Rosemary got herself out of the cot. It was almost unfair that Corydalis did this to them. Her face was bright red as she looked back at Aeolus. “It’s not your fault… I don’t think.” At least she was being honest with him as she rubbed her neck and got up. Offering him her hand she didn’t think she would be of much use to help him out of the cot but it felt like the right thing to do.

“How did you sleep?” Corydalis looked at them with a grin.

“You know how we slept. You tricked us.” Rosemary put her little hands on her little hips and stared at her sister. “You are terrible.”

“I am just instigating. I find you two enjoyable so I thought I would help,” Corydalis put the pipe in her mouth with a grin.

“WE DO NOT NEED YOUR HELP,” it was the first time that Rosemary had raised her voice as she blushed and put her hands on her hip. “We’re leaving.” Rosemary took him in the wrong direction before realizing it and dragging him back by Corydalis. “We’re leaving this way!”

“Have a safe trip and do say hello to our mother for me.”

–

After all the huffing and puffing they finally made it all the way across the Rainforest and into Vada. They were the only ones waiting for the sky tram beside a few cloaked individuals. They were so high up that Rosemary was enjoying looking down. “LOOK HOW PRETTY IT IS!” She squealed as she watched the rainbow water from where they were. It was night time out now and the glowing crystals really stuck out. “I CAN’T WAIT!”

She bounced a bit as the sky tram made it’s way back to them and they boarded onto the sky tram. She got up on the ledges of the tram. “Miss that’s dangerous.”

“Oh, that’s okay if I fall I can catch myself I promise.” That made the ferryman a bit more relaxed as he left Rosemary to watch over the edge. “Isn’t it pretty Aeolus?” She pointed to the rainbow rivers on either sides.

Despite the initial embarrassment, when Rosemary offered her hand to him, he took it.  As she lifted him out of the cot, he couldn't help but notice that her hand was soft, as opposed to his calloused hands.  She really isn't a fighter.  To have gone this long without having to draw a weapon is something very admirable.  He stared at her for a moment longer, his hand in hers, before breaking away.  "We should see your sister before we leave."

As they made their way to Corydalis, Rosemary was fuming.  When her sister asked how they slept, the little half angel was more than ready to tell her off.  When Corydalis said she was instigating, Aeolus blushed and looked away.  "It's not like that.  I'm just helping her get around, right?"  There was a knowing look from Corydalis after that statement, to which Rosemary raised her voice and exclaimed that they didn't need her help.  This brought another flush to Aeolus' face, but he had little time to react as Rosemary grabbed his hand and dragged him off, first in the wrong direction, and then in the correct one.

Despite her frustration, Aeolus couldn't help but smile.  Corydalis does care for her sister, doesn't she?

Most of the trip to Vada was done in silence as Rosemary's mood remained sour.  Finally, though, as they neared the valley, her mood started to lighten up.  The closer they got to the sky tram, the happier she seemed to get, until finally they arrived.  Aeolus looked around, It's not very busy today.  He sighed.  At least Rosemary was enjoying herself. Those men, though.  They're giving off a dangerous vibe.  He glared their direction, but they seemed not to take notice.  If push came to shove, Aeolus could take them, even in the confined space of the tram, and Rosemary could fly away.  

Besides, just because they give off a dangerous aura, doesn't mean anything will happen.  It still made him uncomfortable, though.  

The beauty, though, of the Valley of Vada was something he had never seen before.  Beautiful crystal trees were about, reflecting the sun in a variety of shimmery rainbows as the light refracted off of them.  "It really is something else.  I've never seen anything like this…"  It didn't take long for the tram to reach their side, and immediately Rosemary got up onto the ledges.  The tram ferryman was worried, but with some reassurance, the man let her do as she pleased.  Aeolus nodded, "Just don't slip, little angel.  I'd rather you not give the ferryman a heart attack." 

"It's beautiful," he said, leaning against the railing and gazing out to the brilliant rivers.  "There's nowhere else like this, is there?"  He glanced back as the cloaked individuals made their way onto the tram as well, but he turned his focus to Rosemary.  "So, Rosemary.  Are you enjoying the trip so far?  Has it been worth it taking the long way?" 

