Author: Anima, Posted: Sun Apr 1, 2018 4:08 PM, Post Subject: Hopeless Romantics [P]

Before that point, Robin was still mulling over what Mushu had said to her. Her head was a mixture of emotions from fear to hope, never tipping far enough in either direction to give one side the majority. She was under so much stress from her indecision that she didn't even hear Katerina cheering her on at the last second. Instead, she just looked at me like a deer in headlights, hearing every word but not being able to form a thoughtful sentence after the first two.

"Natsumi… I…uh…"  She didn't even notice the merchant who got pinned to the wall just seconds earlier and she was blushing heavily while trying to keep her focus on me. Obviously, her emotions were coming to a boiling point by then, but I, being the clueless dunce that I was at the time, just looked at her with an expression of concern.

"Are you feeling okay? You look very red." I laid the back of my hand against Robin's head at that point to check if she had a fever, but felt nothing. I figured maybe something else was wrong, yet, as soon as I pulled my hand away, I was the one in shock.

Robin had been so terrified and paralyzed on what to do in that situation that she defaulted to what Mushu had told her. He directed her toward the romance novels she liked, failing to realize what that actually meant. For in these books, the hero always took the initiative. A man, sometimes clad in armor but always handsome, came face to face with the maiden or warrior princess of the story and kissed her to show his affection. That was always the solidification of their relationship in these stories; but, in the case of Robin and me, Robin didn't see herself as the hero. She thought I was; which left her at a bit of an impasse.

She felt pressured to make the first move even though she didn't think it was her role to do so; and she only knew one way to make that first move. So, gathering up every last bit of courage she had, Robin thrust herself forward and placed her lips against mine.

That was our first kiss: an event that had me instantly descending into survival instincts. Now all of a sudden I was the deer in the headlights, stuck with an open stare and Robin still passionately kissing me in the middle of an open road. It wasn't long before she noticed I wasn't reacting at all, at which point she pulled away to ask if I was alright.

"Natsumi," she spoke with a look of concern. "Uhm… hello?" Waving her hand in front of my eyes, the young woman suddenly noticed that I was almost completely catatonic. I wasn't moving or blinking at all: something that gave SAI cause to speak up on my behalf.

"I believe this is what Lady Natsumi sometimes refers to as broken." Apparently the mystical entity had jokes this time around, but Robin didn't know any better. She thought that she had literally done something wrong to break me, and immediately took responsibility.

"Oh no! How do I fix her?!" Fretting violently and fidgeting, the blushing warrior circled around the petrified me, constantly speaking fast in a tone of voice that was almost impossible to decipher. "I'm sorry, Natsumi! I'm so sorry! I didn't know it would affect you that badly! I-I-I-!" But before she could make more of a fool out of herself, I snapped out of my stupor and grabbed her for another kiss. Her wide-eyed stare and anxiety quickly died down as we embraced each other on the streets of Adeluna: just like the two lovers from her favorite novel series. It was a happy ending, one that had Mushu almost in tears as he stood next to Katerina and Goliath.

"I think I'm gonna cry. Little baby girl's all grown up. It's beautiful."

Author: CodeNat, Posted: Sun Apr 1, 2018 3:18 PM, Post Subject: Hopeless Romantics [P]

Going back to the merchant, though, let us explore how I got to Adeluna in the first place. I did say that I was searching for the purple star sapphire in Iria and that I didn't know Robin was in the seat of the formerly great empire at the time. Yet, due to the nature of my search, I had no way of knowing how long this situation would last. The gem could have been anywhere, but, thankfully, luck was on my side this time. I completed the quest and acquired the gem far sooner than anticipated; at the exact moment that Robin had docked in Adeluna. It just so happened that I had a receptacle ready to receive said gem already in place, so I was able to prepare Robin's gift in record time before she had even set foot in that merchant's stall.

Obviously, that was only half the battle, however. I wrapped the gift in a bag for transport after it was done – one tiny enough to be carried in one hand – but then actually had to find the receiver. SAI's scrying abilities were more than sufficient for that purpose – although I admit that I was surprised to find her all the way across the sea. Regardless, after I discovered her exact location in the city, I made my way there via a void gate.

It was at that point that the merchant entered the picture. Having not wished to startle Robin or the already jumpy populace of the empire's capital, I teleported into a warehouse near her rather than into the open street. I wasn't expecting anyone else to be in that place at the time, but there he was: the merchant squirreling away into a box he had retrieved from a hidden compartment at the back of the store.

"Threaten me in my own shop, will you? I'll show you." The man hadn't noticed my entrance thanks to the clattering of glass vials he was eliciting; but his voice was enough to startle me into invisibility. I didn't want any trouble from him, so I was about to slip out of the building in that state. Yet, just as I was about to leave through the front door, he opened his stupid mouth once more to say, "Robin, eh? Who names a girl after a bird? Well, she'll be nice and crispy after this: perfect for a red robin dinner."

Mr. Merchant held up the vial he was looking for then in the dim light of the candle by his side: a glass sphere of orange, iridescent liquid that glowed brightly. He stuck a crossbow bolt in the cork of that flask, and then pulled off a trick board from a nearby wall so he could aim through it. His crossbow was pointed straight at Robin and her group through that kill hole, but, despite his original intent, he didn't loose that flask even after he was given a clear shot.

Creak~

Just before he unleashed his vengeful scheme, my boots caused the wooden floorboards underneath him to groan. He couldn't ignore that, being the overly paranoid man that he was, so he turned around to see who was there. I relaxed my invisibility at that exact moment, timing it just right so he could see my eyes in the light of the flickering flame.

What happened next was chaos. The merchant, shocked from the appearance of someone clearly not human in a dark, enclosed space, forgot what he was holding for a moment. He squeezed the trigger bar, firing the flask in my direction rather than at Robin and striking some spirits in the process. That was what had caused the explosion, and what had originally sent him out into the streets.

