemary rubbed her head gently with a few ear scratches. “Thank you for comforting me.” She put the fawn down and waved goodbye as the mother took off. “They were so nice.” She turned to look at Aeolus as she took his arms and looked him over. “Are you okay? Did they hurt you?”

After that, they traveled across Virens through Bohar and into the hot sticky forest of Laeto. Rosemary put her long hair up and had a terrible look on her face. “It’s so hot. This is worse than the desert. It’s so wet and sticky compared to Sularia.” It was probably her only complaint as they kept going. “We should be carefu—”

There were a dozen pikes pointed at them with tribal men yelling at them. Rosemary was scared for a moment as she backed into Aeolus. Then it hit her as the words fumbled out of her mouth. “CORYDALIS.”

There were whispers as the men put down their pikes and began to shove them forward. “Do not attack them. Take me to my sister please.” She knew that they couldn’t understand her but still they were walking for a bit before they came to a large hut. It was decorated in fine gems, tapestries, all of the works on the outside. There was a tall redheaded woman in front of the fire. With Phoenix feathers in her hair, glowing blue tribal paint down her body, and her eyes were like coral.

“CORY!” Rosemary got excited but she stopped as Corydalis put her hand up. She had a large golden pipe in her mouth with what looked to be a small dragon skull on the end that colored smoke was coming out.

In the fire before her, it went a bright blue. A dragon with six wings began to climb out of the pit. Still, it was made of fire as it came up. “There will be trials and tribulation for you to overcome Winged-One. A wild rose has been planted in your stead and has changed your path here in Revaliir.” From the fire sprung forth a wild rose bush of pink as it wrapped around the dragon. “This is not fate but a prophecy. It could come true and it could not.”

Corydalis’s coral eyes looked over at him as she got up. She was so much more… womanly compared to Rosemary. Her hips, her height, her bust… Which made Rosemary self-conscious of herself. “What you care for most in life will come to the center focus and you will duel Death for it.”

“You are very odd Little Sister.” Rosemary tilted her head before Corydalis blew smoke in her face. Rosemary coughed a bit before shaking her head and the image disappeared back into the fire pit.

“You are the weird one. Who dressed you? That looks like Daphne’s dress.”

“That’s because it is.”

There was a sigh from Corydalis who motioned up to the house. “There are things in there to dress yourself with. I had a dream the other night you would be coming to see me. Go.” Corydalis used the pipe to smack Rosemary on the ass to get her to move faster. “The dark blue dress. And you…” She moved up to Aeolus. “The dreams have not spoken of you until this moment. Do not let anything happen to her.”

Corydalis moved back to the fire and patted a seat by her for Aeolus. “Sit and wait.” It wasn’t long before Rosemary came out in an off-shoulder blue dress. “It’s not the best for traveling but you no longer look like you are drowning in your damn clothes. Turn around." Rosemary turned around and all the strings still weren't tied. "You never were good at these dresses…." Corydalis rubbed her red hair before working on the strings. She tied them tight and Rosemary sat by Aeolus.

"Thank you… So I was hoping we could stock up on things before we made the trip to Sularia."

"You aren't going to fly?"

"Well… I've decided to travel by foot."

Corydalis seemed confused by the decision and stuck her pipe in her mouth. "I'll think about it."

Aeolus had done what he set out to do; he had killed every last one of the hunters that had dared lay a hand on an innocent life, save for one.  That one would go to his peers and give them a warning.  The silver haired celestial frowned at the thought.  There are far too many complications that could arise from that.  I should take better precaution in the future if I am to continue to travel with the little angel.  He caught himself, once again, referring to her as the little one.  A small smile spread to his lips.

She is quite the little thing, isn't she?  Her smile was something that he wanted to protect.  Such an innocent smile.  "Little angel?" he called out as he landed on the ground.  "Where are you?"  He looked around, and finally Rosemary came out from the brush.  In her hands was a small doe.  Immediately, Aeolus had a small heart attack.  If the mother of that doe were to attack her, well…even something that small could do great harm when it came to its child.  

Yet, as Rosemary spoke, he realized that everything was calm.  The doe and its mother were both comforting the half angel while she waited.  As she thanked the animals for keeping her company, Aeolus crossed his arms, smirking.  She's very much so one with nature.  I'm impressed.  Perhaps there is a lot more to her than I had initially thought.  Then, she was on him, looking him over.

