Sudden Reunion

[Nekoprincess]

(Closed to Call Me J.)

The bar was dark, almost eerily quiet. The minute that the trio had entered the smoky place all talk had stopped. It seemed...much to the eldest woman's dismay that they had entered a place where mostly male Drow frequented. She could see it was an all male place by the way the tables were all liquor stained. The smell of fresh tobacco was heavy in the air and even the bar keep was a male. A drow with dark blue skin and midnight black hair.

Meowing a bit, Rain turned to go as she whispered to her daughter. "Lets go honey. We can find a better place to stay tonight..."

Mylie let out a whiny meow as she hissed back softly "No mom...this place is as good as any! Besides I'm tired! I just want to rest!"

Rainee bit down on her lower lip, she definitively DID not like the feel of this place. Eyes were already scooping her and her companion out. Turning to talk to Mistuki she whispers "Can't you talk to Mylie? Maybe she'll listen to you. After all...you're not her mother and your closer in age to her..."

Mistuki's bright green eyes widened before she held up her hands. In a light voice she murmurs "Don't bring me into this Rainee. I may have agreed to watch your daughter..but! I won't be drawn into a fight! I know how it is to side with one member of your family. My sister and I used to do that and trust me, the end result was not pleasant!"

Rainee let out a frustrated groan. Turning from Mistuki back to her daughter she whispers strictly "We're leaving. This place is full of men Mylie sweetie, and mommy nor Mistuki want to be hit on by drunk guys."

Mylie pouted, her lower lip trembling as she said firmly "Mom...these guys don't look drunk. They may be eyeing you...but no one has made a move! Besides! You took me to that crazy doctor's place! He was looking at you with greedy eyes! These men don't look like that! No body has tried to grab you, mom!"

Rainee closed her eyes, she knew her little girl was innocent and that she didn't understand that not everything was obvious to the eye. Her precious angel would learn one day soon, that you couldn't trust everyone. That not everything was all rainbows, sun shines and daisies. But for not she'd let Mylie keep that innocent picture in her head. Moving to wrap her little kitten in a hug she murmurs lightly "Fine. We'll just get soup here. JUST food honey. Then we'll be leaving. We're going to find a much more upstanding tavern to spend the night at."

Mylie looked like she was about to throw a temper tantrum, but then she relented and said "Fine mom. But geez, you could try to lighten up! Not everyone is out to do you harm!"

Rainee didn't answer, instead she turned to Mistuki and asked softly "Are you all right with staying here? "

Mistuki seemed nervous, now that they were not talking about Rain's daughter, the young woman tried to laugh, but instead it came out as a hiccup as she replied "I think I'll be ok, as long as we just stay for food. For lodgings I want some place safer....like you suggested."

The half cat nodded as she softly stroked her little girl's hair. Moving with her daughter still hugging her. She sat down on one of the bar's worn leather stools. Uncomfortable as it was, it would have to do for now. Sitting her daughter on the seat next to her, Rain turned to the barkeep and ordered three bowls of clam chowder.

Paying him the necessary amount. She then rose from her seat as Mistuki sat down. Looking rather embarrassed she muttered "Excuse me. I have to use the ladies room Mistuki. Watch Mylie for me ok?"

"Sure no problem." Mistuki said as moved into Rain's seat. Smiling at Mylie she asks "Do you want to play a game hun?"

Rainee smiled as she headed towards a shadowed corner. A tattered old sign stated Ladies Room. Opening the door, she was greeted with the stench of uncleanness. Sighing as she moved to go about her business she thought I'll be out soon Mistuki. You won't have to watch Mylie for long.

A dark voice answered before the young kitten could. "Sure babe. I'd love to play a game with you!"

The mink haired girl let out a frightened scream. Moving to shield Mylie she screeches "I didn't ask you! What..what do you want?"

The big dark skinned elf let out a hearty laugh. Moving closer, his dark black eyes shined with lust as he said coyly "Aww come on now baby! Quiet down! I"m not going to hurt you! I just want to play! Now if you'll be a good little poppet and drop the kid off with a nanny, you won't be hurt! If you don't listen..well." his lecherous smile was enough proof to show Mistuki the man's intentions.