Despite this destructive blast, however, the con artist from before was rat-like enough to escape virtually unharmed. His clothes were singed from proximity, but his legs were empowered by just enough cowardice to avoid serious damage. As for myself, SAI had protected me by activating fire meld at the last second, so the most I got were some mild burns that healed quickly enough after I stepped out of the flames. In this way, both parties survived the unintentional arson while the destroyed store summoned a swarm of watch members to contain the fire.

Unfortunately for Mr. Merchant, however, that safety of his was fleeting. He had let me hear something he should have never said; and, after combing his memories for how he knew my dear Robin, I succumbed to a rather nasty and pointed bloodlust in his direction. Flames still coming off my coat, I listened to him beg for his life whilst slowly approaching from the arson site. His black eye during that whole ordeal had been inflicted by flying debris, and soon I gave him another to go with it. Just as he tried to run, I sprinted ahead in my adrenaline filled state and planted a heel on his face. I broke his nose with the motion, and probably would have killed him had I not suddenly remembered that Robin was there. The sight of her out of the corner of my eye soothed my wrath just long enough for the merchant to crawl away, but not without reparations.

When he finally broke into a sprint to escape into the alleyways again, the merchant found himself pinned to a wall by crossbow bolts. I had loosed five from a conjured, hand crossbow of mine: one for each limb and one for his belt. The belt one made his pants fall down for everyone to see, which caused some children to laugh at him. His pride would never be the same; although he was lucky that he got to live at all past that point.

Afterward, and with some encouragement from SAI, I turned my attention back to Robin. The two of us locked eyes as I approached, but she seemed more in shock than I anticipated.

"Natsumi? What are you doing here," she asked with a dumbfounded but innocent expression?

"I could ask you the same thing," I retorted with a smile. "You didn't tell me you were taking this long-distance of a trip. When you said shopping, I thought you meant Karith or something closer. Y'know: something not across the ocean?" My tone was anything but harsh. Far from it, in fact. I was being playful because I had a sneaking suspicion she was trying to surprise me with something. Ironically, I didn't notice that Kat was just around the corner at that time; otherwise I probably would've stopped the developing scene to call her out. That was for the best, though, as what happened next was a moment that needed to happen in my relationship with Robin if we were to become anything more than ships passing in the wind.

Author: Silverstein, Posted: Mon Feb 5, 2018 2:52 PM, Post Subject: Hopeless Romantics [P]

A sigh left Katerina’s lips once more; she hated to do this to Robin, but it needed to be said. Robin and Natsumi wasn’t the type to show they’re affections; talking to one of them would be the only way. There wasn’t any way to talk to Natsumi though; she was a brick wall when it came to emotions. In the many years Katerina had known the fox, she barely saw an ounce of what Natsumi felt. Robin on the other hand, was young. She could be talked to. It wasn’t like they were attacking her and she could wipe them out in an instant. She had to listen to them both. The wolf demon almost laughed at the thought; the fox would've laid them out already.

Hearing the fair maiden about to speak, Katerina frowned. She knew Robin was about to come up with an excuse. The wolf demon opened her mouth about to say more, but the dragon started to speak. Slowly, a smirk came to her lips as she crossed her arms. He knew exactly what to say and how to say it. It must have been because he had known Robin longer then Katerina.

The sound of a loud bang shut down anymore conversation. Everyone’s eyes turned towards the location. Goliath straightened as he balled up his fists; ready for anything. Katerina saw the merchant from earlier followed by Natsumi, and she couldn’t help but laugh. Who couldn’t at the sight? Goliath even cracked a smile. “I warned him.” Katerina said after she got her laugh under control. “Why doesn’t anyone listen to me?” She asked mostly to herself as the large gargoyle walked over to stand beside her.

Katerina grew confused for a moment seeing the dragon scurry away. Taking the hint, she followed, not before saying one last thing to Robin. “It's your moment, seize it.” With that, her and Goliath moved to join the little dragon. Instead of giving them privacy, she did the same as Mushu and poked her head out a bit to watch. Hopefully, the fair maiden would say something.

Author: Anima, Posted: Tue Jan 23, 2018 10:45 AM, Post Subject: Hopeless Romantics [P]

In the heat of that moment with both the wolf and the dragon bearing down on her, Robin's edge started to dull. Social pressure was her greatest weakness, so having a family member air her dirty laundry in front of an acquaintance put her into a very inopportune position. She desperately wanted the conversation to move onto something, anything else. Yet it didn't. Instead, she was eventually caught between a rock and a hard place where both parties were questioning her bravery.

"But…"  She wavered under that pressure as she averted her gaze from the wyvern in front. Mushu could tell she was trying to run away again, however, just the same as she had before; so this time he decided to force the issue. Instead of allowing her to escape, he dragged her face back to his and lectured her.

"Do you wanna hold her," he began shouting at his adopted daughter in front of everyone present?! "Please her?! Then you got to try! Pull some romantic shit! Surely all those books you read aren't for nothin'!" The books in question were romance novels that Robin consumed en masse. Beyond food, they were the most frequent purchase she made; but, the thing is that they were the sappy kind of novels, written by young women who didn't understand seasoned love. In fact, they were more smut than anything else. Neither Mushu nor Katerina knew that, however, so their advocating for their friend to utilize these books as a baseline was more dangerous than they probably realized.

Of course, these friends didn't have time to discover that additional information anyway; because, shortly after Mushu's outburst, a nearby building collapsed after a loud bang. The shifty merchant from earlier in the day came scurrying out in the aftermath, running from the silhouette of fox-eared woman (yours truly) who was cracking her knuckles in preparation for a beating. The merchant himself already had a black eye from whatever had gone on between the two of us in that previously standing store, but was more presently concerned with begging for his life than putting that injury on ice.

"Look, there must be some misunderstanding," he said while backing up against a wall from me. "Do you want money? I can give you money! Something? ANYTHING?!" Robin was flabbergasted by this development, unable to move or speak. She didn't even notice that Mushu had left her and was already skittering past Katerina in a hurry to vacate the premises.