Rosemary was so very excited about everything. The rainbows were excited. The crystal trees were exciting. She looked at Aeolus with her big silver eyes, “Aeolus…” There was a bit of hesitant. “Can you get me a sprig of the crystal tree for my hair?” When he brought one back to her she let him put it in her braided hair and she bounced a bit until she kissed his cheek. “Thank you!” It was pretty and rainbow in the light.

Now she was balancing on the edge as she talked with Aeolus. “I’ve only ever seen it from so much higher… Most of the time I cut time and fly from Laeto to Yovaesh to Sularia. “Wait until you see Mother’s realm. I’m sure that we will go there at some point to see her. She just had a baby after all. We should pay our respects to her and Myrra. Myrra is what they decided to name the baby.”

As for if she liked the trip so far she smiled at him with a blush. “I love it so far. I love traveling with you and seeing everything and knowing I’m safe. Even if Corydalis made us embarrass each other.” She pulled Aeolus close to her when she sat on the edge and hugged him close. “Thank you so much for bringing me here. It means a lot to me.”

She enjoyed the sights with him until she felt something on her back. It was one of the hooded men. “Our captain sends his regards.” They whispered to Aeolus as they shoved Rosemary off the edge. They drew their weapons on him and the ferryman panicked but maintained control over the tram.

“AEOLUS! HELP!” She screamed in free fall. “I CAN’T GET MY MAGIC TO WORK.”

One of the men laughed a bit. “Shouldn’t have sealed her wings… You got a choice mate. You can’t kill us and save her at the same time. She’s going to die on the bottom of Vada all by herself and you are going to die here.”

To see Rosemary as excited as she was was something special, and he kiss on the cheek made him blush slightly, "I-it was nothing.  Don't worry about it."  But he was genuinely happy for her.  It was things like this that made him feel useful, even if it was something as simple as reaching a crystal sprig.  As the tram started to move, Aeolus and Rosemary talked a bit more about her mother.

"Ah yes, I heard about the rabbit fiasco.  Unfortunately, I was unavailable during the most of it," he mused.  "I bet Myrra will be a handful as she grows.  As the conversation moved forward, Aeolus was delighted to hear that the trip was going well for her.  Even with her sister, Corydalis, forcing that embarrassing situation on to her.  Still, he was genuinely surprised when she hugged him, which brought a quick flutter to his heart.  She's gotten really personal recently, he thought, though he did end up giving her a hug back.  

""I'm glad I could be here.  It's definitely an experience."  

Near about the halfway point, though, as Aeolus was distracted talking to Rosemary, was when the cloaked figures made their move.  Everything happened so quickly, even for Aeolus, and before he could really react, he had a situation on his hands.  One of them had used a spell to seal Rosemary's magic, and the other two cornered Aeolus.  So, instead of taking my warning…  

Time seemed to slow down as Aeolus' mind kicked itself into overdrive.  There were three of them, and in the tight confines of the tram, he couldn't use the Silver Wind.  A drawn out fight would spell disaster for Rosemary.  He let out a sigh.  "Fine.  The situation calls for it then…"  He wasn't happy about it though.  He jumped up onto the railing, and with a smirk, let himself fall backwards.

The wind rushed past him, and for the briefest of moments, he felt centered and calm.  Rosemary's screams though brought him back to reality, and as he opened his eyes once more, they flashed a brilliant silver.  A dual set of wings erupted from his back, and his body disappeared as he magically accelerated, appeared just below Rosemary.  With his arms waiting, she fell into him, similar to their very first meeting.  He cradled her for the briefest of moments, looking down at her with a smile.  

"I've got you.  Don't worry."  With a powerful thrust of his wings, they ascended upward until they were level with the tram, Aeolus once peaceful demeanor changing as the cloaked hunters came into view.  "Now…how to deal with them," he uttered with complete contempt in his voice.  

“It seems like Myrra will be a talented magic user.”