Shaking her head she tried to say in a firm voice "No leave me alone!" her heart though was beating rapidly with fear as she thought frantically Rainee! Where are you? I need your help! This man..he's acting the same way that lecherous bandit was! I need you to get him to go away!

Much as Mistuki prayed this the man did not come, nor did anyone else come to the mink haired young woman's aid. As Mylie begin to whimper in fright upon seeing the greedy looking man, she clung to Mistuki and wailed "Make the scary man go away!"

Mistuki groaned as the man moved to grab her. Tears begin to form in her eyes as she screeched loudly 'GET AWAY! HELP! ISN'T ANYONE GOING TO HELP ME?!"

[Call me J]

There were a few places in Alerar that Jame went when he felt alone. The Yellow Dog Bar was one of them. It was full of mostly lecherous older men, but Jame didn’t mind. It was one of the few places where he stood out as a good catch in Ettermire. The only women who ever came to the tavern were foreigners, but Jame liked that. They were better for one night stands and more impressed with his credentials as a noble. Tonight, he entered the bar with the goal of dulling away his ennui, either with alcohol or women, or any other vice that happened to present itself.

However, the moment Jame entered the smoke filled tavern, he could practically feel the short sword at his side glowing. He frowned, he hadn’t come to a tavern looking for trouble. Still, the moment he looked over to the end of the bar, he could tell exactly why it was glowing. There were two girls, Jame didn’t recognize the older one, but the eight year old was unmistakable. Mylie Rivfader, Rainee Miyami’s daughter.

The unknown girl was the one in trouble. She was being propositioned by one of the smelliest, most disgusting regulars Jame had ever had the privilege of meeting. The half dragon could practically feel the shivers going down the girl’s spine, and he intervened immediately. At first, he just stepped in between the girl and drow, and suggested that the situation had no need to get ugly.

The drow wasn’t pleased, though he tried to pass his objections off as good natured ribbing between friends. “Come on,” he insisted. “It’s just a little fun with the girls from out of town, eh? Don’t be mad I got here first.”

Jame was unmoved, even as the drow poked him a few times jokingly. “You move away from the girl, or I’ll break that finger,” he warned.

The drow threw a punch, but Jame blocked it with his forearm. The drow tried another punch, but Jame ducked under this one, and spun around behind the drow. Before the fat letcher could turn around, Jame had pulled his ankles, sending him crashing to the floor. “Last chance to say you’re sorry,” the half dragon warned.

Jame waited a few seconds. There was no apology forthcoming. Without any more hesitation, the half dragon wrapped the drow’s two legs around his knee and began to apply excruciating pressure to the drow’s upper thighs. Within seconds, the arrogant pervert was screaming out apologies for the girl amidst cries for mercy.

Jame let the legs go. “Get out of here,” the half dragon insisted. Jame watched with a slight bit of satisfaction as the drow limped away, tenderly nursing his hamstrings as he walked.

With that business settled, Jame turned to the girl. “You okay?” he asked.

Without even uttering a word, the young girl wrapped her arms tightly around Jame’s waist. “Thank you,” she said appreciatively. “Thank you, thank you, thanks.”

A bit overwhelmed with the sudden burst of affection, Jame could only pat her head awkwardly as he said she was welcome. Hoping she could help him out of the muddle he turned towards Mylie. “Good to see you again, little one,” he said with a smile.

Mylie clapped. “Jame! I’ve missed you. You should write and visit us! Mommy’s been having trouble with lots of men giving her greedy eyes, so I’m glad you’re here. It’s not creepy when you give her greedy eyes.”

Jame couldn’t help but feel a bit embarrassed by that. He had lusted after, and even slept with Rainee in the past, but he hadn’t known his feelings were that obvious to others. Shaking his head, he wondered where the older cat girl was, and when the girl hugging his midsection would ever let go.