"Hey," he whispered to the two as he went, "let's leave the lovebirds alone. This is their chance." Or so he believed. The tiny dragon skedaddled rapidly to a nearby alleyway with that belief in his head, and then poked a singular eye out from around the corner. He waited to see his "prophecy" fulfilled, and hoped beyond all hope that no one would muck it up this time. For this had happened before, and neither Robin nor I had seen fit to break the impasse.

Author: Silverstein, Posted: Tue Jan 16, 2018 1:02 PM, Post Subject: Hopeless Romantics [P]

Robin outburst almost made the wolf demon smirk. “She has a fire. Probably, what Natsumi fell for.” Katerina thought to herself during the exchange of the guard and the fair maiden. They had only walked a few steps before the wolf demon asked about Natsumi. Before Robin was able to speak, Mushu answered.

The wolf was a bit shocked at the words that came from him. Her eyes glanced over to the woman beside her, curious. The outburst from Robin made Katerina take a step back. Things were about to get heated and didn’t want to be in the way of any flames. The slap that came to Mushu made the wolf gasp. “Whao!” Katerina stared wide eyed at the dragon then back at Robin.

The Alpha was about to say something in Mushu’s defence, but the dragon was already in Robin’s face. Katerina nodded; everything he said was on the mark.

With mention of his nam, Goliath frowned. How was he thrown into this mess? Slowly he stepped back and leaned against a nearby pillar; watching and listening. Mostly, his eyes were on the wolf demon who had crossed her arms. His mind thinking about his love for her. “Sometimes declaring your love for someone doesn't end up the way you want.” The gargoyle thought. His eyes instantly looked at the sky above; hurt.

“He has a point, Robin.” The wolf demon stepped forward and sighed. She didn’t want to gang up on Robin, but this had to be said. “You care for her. Mushu, didn’t have to say a word for everyone to see. We all also see that Natsumi cares for you, too.” A sigh left her lips again as she shook her head. “Natsumi won’t do anything or say anything. That’s just how she is, but she does care. Maybe even love you?….”

Katerina looked at the woman before her with a small smile. “You’re brave, aren’t you? I can tell that you are. So, be brave and tell he..”

Author: Anima, Posted: Sat Dec 30, 2017 6:03 PM, Post Subject: Hopeless Romantics [P]

During the course of that engagement, Robin felt normal again; because, despite her docile personality, combat was her home. It had always been thus, even when she was just a small girl first entering combat training. Her adoptive family drove her to that point, having not provided the home nor the comfort that she otherwise needed at such a young age. But it was also for this very reason that she learned to take pride in her technique. Like all Ataiyans before her, she considered herself an adept warrior in her own right: certainly enough to take on a few brigands without breaking a sweat. So when Katerina insinuated that her success was due solely to my interference and guidance, Robin actually took offense for the first time in their relationship.

"How rude!" she exclaimed when the wolf carelessly opened her mouth. "I was trained as a warrior before I met her! I can handle brigands like these in my sleep." The knight captain overheard Robin's righteous indignation at this poorly thought out compliment, but he did not initially speak up in her defense. In fact, the only reason he eventually decided to intercede was because he noticed the woman was subconsciously tightening her grip on the man she was restraining during the argument; and the one thing he didn't want to have to do so soon after his promotion was explain to his superiors why one of his prisoners had a broken shoulder already.

"Well, you did good: as expected of an Ataiyan warrior," he said at that moment in an attempt to avoid this situation. Robin responded to his words with surprise, loosening her grip in the same instant and allowing the captain to shackle the man underneath her - much to his relief. "Yeah, I spent some time over in the east; met a few like you,"he promptly explained during that exchange, "They're pretty recognizable, but that's a tale for another time." Standing the prisoner back up, the captain signaled the rest of his men to depart at that moment with some final words. "Anyway, I'm going to let your group go now, but on the condition that I get to talk to you later. I'll need your testimony on this incident eventually, so don't leave town till then, alright?"

The request was more rhetorical than not; for this man of the law had no illusions in terms of his ability to force Robin's group to do anything. He was anticipating a fight with only the muggers earlier that day and was already worried about his odds just with them. He had not anticipated anyone else during the coming raid; and yet Robin had arrived anyway to quickly end the same fight that he had been dreading since the morning. Not only that, she had done so single-handedly while also appearing to be the least intimidating member of her entourage. For this reason, the captain realized he was outmatched, and so, while he still outwardly exerted authority in the closing moments of his interaction with them, he knew he would likely not be seeing Robin, Katerina, Mushu or Goliath ever again.

Regardless, after the two factions parted ways, Katerina's serendipitous meeting with Robin was finally allowed to continue. The two of them moved toward the proper market district; but, along the way, the wolf finally asked the golden question that would eventually set off a chain of romantic events. She wanted to know how I was, and, while she did get an answer, it wasn't the answer Robin would have given.

"Same as Robin here: love struck but too busy dancing around the question to just come out and admit her feelings." Yep, Mushu answered in my friend's stead, and, at the same time, publicly embarrassed her by airing her private feelings. Robin answered this affront by turning beet red in the face, followed by a very audible slap several times harder than Goliath's flick had ever been.

"MUSHU," she shouted in several times magnified irritation! The little dragon was sent flying by the impact of the slap that followed, but, for some reason, he didn't stay down or stop like he had last time. Instead, he got right back up, scurried across the ground like a hyperactive spider, and crawled right back up in Robin's face.

"Wake up girl," he exclaimed while forcing eye contact in that position. "Natsumi's more dense than Goliath's ass after a cold, Glaciem night, and, believe me, that buttocks is stony!" Grabbing Robin's scarf at that point and dragging her head closer to his, the wyvern continued. "And unless you start addressing her directly, ain't nothing going to change that for better or worse!"