She was in free fall and had managed to spin herself around as not to see the ground that was quickly coming up. Her eyes were in more shock from seeing Aeolus’s wings. HE HAD PRETTY WINGS. She shook her head and put her head back into reality. He caught her so easily as she let out a held breath. Her silver eyes looked up at his.

With the tram in sight, she got an angry look on her face. “Get me a stick.” It wasn’t long before she had a crystal tree branch. The magic seal on her was broken with ease the angrier her face got. Once they were on the tram she looked at the smallest person there that was causing trouble for them.

“What are you going to do with a stick? We got swords.”

“Nature is fickle and she chooses what is strong and what is weak. What was useful now is dust and what was once dust is now useful.” Silver magic appeared to shimmer around the tree branch as she swung it towards the person. “I don’t want to hurt you but you’ve made me very angry.” The sword went against the tree branch. What should have broken the fragile tree branch now broke the sword. “GROW!” The silver magic in the air around the tree branch intensified as the tree branch growth accelerated. It shot sharp points towards the man as she dropped it. He was now in a cage formed by the tree branch. “I will not kill you. However, you have made me very angry! I will let Aeolus choose what to do with you. The tree cage will not break. It is harder than iron. Not easily broken by the likes of you.”

At a closer look, the man was all cut up from the branch forming the cage. Rosemary patted her dress as she got all the dirt off of her.

For what it was worth, Aeolus lost the most of his anger by watching Rosemary go on the attack.  Despite her peaceful demeanor, she had gotten more than angry enough to actually beat the cloaked hunters with a fragment of the crystal tree, and then create a cage out of it using powerful magic.  Afterwards, though, as she returned to Aeolus' side, she stated that their fate would end up in his hands.  So I have a decision to make, he thought to himself, hovering in the air. 

"Rosemary.  Could you do me a favor?" he asked.  "Could you see to it that the ferryman makes it safely to the other side?  I don't see this tram moving for awhile, and i'd hate for him to get stuck here with these…individuals."  He flew closer to the tree cage, and hovered close enough to speak to them.  

"All right, then," Aeolus said, his anger once more on the rise.  "I gave you an opportunity, but it seems that it was wasted on you."  He looked each of the hunters in the eye, his gaze full of a killer's intent.  "However…it would seem that this cage is something that I cannot break either.  The little angel seems to have some powerful magic."  He flew back a bit, looking around.  "So…you've lucked out this time.  I'm sure once the ferryman gets across and calls the proper authorities that you'll have suffered enough.  In the meantime…I suggest you get used to being a cage…"

One of the huntsmen finally managed to speak before Aeolus started to fly off.  "You…you're a monster, though!  You cut us down as easy as breathing!"  

Aeolus turned, "And you…you aimed to sell her to the highest bidder, did you not?  We may all be monsters…"  He flew in closer once more.  "But at least I'm merciful…"

Rosemary looked up at Aeolus with big eyes as she nodded. “Come here, Sir!” She chased the Ferryman down who was in a state of shock. “I can assist you!” She sounded more like a healer as she took him in her arms. Her wings appearing a glorious silver flash before she carried him off. “I’ll be on the other side!”

She seemed happy to be on the ground as she put the ferryman down. The heat of the desert hit her first at the edge of the desert. “We will wait will you until help comes…” Plus… she had lost their goods when she fell.” Rosemary made a displeased face that she had lost their supplies. It had been her only job and she fudged it.

After telling Aeolus when he got there about what happened to their supplies she pouted and they waited around for someone to show up. She looked up at the sky and was shocked to see what appeared to be a unit of dragons flying in formation. “I KNOW THAT FORMATION!” She squealed loudly. Getting up she waved her arms at the dragons.

Slowly they all landed with a golden dragon at the head. A brown haired woman taller than Rosemary but still short got off of the dragon. She was decked out in dragon armor and had a blade of flames by her side. Her eyes were green with red around the pupil unlike Rosemary’s. “Oi, I should have known it was one of you causing problems.” It was an older voice who sounded like she had more experience.