[Nekoprincess]

Opening the door to the bathroom, Rain was running a hand through her hair. The trip had taken longer then she thought it would. First the sink had clogged on running water, then the toilet wouldn't flush for a few seconds. She could see the reason why this bar attracted mainly the male population. Sniffling her noise as she closed the smelly bathroom door behind her, she looked around her. A commotion seemed to have gone on while she was busy taking care of her business..

Her first thought was her daughter, she was concerned that Mylie had acted out of place and had gotten Mistuki in trouble. Rushing forward, she had to push a big burly Drow aside, the man merely squeaked and moved out of her way, his dark eyes seemed to be centered on the bar front. Meowing a bit under her breathe, Rainee rushed through two more Drow men until she came upon the place where she had left her daughter with her care taker.

Breathless, she looked towards the seats where Mistuki and her daughter were sitting. They weren't there, her heart started beating rapidly as the words "Mylie? WHERE ARE YOU?" almost burst from her mouth. However before she uttered them, she noticed Mistuki hugging a familiar man. Her silver eyes widened, as she blushed a bit. Her fur wasn't quite back to normal from her accident at Doctor Wrarin's crazy lab.

Wriggling her soft blue ears, she turned to see that Mistuki had her face buried in Jame's chest, and she was saying "Thank you! Thank you for saving me from that perverted creep!" An O formed around Rainee's mouth as she asked her daughter "Some jerk hit on Mistuki?"

Mylie squealed her eyes turning from Jame red ones to that of her mother, leaping to hug her mother she murmurs "Yes! It was this big creepy Drow, he had this look in his eye, one that I think meant trouble...but Jame saved us mommy!"

Rainee groaned as she ruffled her daughter's hair and said wisely "See? This is why I told you we should have left honey!"

Mylie whimpered a bit as she bowed her head and whispered "Sorry mom...Its just I didn't want to have to walk again. I was hungry and tired and..."

Rainee pressed a finger gently to her daughter's mouth and said softly "Its ok, this time. But next time Jame might not be around to come to the rescue. Next time listen to mommy's first impression ok?"

Mylie nodded mutely as she remained hugging her mother.

Smiling Rainee turned to look at Jame. She was about to greet him, however Mistuki beat her to it. "Your Jame? Jame Kaosi? I heard...a little bit about you when I first came to Ettermire. Your Damon Kaosi's son right? I heard you trained under the High Graf here in Ettermire! That must have been some expierience!"

Rainee groaned a bit, in a clear voice she murmurs "Don't bug Jame with questions Mistuki. If I know one thing about being rescued, its not to pester your rescuer with questions shortly after they save you!"

Mistuki blushed a bit as she finally let go of Jame's midsection. Smiling faintly she murmurs "Sorry..but thank you again." She then moved aside, allowing Rain to talk to the red eyed man.

"Thank you Mistuki." Rain said kindly, she then turned to Jame with a broad smile on her face. Moving to hug him tightly she murmurs "Thank you so much Jame. You rescued my daughter this time, last time it was me. I don't know how I can thank you!" Shifting so she was staring into his red eyes, her own silver ones were glistening with happiness. Rising on her toes, she whispers softly "I can only think of one way to thank you. Hope you don't mind!" She then leaned forward, her lips soft and moist as they approached his. Her thanks was a kiss.

"Oh mom." Mylie said as she moved away from her mother to allow Jame and her to have their brief intimate moment.

[Call me J]

As Jame was kissed, he practically wanted to scoop Rainee up into his arms and carry her back to his place, where they would spend the next two days locked in his bedroom refusing to come out. He was intoxicated by it, her strange blue fur and all. He almost forgot about Mylie and Mistuki for one brief moment as his lips met Rainee’s. He was swooning, but it was fleeting, and he was soon brought back to a dirty, smoke filled bar with a group of lewd onlookers gawking at him.

“Hey blue girl…” one of the patrons said. “Share the wealth.” He mockingly made kissing faces both towards Rainee, and then Mistuki.

Jame’s first instinct was to go over to the table and show the filthy drow some respect, but he decided against it. He knew Rainee didn’t care much for violence, even when it was to defend her honor. “You see how your friend’s walking,” Jame said, reaching for the claymore he kept strapped across his back. “Want to walk the same way?”