Author: Silverstein, Posted: Thu Dec 21, 2017 10:17 PM, Post Subject: Hopeless Romantics [P]

Robin had spoken before the wolf demon saw the company that joined them. Her eyes grew confused for a moment. The two didn’t lose track of time, they had just been in a different time. “How..”Katerina started to say, trying to wrap her brain around Robin’s words. “And nothing has happened between the two?!” The wolf demon thought as she stared at the woman before her. Something had happened. The red haired woman stared at Robin. She could tell in her way she spoke of Natsumi. Besides, Katerina knew that Robin liked Natsumi when she saw them together. A smirk crossed her lips. The fair woman must have fallen in love with Natumi.

That was the moment the wolf demon saw the men in the crowd around them. Katerina made the comment in that moment. She watched them move towards them, ready. After the man spoke, guards came down on them. “What the hell?!” Katerina gasped out as she stared at the guards that seemed to come out of nowhere. Were they wanted men? Did she cause too much of a ruckus earlier? There had to be a reason they wanted the men around them.

The wolf demon’s sword soon disappeared and then her arms crossed over her chest. She watched the scene before them. “Too bad. I wanted a fight.” Katerina smiled over at one of the guards who returned it.

In that moment with the guard, she was surprised when the criminals attacked. Instead of having the upper hand, the fair lady had laid them out in an instant. Katerina rose her hands in a slow clap, her smile appearing on her lips once more. “That was amazing, Robin! Natsumi sure taught you a thing or two.” She stepped over one of the men making him grunt to step beside Robin.

“Now. Lets leave this rabble and find you a bow. I’m sure these lovely guards can clean up this mess.” With a pat on Robin’s shoulder, Katerina decided to bring Robin to the better vendors.

Goliath had watched the whole scene without moving; he seemed like a solid statue. That was until he moved and walked behind the two women.

The two walked in silence for a moment before Katerina finally spoke. "So, Robin, how is my best friend Natsumi doing?"

Author: Anima, Posted: Thu Nov 23, 2017 11:22 AM, Post Subject: Hopeless Romantics [P]

Goliath did try to smooth over the situation once he noticed Mushu's anger, but it was too little, too late. The pocket wyvern had historically been amenable toward flattery, but even that had limits. The gargoyle's smile had merely compounded the issue rather than alleviate it, enough that Mushu didn't even respond to his apology. Instead, the pseudo-dragon moped about, not even looking Goliath in the eye as he hid from the world in the warmth of Robin's scarf.

Meanwhile, Katerina tried to "correct" the claim that Mushu had made about the time difference between Revaliir and elsewhere. She didn't understand, just the same as Robin hadn't when we first left Revaliir. That was shortly remedied once the latter spoke up.

"I didn't understand it at first, either, but it has been four years for Mushu and me, Katerina. We were traveling with Natsumi to places outside of Revaliir, and she warned us before we left that time in those places is different from here. Revaliir is slower for some reason, so six months here was four years out there. I even remember looking back at Revaliir's moons from one of those places while meditating and seeing them stuck in the same position in the sky for hours on end, so Mushu speaks truthfully when he says how long we've been gone."

Robin was absent-mindedly petting Mushu during that explanation, subconsciously trying to console his wounded pride as well as her own misgivings. She was not feeling very comfortable in Adeluna despite the presence of a familiar face. This was due entirely to the fact that she had always disliked dealing with the law of foreign lands where the values of the people were not necessarily the same as those she held dear. In fact, Robin's opinion of western culture had thus far been poor. She thought the people of the west were brutish and scheming; dishonorable to their core. That was a typical opinion of Ataiyans, and one that had been vindicated by the shopkeeper's attempts at conning her into slavery.

Of course, that opinion was also why Robin started to relax after said merchant's revenge finally came. She sensed his four goons lurking in the crowd behind her long before Katerina had said anything, and was simply waiting to engage them as she had so many before. You see, Robin was most at home in simplistic combat where the sides of a fight were morally unambiguous. She didn't enjoy seeing the world in shades of gray like I did, so criminals or those of evil intent were the perfect punching bags for her destress under any circumstance. Ultimately, this meant that she practically jumped to attention once the shopkeeper's goons showed up, but she didn't quite leap into action even after they spoke.

"You lot have been naughty," was the first thing she heard from them as they brandished their spiked clubs, something that would have easily signaled a chance to cut loose under normal circumstances. Sadly, though, Robin never got the chance to pounce them in that instant, because, just as soon as she was about to, an equally sized squadron of guardsmen showed up and put a damper on her battlelust with a loud, "Halt!"

The thugs, as well as my lover, were taken aback by this interruption, but not in the typical guard vs. criminal fashion. Nay, the thugs themselves behaved like cats being ordered around by a group of mice; going so far as to physically wave the speaking officer off.

"Stay out of this, sergeant," the foremost highwayman said in a patronizing tone. "Just forget you saw us here and go back to your barracks." He pointed back in the direction of the nearest watchtower with his club to emphasize his point, setting off an immediate retort from the supposed 'sergeant.'

"That's captain now," he replied in righteous indignation. "And the watch in this quarter will no longer be bribed to look the other way by the likes of you or that con-artist who calls himself a merchant." Their conversation would have continued beyond that point, surely, eventually leading to blow; but Robin, sensing an opportunity, decided to get the jump on the captain.

"So, these guys are criminals," she asked him before anyone could say anything further?

"Yes, fair lady," he replied. "Stand back and allow us to-" Unfortunately for the captain, he never got the chance to finish that statement. Now validated in her need for combat, Robin quickly fell on the criminals in front of her without hesitation. She punched the condescending one straight in the jaw, first of all, and then roundhoused the two nearest him into the fountain. Finally, she disarmed the fourth by slamming her heel into his knee and then using it as leverage to slam her own knee into his head.

That entire onslaught was over in 3 seconds flat, and ended with Robin restraining the loud one in a grappling hold. She was sitting on top of his back while twisting his arm, causing him to cry out for help from anyone listening.