"It's fine, Rosemary.  They didn't lay a finger on me.  In fact, they-" he stopped.  Better to not give details.  "-They won't be bothering us again.  At least, not for now."  And that was that.  The two traveled the Virens with barely another event happening.  As they traveled through the Bohar Plains, Aeolus traded his protection services for a lift with a potato farmer, letting Rosemary sit in the cart with the vegetable when she tired of walking.  The farmer was more than happy to share his haul for dinners, which the two were grateful for. By the time they reached the rainforest, though, Aelous had more than his fill of potatoes.  

The rainforest was much hotter than even the Virens had been when Aeolus had traveled it.  He had already removed the majority of his upper body's clothing, packing it away.  "All right, little one." he said as she started to say they should be careful.

It was a surprise, even to Aeolus, when they were suddenly surrounded, pikes pointed at them.  Somehow they had caught Aeolus off guard.  Have I been paying too much attention to Rosemary?  Or do they have powerful magic?  He silently cursed himself, and started to reach for his blade, his aura starting to flare.  Yet, despite her initial fear, Rosemary spoke a word.  A name.  Corydalis.  

As the men whispered and lowered their weapons, Aeolus let his own guard down, and allowed the two be be shuffled forward.  Rosemary asked Aeolus not to attack, and his nodded as they led them to Rosemary's sister.  As they neared what appeared to be a large hut, Aeolus felt his senses go wild.

Everything about the setup felt intense.  There was definitely heavy magic at work, and he couldn't do anything but stare in awe.  Rosemary got excited for a moment, but was hushed by what Aeolus assumed was her sister.  This was a ritual.  Aeolus narrowed his gaze.  What is she playing at?

As the ritual progressed, Aeolus noted the flames.  As they flared a bright blue, and a six winged dragon burst forth, his eyes darted to the woman performing the ritual.  Just how much do you know? he wondered.  As she spoke the prophecy, Aeolus took a step forward, watching the six winged dragon.  The woman was like Rosemary, only she appeared more mature in all of the right places.  Had it been a different circumstance, Aeolus may even have been attracted to her, but now was not the time, nor the place.

As Rosemary spoke of her as her little sister, though, Aeolus looked back and forth between the two.  ….what?  He sighed, shaking his head.  Rosenites…  

Aeolus followed Corydalis back to the fire, and sat down next to her, as requested.  As the two talked about the trip, Corydalis seemed bemused by the fact that they weren't flying.  

"When one takes the the skies, they tend to miss everything that the world has to offer.  You miss the finer things, the small villages, the people travelling…." Aeolus said.  "There are more things in life than speed and efficiency."  He looked at Corydalis, though, with curiosity.  

"Just how much do you know about me?" he asked.  Does she know about the dreams I have?  That dream where I perish fighting a monstrosity….  "These prophecies that you speak of.  Where do they come from.  And just how often do they come true?"  Is this…according to the whims of Fate?

“I’m glad you are alright.” She checked him over and smiled up at him before they were on their way. Riding in the potato cart was fun but most of the time she laid in the cart and fell asleep. Traveling by foot was something new for her and she found herself tiring out rather easily from stress.

Once they were on their feet again Rosemary felt the heat wave hit. She smiled up at Aeolus even though she was miserable. Her eyes looked Aeolus over once she realized he had stripped down. A few bats of her eyelashes and she was blushing and looking away from him. She definitely looked for far too long.

That was when they got caught by the pikemen. Thanks to quick thinking Rosemary had figured out that these had to belong to her sister. Primarily it was the paint they used on themselves that hinted. She was rather glad she was right.

As they sat next to Corydalis she nodded and shrugged her shoulders. “All of that is true.” When Aeolus asked her just what she knew there was a smirk from the younger sister. “I only know what the spirits tell me. We of the Rosenite bloodline share a special connection to everything around us. The grass greets us. The skies love us. The ocean favors us. These are the stories that have been passed down for generations. The Spirits of Arri are powerful and they lend their visions to those who need it. They give me the visions of you… Just like they told me that Rosemary was coming to see me. If you want more information on yourself… Go to Sularia and find an Oracle.”

She hit her pipe on something to knock out the tobacco before refilling it and stuffing it. “My prophecies almost always come true because its in Mortal nature for it to happen.” There was a sharp noise for a moment and Rosemary looked off into a direction for it as Corydalis leaned over. “Her fate has been told many times… With or without you it will happen.” It had been known for a while that something was revolving around Rosemary. How or what they did not know but it was certain.

“Huh?” Rosemary looked back over and Corydalis winked at him showing she had made the noise.