There was a slight gasp from the bar, only to be interrupted by the bartender pointing a crossbow towards him. “No fighting with weapons,” the bartender said. “Put it away.”

Jame took his hand away from his weapon, but after he had a long hard look at the drow who had made the filthy comments. They locked eyes for a minute, and after that, Jame knew if there was a fight, he would win. The drow blinked almost immediately.

“Let’s get out of he-” Jame began, only to be interrupted by the sound of a flintlock being fired. Immediately, Jame moved for Mylie and hit the floor immediately after. By the time he could look up, he could see that there were three human bandits and the bartender had been killed.

“Don’t anyone go for a weapon,” one of them said. The other two pulled back the hammers on their flintlock riffles. “We don’t need any heroes. We’re just out to get the dead man’s money.”

Jame thought about acting, but he realized he couldn’t. If he was alone, he might have been able to fight them, but now, with little Mylie being so near, the bandits would latch on to his little eight year old vulnerability. He hated that was the circumstances, in which a little girl as cute and innocent as her had turned into a pawn in a deadly game, but there was not much that he could do. “Stay low,” he whispered to her, before turning to see if Rainee and Mistuki were alright.

They were, the two of women were huddling together near a bar stool, the young human girl practically clutching Rainee’s shoulders as if she had seen a ghost. “Those are the bad men,” Mistuki whispered. Jame had no idea what she meant, beyond the obvious implication that as bar thieves, they were clearly up to no good.

The bandits had no opposition. All the patrons who had been so incredibly brave when it had come to throwing lewd comments had lost their courage as well. Jame had to repress an urge to get up and settle the matter, but waited a good ten seconds after they had left before he got up.

Though the half dragon wanted to chase after them, he knew he couldn’t. He had other people he needed to look after. “You alright Mylie?” he asked the little cat girl as he helped her up. With her eyes wide from the shock of what had happened, she didn’t answer immediately, but it was clear she was alright. After a few seconds she nodded, and then ran over to her mother and hugged her.

Jame, somewhat dumbfounded by the whole incident, could only voice his feelings with an exhale. “We were lucky there,” he said when he finally got his voice. “That barkeep wasn’t all that far from us…”

[Nekoprincess]

The half cat's heart was beating rapidly, her mind felt light as air. As her lips parted from Jame she smiled. Looking up into his eyes, she was about to comment on how wonderful their kiss was, but before she could say anything, she heard some lewd comments from their audience. Wrinkling her nose she said disdainfully to the man who had called her blue girl.

"Like I'd share the wealth with someone as dirty as you!" Seeing his kissing faces, her nose turned skyward as she continued "Acting like a little child? That won't get you anywhere with women!" Her comments caused the man to give her a dirty look, but because she was with Jame, she knew she was safe from any of this perverted man's retorts.

Smiling as she turned her attention back to Jame, she was grateful that he was here. If he hadn't been, she wasn't sure if she would have been able to make the comments she said safely. Moving to run a hand through his hair, she heard his beginning suggestion, she was about to reply with "Yes." but, the sounds of the door opening roughly stopped them both.

Crude voices were shouting about no one being a hero, the sound of a gun shot caused Rain to disengage herself from Jame strong arms. Diving forward her hands wrapped around Mistuki's waist as the shocked teenager screamed from the gunshots. Pulling her to hide against one of the bar's worn leather stools. She shushed Mitsuki with a finger to her lips.

She then peered around the metal leg of the stool, her silver eyes study the rough clothing of the bar thieves. To the half cat's eyes they resembled bandit's clothing. Fear clutched tight to her heart as she recalled the events that had led her to rescue Mitsuki. Her eyes were wide as she turned back to her companion and asked softly "Do you recognize anyone Mistuki?"

Mistuki gulped as her bright green eyes looked into Rainee's silver ones. Shaking her head she hissed "I don't want to look Miss Rain. I don't want to remember that day!"

Rainee let out a sigh as she heard the pain in Mistuki's voice. Pulling the shaking teenager into a hug she soothes "Just answer one quick question. That plump one, with the two different colored eyes...doesn't he look familiar?"