"AH!! I yield! Get her off of me before she breaks my arm!" The rest of his cohorts had already been detained by the captain's men, but the captain himself stood star struck. He was smitten, standing there as he admired Robin's work.

"That's one hell of a woman," he said, a comment that finally restored Mushu to his old, non-pouting self.

"That's my baby girl, thank you," he exclaimed, finally poking his head out from the scarf for the world to see!

Author: Silverstein, Posted: Sat Nov 18, 2017 1:02 AM, Post Subject: Hopeless Romantics [P]

A smile appeared on the wolf’s lips; Robin didn’t think Natsumi was an Ice Queen. Memories of the past floated into her mind; the first day she met the fox in the woods. Natsumi wasn’t a fox then, nor was she an ice queen. Katerina was the ice queen back then. So much loss had filled her heart with darkness. She had killed without feeling, lived alone, and didn’t keep anyone close. When Natsumi came into the wolf’s life, everything changed. The once ice heart of the wolf warmed with love. If it wasn’t for the fox, Katerina wouldn’t have a family. “I need to thank her for that one day.” The wolf thought to herself.

Hearing Mushu speak, forced Katerina out of her thoughts. She glanced from the small dragon to Robin a bit confused. It had only been six months. The last few months had been filled with joy for the wolf. She had seen an old friend she hadn’t seen in over a thousand years, and had her daughter a few weeks after. Now, she was seeing Robin again. How could it have been four years? The wolf didn’t miscount the days. Her babies were still….Babies.

If it wasn’t for Mushu’s outburst, the wolf demon would’ve talk to the human about her dragon’s meaning. The wolf’s attention soon turned to Goliath who…smiled? He smiled at his little friend while the dragon continued his retort. “It’s been too long my friend. The Great Dragon has been missed.” The large gargoyle gave a little bow; his hand going over his heart. “I am sorry for the flick.” He closed his eyes as he straightened. His eyes glancing over at the wolf who was looking at him.

“Robin. Mushu said four years?” Katerina turned towards the human. “It’s only been six months. Where have you and Natumi been? Hopefully in a cave far away getting better acquainted?” She smirked at her last words. Maybe that is why it felt like it had been so long for them. Hopefully, the two had gotten closer in their time together.

The wolf’s attention soon was on the men behind Robin. They mingled in the crowd behind them. Her eyes watched as they snaked through the crowd towards them. Her sword appeared in her hand. “We have company.” She whispered. Ready.

Author: Anima, Posted: Mon Nov 6, 2017 6:44 PM, Post Subject: Hopeless Romantics [P]

Now, of course, not all misdeeds go unpunished. In Mushu's case, his were promptly answered by a gargoyle finger to the face, though not before he added to his tally of mischief in the city of Adeluna. Katerina's laughter and agreement with him moments before his punishment was rendered, for instance, had done little to alleviate Robin's discomfort. She now visibly squirmed under the scrutiny of the others as they poked and prodded her crush out in the open, and expressed her disappointment in the wolf once she approved the "Ice Queen" nickname.

"Not you too, Katerina," Robin said while nursing an ever growing pout on her face. Her draconic patriarch chimed in afterward with his penultimate offense, making the situation even more uncomfortable by practically calling Katerina delusional through a bout of poorly veiled sarcasm.

"Right. You know, Katerina, that your optimism is the most endearing trait you have? It's so cute." Shortly thereafter, Mushu made his comment about Goliath's attempts to woo Katerina, and that proved to be the final nail in his coffin. The comment ended with his inglorious descent into the nearby fountain; along with a surprised Ataiyan watching from afar.

Being her innocent self, Robin didn't realize at the time that Goliath was punishing Mushu because he had publicly embarrassed him just like he had publicly embarrassed her moments earlier. She simply didn't realize that Mushu was awkwardly referring to Katerina and Goliath as an item without their consent, so she spoke up in his defense after the wolf told her about Ye Ol' Sword.

"That wasn't very nice, Goliath. He just asked if you had started a family. I don't see why you flicked him for that question, especially since you haven't seen each other in so long." She was about to say something more, but then the lizard finally emerged from the water with irritation in his eyes.

"Not nice," he asked his gargoyle friend upon leading a trail of water to him? "Let me tell you what's not nice." Mushu walked straight up to Goliath at that moment and poked him in the shin with a wet claw before continuing. "Not nice is flicking your oldest friend off your shoulder when he hasn't seen you in four years, you big stone oaf! Next time, use your voice instead of your hands: not in addition!"

For better or worse, that was pretty much the breaking point of Mushu's relationship with Goliath. He had expected a warmer greeting than he received, and could barely recognize his "old friend" anymore now that the stone giant had been so effectively "whipped." The time difference between the two didn't help matters either, placing additional strain on their already rocky relationship. Six months in Revaliir for Goliath had been four years for Mushu off world, so the two were practically living in different timelines. That just made the tiniest of their pairing even more irritable, and he maintained that drowned irritation even after he crawled back onto Robin's shoulder with a huff.

Author: Silverstein, Posted: Wed Nov 1, 2017 8:29 AM, Post Subject: Hopeless Romantics [P]

A smile came to the wolf’s lips as she thought about Amare. If the dark skinned woman didn’t push her to go out, then Kat wouldn’t have found Robin. While looking at the human before her, Katerina thought Robin had matured much in the last six months. The girl still seemed sweet and shy, but there was a strong presence about her. In just a matter of months, the girl had changed; Natsumi was good for her, the wolf hoped.

The comment that Robin made made the wolf laugh. “Yes, I am sometimes,” Katerina agreed. She had her moments where she just reacted out of instinct; due to her wolf side.

Mushu soon spoke, his comment made cleared Kat’s assumption that Robin was looking for a bow for herself. A smile came to the wolf’s face thinking of Robin and Natsumi.