“Nothing, talking with your friend. I’m sure he was shocked to see that I am younger than you are… However, some angels do mature differently than others. Rosenites get more curvaceous than angels do that is for sure.” She poked at Rosemary’s curves and the half angel wiggled.

“My curves as you put it are just fine the way they are.” Rosemary blushed and looked at Aeolus before she looked in an opposite direction.

“Sure they are. I’ll leave you two to it then… I’ll have the supplies ready for you in the morning. I suggest you set out at night after the supplies are in. Until then I have a single cot you both can share.”

The words that Corydalis spoke gace Aeolus an uneasy feeling.  There was a part of his soul that quivered at the prophecy, and that of the concept of something happening as if it were Fate.  That word again.  It left a sour feeling every time he thought about it, as if it were something that were abhorrent.  Yet again, he knew that there was more to everything, but whether Corydalis was telling the truth or not, there was nothing else to learn about it here.  

"You're hospitality is greatly appreciated," Aeolus stated, nodding in respect from his seat.  "Thank you for everything, so far."  Everything was moving smoothly so far, and that put Aeolus at ease despite his earlier feelings caused by the prophecy.  So, I'll have to find more information in Sularia.  There may be nothing else to find, though.  Perhaps I should try to seek a God?

During this, the back and forth banter between the sisters broke him from his thought, and he smiled.  They truly did get along like family, and it warmed his heart.  That was when Corydalis mentioned the singe cot to share.  "…what?"

—

This is…  He blushed, adjusting to one side.  His hand brushed against something, and immediately he withdrew his hand, almost smacking himself in the face with it.  "Sorry.  I didn't mean to…"  He tried to roll over, almost falling off the cot, but stopped himself.  He was more than glad that he had control over his wings, and that Rosemary did as well.  If not, this would have been completely impossible to do.  

At first, Aeolus had tried to argue, but something about the way Corydalis had looked at him said that there was no negotiating out of it.  So there, they found themselves cuddling in each other, trying very hard not to fall out of the cot.  Rosemary, being so tiny though, seemed to perfectly fit into Aeolus, which, while convenient, was very close.  He was certain she could feel his heartbeat pounding away.  It had been a long time since he had lay in the same bed with a woman, and even longer since he had slept in the same bed with one.  

"If you need to, I'm sure I could manage on the floor…."

It was highly uncomfortable. “Aeolus,” she blushed as she looked up at him. “You are on my hair.” Soon she had braided her hair and put it up before they tried to figure out what they were going to do with this cot situation. “No. no. I’m sure this will work… I don’t want you to sleep on the floor.”

After a few minutes, she climbed over Aeolus with a blush on her face and prodded him into the middle of the cot. “Here… Just… Go with it.” She pulled the blankets up on them and she laid down on his chest. Her eyes looked up at him with a blush before she closed them. She could feel his heartbeat and it was soothing but it was pounding away. This was just as awkward for her as she was for him.

Somehow in the middle of the night after they had managed to fall asleep… Rosemary had crept up above him and wrapped herself around his head and chest. Her leg was around his upper chest and his face was shoved in her own chest. She was holding him there as she had her head against the top of his. Aeolus’s hands were firmly on her butt and her bust on the side.

It was a squeeze that woke her up. Her face went bright red as she instinctively hugged his head closer. “Aeolus… What are you doing…” By this time it was morning.

For the most part, the entire situation was uncomfortable.  Finally, though, he was able to fall asleep as Rosemary climbed on top of him.  As their eyes connected, he glanced away, blushing.  After awhile, though, he managed to fall into a strange, but workable sleep.  

As he slept, his mind took his dreams into a strange place.  Everything was as dark as the void, surrounded by an endless night.  The six winged dragon from the prophecy rose around him in a bright blue flame, encircling him as the world around him burst into a field of flowers.  In it, he saw hundreds of Tudor roses, with Rosemary laying in he middle of the field, her eyes closed.  Aeolus could feel something wrong. and started to reach out for her, yet the blue flames tightened around him, restricting his movement.  In a panic, he tried to break free, his hands grasping at the soft, blue flames, squeezing them to try and get a grip, but unable to do more than feel their curvy-

Aeolus' eyes shot open as he heard and felt Rosemary.move.  "W-wha?  He looked down to see her bright red face, and recalled his dream.  Putting two and two together, his face started to flush, turning almost the same color as hers.  "I, er, uh…"  He raised his hands, alarmed.  "Sorry!  I, it was a nightamre.  Sorry, I didn't mean to-"  He glanced away, completely embarrassed.  

"I…er…can't get up until you do…."