“Auntie Toya!” Rosemary squealed as she ran over and hugged the other woman.

“Get off of me. Shoo. Shoo.” Toya pried her off and went to evaluate the problems. “Got a message from Mamlak that Rosenite magic had been sensed so I came to investigate what the hell was going on… Do you want to explain?” She jabbed her finger into Aeolus’s chest. “You… Smell familiar… Kinda like that fuckhead I have on Horae Island.” She shrugged a bit afterward and listened to the story that Rosemary and Aeolus had.

“So… they were trying to sell you huh? Boy… they will love this back home. Round every single one of them up. Find out about their group. Their leaders. Everything. Sularia doesn’t take kindly to men who do as they please.” Sure enough, all of Toya’s dragon knights were female. Two even launched to go get the men from the tram and get the tram going again.


Rosemary was contemplating stuff before she spoke up, “Aunt Toya these men made us lose all of our supplies for traveling the Harena can you take us to Sularia?”

Toya mulled it over in her head. “I want to say no but you are my niece and Angela wouldn’t forgive me if you died out there… Fine. You both can ride Karith with me back to Sularia. How does that sound Fuckface?”

Rosemary puffed her face out. “Aeolus. His name is Aeolus…”

“Aeolus… Fuckface… It’s the same thing. My name is Toya, I am the Queen of the White Court for Sularia and leader of the army.”

It didn't take Aeolus long to finish his talk with the hunters, and he made his way to the chasm edge, where the ferryman and Rosemary were waiting for him.  Rosemary wasn't happy that the supplies had been lost, but Aeolus smiled, shaking his head.  "I wouldn't worry about it too much.  It's fine.  The fact that we're alive is better than nothing."  He hoped that it would cheer her up.  However, he didn't have to wait long before her mood shifted to excited delight.  

Dragons?   As they neared, Aeolus stared in surprise.  Why would they have sent dragons for something this trivial.  And they've come far too soon.  There's no way this is the 'normal' authorities.  As the dragons landed, Aeolus resealed his wings, and dusted himself off from the earlier altercation, as well as from the dirt and sand that had been kicked up when the dragons landed.  As he followed Rosemary to the leader of the formation, a great gold dragon, he noted the woman who descended.  

She's strong, the silver haired man thought to himself.  Stronger than anyone I've faced so far…  A part of him wanted to fight her, but he knew now was not the time nor the place.  As Rosemary and the woman spoke, Aeolus learned that it was her aunt, Toya, who had come to the rescue.

"So, you followed the magic trail.  That explains the response time," Aeolus said, bowing.  "Aeolus Silverwind, it's a pleasure."  As Toya poked a finger into his chest, he staggered back a bit from the jab.  I…smell familiar?  He looked at her with a puzzled expression.  Still, it didn't take long for Aeolus and Rosemary to explain everything that had happened.  For the most part, it was as they said, though Aeolus left out the part where he killed the majority of the original hunting crew.  If Toya asked privately, he would have no issue telling her, but Rosemary didn't need to hear the details.

Aeolus watched as Toya commanded the dragon knights into action, watching as they spread out and took control over the situation.  They are quite efficient.  I'd expect their fights to go similarly.  I'd hate to be on the wrong end of all of them.  As he watched them tend to their task, Rosemary asked for a ride for the rest of the trip to Sularia.  While he wanted to interject that it defeated the purpose of 'journey by foot,' he knew that the supplies they had lost would cause issues before they could reach civilization, so he thought against it.  Toya agreed to help, and Aeolus nodded in thanks.

"Your kindness is appreciated," Aeolus said, ignoring the fact that she had either completely forgotten his name, or didn't care.  He had met types like this before.  For the most part, he simply ignored it.  She was either a good person, or not.  Her lack of social skills had little to do with that.  Still, though, it caused his eye to twitch slightly as Rosemary tried to correct her, and failed.

"A Queen?  The Rose family sure has quite the bloodline…" Aeolus stated.  "Anyway, Rosemary and I are ready to leave whenever you would like."