Robin’s face toward Mushu made the wolf laughed. “A bow for Natsumi, huh?” Katerina asked as she leaned in to Robin for a moment with a teasing smile. “Ice queen does fit the fox. Although, I think she is going to thaw out pretty soon, Mushu; due to certain circumstances. So, Ice queen won’t fit for very long.” The wolf demon commented while she straightened and winked at Mushu.

The small dragon was soon on the shoulder of her gargoyle companion. She was happy that the big guy had a friend. That was until Mushu’s comment. “Mushu.” Now it was her turn to give a disapproving glare.

The large man beast looked down to Mushu, his voice was coarse and thick as he spoke. “Mushu. No. My oath to Katerina has far more importance than babies..” He paused for a moment to bring up his opposite hand. “And that wasn’t nice, Mushu.” The gargoyle then flicked the dragon off his shoulder. He didn’t want his feelings to be brought up in front of Katerina. She knew his feelings but didn’t reciprocate. This made it hard to be around the woman he loved, but he still held to his oath.

Ignoring the two beside her, Katerina was listening to Robin. She nodded in response to the human’s words. “I can help you find that bow for her.” The wolf demon offered. “There is a place called Ye Ol' Sword. You can just about buy anything there.” She paused in her words and moved beside Robin, ready to lead her. “Plus, you can tell me how much trouble you and Natsumi have gotten into the last six months.” The wolf demon wanted to know everything. Did they kiss yet? Were they an item? Has Natsumi shared her feelings? These questions ran through her mind; unanswered. Hopefully, Robin would speak of their time together.

If the two haven’t made any more towards each other, it was going to be time for Katerina to step in.

Author: Anima, Posted: Sun Oct 29, 2017 6:17 PM, Post Subject: Hopeless Romantics [P]

It goes without saying that the lecherous con-artist that Robin met in Adeluna would have found himself removed of his testicles had I been around during his proposal; but, fortunately for him, I was not. Instead, he got off with a measly chokehold delivered by a rather peeved wolf, and a warning to stay away. Indeed, Katerina interrupted the entire affair, much to the surprise of everyone present, and seemingly struck fear into the elderly merchant's heart. She did this just before whisking Robin away from his alleyway stall, not pausing for a single step to recognize that this man's terror was an act. His wide-eyed stare quickly reverted to a brooding glower after they left him in a pile of his own merchandise. He would be back, definitely, but had been thwarted for the moment.

Meanwhile, Robin and Mushu were safely delivered from his presence to a fountain outside the slums. They arrived in a state of confusion, trying to process what had just happened to them. In fact, even before Katerina had spirited her away, Robin was stumbling over her words, trying to speak up with various combinations of half-started thoughts like, "I… uh… just… I." That clumsiness didn't go away until her reintroduction to Katerina, and, although Mushu regained his senses almost immediately at the sight of Goliath, his ward remained deeply frazzled for several minutes after the lecher's denial.

"I'm starting to see why Natsumi refers to you as a hurricane, Katerina," she would come to say after arriving fountainside. She was, of course, about to say more, but Mushu beat her to the punch just before climbing onto his old, stone buddy.

"She was shopping for a gift for little Miss Ice Queen before you two showed up." In case you couldn't guess, I'm the Ice Queen that Mushu was referring to. The nickname was one he had given me after I froze his tongue to a metal club as punishment for being thoughtless. He knew Robin didn't like him calling me that name too, but, still, he persisted in the face of her protests.

Calling him by name in a tone of disapproval was Robin's typical reaction to such offenses, and that happened almost instinctively after his most recent slipup.

"Mushu," she cried, her tone slightly angrier than usual this time! The additional rage was because she had also asked the pseudo-wyvern to keep her romantic affairs private: a request he was now ignoring. Mushu was no longer paying attention to his friend at all, and was simply pulling the same shit that had gotten his tongue glued to the metal club in the first place. Rather than shape up, he chose to ignore his promises and change the subject instead.

"Hey there, Goliath ol' buddy ol' pal," he began in spite of the pouting Robin right in front of him. "It's good to see you! Any stony babies yet, if y'know what I'm sayin?" He was referring, of course, to Goliath's crush on Katerina: an affair which went totally over Robin's head just like the comment about a "woman who cared for her" had. She thought Mushu was just being rude, and so left him to converse with Katerina.

"What's the saying? Cat's out of the bag," she sighed while facing said wolf? "I came to Adeluna to get Natsumi a gift, but silly me decided to follow Mushu's sense of direction instead of my own when we arrived. We ended up in that merchant's stall because of him." Pausing for a moment, my kitty cat lamented. "It's sad that the bow was a fake. I would have loved to get Natsumi a genuine Ethereal Bow, but I don't think I'll find one in this city, especially with people like that merchant running around. Those bows were rare even back in Nisshoki, and I know that despite not being an archer. Just seeing one outside of combat was considered a badge of honor, let alone owning one."

Author: Silverstein, Posted: Wed Oct 4, 2017 1:04 AM, Post Subject: Hopeless Romantics [P]

The wolf demon didn’t really want to be separated from her family, but she needed to get out of the house. Katerina wasn’t the type of woman to stay in one place too long; she craved adventure. Months had gone by since the wolf had an adventure or killed anything. The last time she killed anything was her time with Nikolaus; months before that, she was with Robin.

Katerina smiled as she thought of the woman; Robin was much more then she seemed. The woman had taken out more than a handful of orcs with strength, speed and precision; nothing like the wolf had ever seen from a human.

As the wolf searched the crowd for Robin, her thoughts turned towards the night after Adel. “You could become her wife…” Katerina thought as she moved through the mass of people. “I have to make that happen.” This thought made Katerina’s excitement grow and urged her to find Robin. It had been a few months since she had seen the birdie.The wolf demon wanted to find out if anything happened between the two yet.

The wolf started to call Robin birdie since before she found out the woman’s name. Everything she would think of Natsumi and Robin she would call them love birds. Now, that Katerina knew Robin’s name, it fit even more.

As Katerina made her way through the crowd, following Robin’s scent. It wasn’t long till she found the bird; it wasn’t because of her scent. Mushu’s voice rang over the the crowd; he was yelling about money. The wolf demon couldn’t help but laugh at the dragon. The way Mushu got worked up would make anyone laugh.

Reaching Robin and Mushu, Katerina caught what the vendor said. Anger grew within her; no one should talk to Robin that way. “Oh hell no.” Katerina thought as she jumped over the weapons, her hand instantly came up to the man’s throat. He didn’t even have a chance to move. Katerina forced him back up against a table, making his weapons clatter onto the ground. The wolf demon’s swirls on her shoulders and face began to glow, including her eyes. “You won’t do anything…” Her voice was stern as she locked eyes with the frightened man. “You'll be a chard corpse before your “protectors” could reach you.” As she spoke, her hand tighten just a bit more. The palm of her hand growing hotter by the minute.

The man gripped her wrists as he gasped for breath as he tried to speak. “Okay… three….hundred. They can….have..it…” The vendor stared at the wolf with frightened eyes.

“No. They won't take it. It’s a worthless piece of shit just like you. You leave them be and I won't kill you.” A smirk came onto her face as she dropped her hand. The man instantly grabbed his throat and began to cough; Katerina’s red hand print was clear on her throat.

“You are one lucky man.” The wolf started. “If the woman who cared for her were here…. You would be dead already..” She paused in her words as she went to stand beside Robin. “Let’s hope I can keep her at bay, if she finds out. Because she doesn’t give second chances like I do when it comes to, Robin, here….”

The man instantly grew wide eyed while looking over Katerina’s shoulder. “Is everything okay, Katerina?” His voice was thick with anger and deep. “Everything is fine, Goliath. I think he got the message.” Katerina turned and patted the large gargoyle on the shoulder. Her comment made the seven foot tall gargoyle nod, his eyes glaring at the man as they turned away. “Come on, Robin, we’ll find another bow for you.” Katerina said while putting her arm around Robin’s shoulders. Turning, the four of them walked away. The large beast following silently behind her.

Reaching the fountain, the wolf dropped her arm and turned towards her. “It's been awhile, Robin! What are you doing here?” Katerina smiled and wanted to hug the woman but decided it was best to wait.

Author: Anima, Posted: Sat Sep 23, 2017 11:48 PM, Post Subject: Hopeless Romantics [P]

At the time I was romping around in Iria trying to locate the Purple Star Sapphire, Robin was busy combing the markets of Adeluna hundreds of miles across the sea. She had gone there without my prior knowledge, and for the very same reason I had gone to Iria without hers. See, by this point in our relationship, the two of us had been together as friends for at least four years. We had gone on many adventures outside of Revaliir and had several bonding moments in private, but, as is typical for people with intimacy problems, we still had trouble admitting our true feelings for one another at the end of it all. We just didn't talk openly about things like that, instead vying to drop 'hints' in our sad game of eternal cat and mouse where both players were mice.

With that in mind, you can guess – accurately so – that Robin's trip to Adeluna was yet another gift stop in the story of a hopeless romantic. She wanted to surprise me when I got home from the "solo job" I told her about, so she ducked out of the house with Mushu in tow. The mini-wyvern claimed he would help her; that he knew some merchants in Adeluna with merchandise befitting my taste. At first, Robin believed him out of respect, but even she began to doubt his claims when they brought her to a particularly seedy market in the seat of Qendressa's empire.
 
"Mushu, are we really going to find something for Natsumi here?" The question she asked was an honest one, considering the prostitutes and strumpets that lined the nearby corners of the place Mushu had guided her to. The surrounding buildings were not as pristine as other parts of the city either, and most of the merchants in this "market" wore shady clothes that obscured their faces. Robin had the same reaction I would in a place like that, even if Mushu didn't share her concern.

"Come on, Robin," he exclaimed, "Trust your old friend here!" The wyvern kept an eye out from the red scarf around Robin's neck beyond that point. His initial excuse for being up there was that it made it easier for him to spot good deals; but, in reality, he was behaving much like a child in a candy store. His friend, no matter how naive she was to the world around her, picked up on that giddiness, and it only made her more suspicious with the passage of time. Eventually, she cast aside her polite silence on the matter and asked him directly what had already been on her mind.

"But I thought you said you'd lived in that vault for almost your entire life. How could you know which stores are good in this area if that's true?" Indeed, Mushu had been in Gifre's Vault for almost his entire lifespan. He excluded that detail when saying he could help Robin just because he didn't want to seem useless to her. By the time their pair ended up in the slums, his meager excuses were just his attempt at avoiding responsibility. Rather than own up to the fact that he had gotten them lost, he, instead, kept pointing his friend in random directions, all while hoping he would eventually be vindicated.

But when that strategy fell apart, he could only muster a last ditch effort to save his hide. "Uhh… Hey, Natsumi likes bows! Let's try there," he said in desperation once Robin started catching on. He was pointing at an alleyway labeled "Thorand's Used Wares" while speaking - his final attempt at saving his pride - and, while Robin still regarded him suspiciously for his actions thus far, she humored him one last time. The store had archery supplies on display, anyway, along with a very "enthusiastic" merchant that greeted her upon entry; so it wasn't exactly out of her way to visit.

"Young lady," was how the old, cheaply-dressed clerk of that place greeted her upon entry. "You seem like a warrior of some renown, so perhaps I can interest you in this." Indeed, the merchant wasted no time in his sales pitch. He immediately brought out a case from behind his counter before Robin could even say, 'hello,' and then quickly opened it to reveal a beautiful looking bow. The item was decorated in azure hues with golden tips, and the grip was fabulously soft. It was the spitting image of the rare, ethereal bows from Karith, but something felt off about it as the owner continued his pitch."It's a rare beauty from Endapano, where the elves duplicated Parvpora's Ethereal Bows. Any arrows fired from it will always strike true regardless of weather. Go on: try it! It can be yours for only 500 silver!"

Robin very nearly touched that bow to examine it closer, but, luckily for her, Mushu stopped her hand before it made contact. In a rare redeeming moment, the lizard crawled down my friend's arm, stood on her hand, and got into a shouting match with the conman who had nearly swindled them both.

"Hold up," he exclaimed! "500 silver? 500 silver for this piece of garbage?!" The merchant was stunned by this development, having never encountered a creature like Mushu before. He could only look at Robin with a dumbfounded expression for a while, at least before finally finding the words he was looking for.

"What is this lizard you have brought into my stall," he asked: a question that only intensified Mushu's anger?

"Lizard?! Listen here, monkey boy: I'm a dragon! D-R-A-G-O-N. I don't do that tongue thing!" Mushu had always been sensitive when it came to people questioning his size and calling him a lizard because of it. Comments of that nature always sent him over the edge: something that could be either good or bad depending on the situation. In the case of the conman, it was good, because the outburst distracted him from his act and therefore made him slip up on his lie.

"You're no more a dragon than this bow is sturdy…" He caught himself near the end, though not before Robin's companion verbally leaped on his weakness.

"A-HA! I knew it! You were trying to swindle my friend!" In fact, had Robin touched that bow, it would have snapped in two almost immediately. The merchant could then claim that she had to buy it since she broke it, thereby getting 500 silver off of junk or getting a pretty debtor to collect from for an unspecified amount of time. This original plan failed because of Mushu, but the merchant was far from cornered. Like every snake-oil salesman, he found a way to turn the tables again, and in a way that both Mushu and Robin sweat.

"Such bold accusations," he continued. "One might even call them slander. Perhaps the city guard would like to find out about this? Or even my protection officers in the mob?" Mushu and Robin didn't know what to say now. They both broke out in a sweat, all while the "merchant" was eying Robin's body. "Alternatively, you could just pay me damages. Let's say 5000 silver and I forget about your mouthy reptile next time my pals and I have dinner? If you can't afford that, we can always work out a payment plan. I accept all kinds of labor."

Author: Silverstein, Posted: Sat Sep 16, 2017 9:30 PM, Post Subject: Hopeless Romantics [P]

After the birth of her newest addition, Guinevere, the wolf demon didn’t leave the house that often.The reasons for this was that she was nursing every few hours, changing diapers, and washing clothes. She did have help from her brother and nanny, but some things she just needed to do on her own. She just wanted to soak up every moment with her two babies; Guinevere and Evangeline.

Time had flown by since she first became pregnant with Guinevere. In that time, so much had happened. She had got her baby, Evangeline, back from Natsumi. The wolf had her pregnancy accelerated by Adel; Katerina would still be pregnant if it wasn’t for her. “But what a fun time it was…” Katerina thought as she remembered the last months. She even met up with an old friend, whom she had mix feelings about.

Pushing her thoughts away, Katerina looked back at the tail behind her. She didn’t want to leave her daughters, but Amare urged her to get out of the house. The wolf had been kept up for almost a month. The red haired woman reluctantly agreed to get supplies from Adeluna. It would only take a day or so at most. “Let's make it only a day, Athena.” The wolf demon said down to her black horse. With a click of her tongue, the horse began to run down the trail towards the city.

The wind tousled the wolf's red hair back. Katerina forgot how it felt to ride a horse like this; she felt free. While being lost in the feeling of it all, the sudden roar startled her. She automatically knew that roar. “Do you have to scare me like that, Goliath!” The wolf demon called up to the sky. She watched the sky above until the gargoyle appeared from the clouds. Goliath was like no gargoyle she had ever seen; his skin was a dark shade of purple, his hair black as night, and his eyes seemed to glow a pale yellow. His build was large and tall, this creature was nothing but muscle and hit just as hard.

The gargoyle flew down beside the running horse and the wolf. A smile curving on his lips. “Yes.” He answered her question with a smirk. He loved the wolf before him that he vowed to protect. Her beauty was magnificent in his eyes. Goliath had only told her a week ago how he felt. Even if she didn’t feel the same, he still loved her and would always stay by her side.

A howl erupted his thoughts and he grumbled. He had forgotten that Scarlett had came along on the trip. With a sigh, he flew up towards the sky; he just wanted a minute alone with the wolf.

“Goliath?” Katerina called up the the gargoyle as she watched him fly off into the sky. He knew the look in his eyes when he stared at her. He loved her, but she didn’t love him in the same way. She thought of Goliath as a dear friend, even family.

Hearing the howl again, Katerina looked back towards the wolf that came running up behind them. This wolf was different then all the others. She was made of the most strongest steel, instead of flesh. At sundown to sunup, she would become the flesh. A beautiful white hair, fair skinned woman. Scarlette howled once more as she began to keep pace with the horse.

With two of her companions with her, the wolf demon didn’t think anything could go wrong on the trip. That was if, Goliath kept hidden. She hated that people feared him. He wasn’t that beastly.

The white walls that soon appeared before them pushed the wolf demon’s thoughts away. She needed to get her supplies quickly. The wolf demon missed her family, and just wanted to be home.

It took the wolf demon almost all morning to make her way through the gates of the city. Many people were heading in; some with large carts pulled by horses, some pulling their own carts, and many people walking in between them. This city was always a good place to buy supplies, but there was always a crowd.

Finally entering the gates of the city, the wolf demon brought her horse to the stables. “Thanks.” She said to the small boy who would take care of Athena. “Your welcome!” He smiled taking the reigns. Katerina left her horse in the faithful hands of the boy and headed off into the crowd. Her steel wolf at her side.

As the wolf moved closer towards the vendors, a familiar scent hit her nose. “Is that..” Pausing while she grew closer. “Robin?” A bright smile lit her face. Now she knew why the witch wanted her to leave the house. “Amare.” She thought with a small chuckle. Hopefully, Katerina would find Robin within the large crowd.