Mistuki tried to suppress a scream as she recalled him. He had fled during the last few minutes of their time in Sister's Grove. Tears threatened to spill from the girl's green eyes as she said softly "I do...I think Benny, that is what that bastard called him..."

Rainee nods grimly as she purses her lips and murmurs "Right...I remember him as well..." She then turned to Jame and said softly "Those men are trouble. Two of them were at Sisters Grove...its where Mistuki hails from. They helped kill her family and all the other villagers in the town..."taking a deep breathe, Rain finished her sentence. "We should finish them off. They spell nothing but trouble."

Mylie pipes up at her mother's words, her little hands gripping Jame's shirt for comfort. "Mommy! Didn't you say bandits attacked that village?"

As the patrons were all screaming from the death of the bar keep, Rain quietly nodded as she continued "We should try to find out where they are staying Jame. That way we can finish them off before they cause any more trouble." her eyes then fell on the man, the poor Drow who had been coldly shot, her mind thought quickly Jame is right, if we had been any closer, it might have been one of us lying their with pale eyes...

Mylie shivered as she gripped Jame with frightened paws, in a weak voice she whispers "Can we go Jame? I'm really scared....scared that these people might come back to hurt us.."

[Call me J]

“Of course we can go Mylie,” Jame said. He looked at the girl pityingly, thinking it was a tragedy how much her poor little eyes must have been forced to see, given what a complete bastard her father had been. Weary, he glanced towards Rainee, knowing that she was bound to be upset as well.

However, the identities of the bandits had been something that had jarred poor Rainee even more. The half dragon had been too busy running his hands trough Mylie’s hair and assuring her that everything would be alright, and that the bandits wouldn’t come after her in the future.

“But bad men killed my mommy’s mommy,” the little girl insisted. “I don’t want them to kill my mommy too!” Her little lip wavered, and soon she began to weep.

The little eight year old’s words were heartbreaking, just as heartbreaking as young Mistuki, who was practically melting in fear from a previous encounter with the thugs. Jame bit his lip angrily now, wishing that instead of going to protect Mylie, he had killed all three of them. He hated looking at the three women he was with, just how scarred and impacted they were by events that had happened in the past. “And I bet the bandits didn’t even recognize them…” he thought. “Or if they did, they didn’t even care.”

He thought it was a shame how Rainee’s entire family had been ruined by men as coarse and rough as these bandits. Since there was nothing he could do now with two young girls he needed to defend, he just picked Mylie up in his arms and carried her out of the tavern. “Everything will be alright,” Jame told the little girl, desperately trying to stop her heartbreaking tears. “You’re a good girl, and nothing will happen to your mom as long as I’m here.”

Mylie looked at Jame, her big green eyes blinking earnestly at him. “You promise?” she asked.

Jame nodded.

The little girl wiped her nose with her sleeve, and then wrapped her arms tightly around Jame. “You should stay forever,” she said.

Jame only smiled sadly. “We’ll see where that goes,” he said, not wanting to promise anything to the little girl that he knew he couldn’t deliver. Things between himself and Rainee were far too complicated for that.

Once they were outside, Jame set Mylie down, but he continued to hold the scared girl’s little paw as they looked out on an Ettermire street that suddenly must have gotten a whole lot more frightening for her. Jame was sympathetic. At night, the city was busy. The dark elves were more active and the factories whirred loudly with noise and smoke. It was intimidating enough without having just seen a man killed.

Jame turned to Mistuki and fished out a large sack of gold that he happened to be carrying. “Mistuki, I want you to take this, go down three streets until you reach Valsharess Boulevard. Take a left there, you’ll find a hotel there called the Bed of the Queen. It’s nice, not like this place. Dignitaries stay there. There’s enough in there for a night and then some, you should be fine. Take Mylie and go there, okay? They speak Tradespeak and everything. Alright?”

Mistuki nodded, but Mylie screamed. “No!” she howled. “Jame, I want to stay with you.” She wrapped her arms around his leg.

Had it not been for the scare she just have had, he might have told her not to be silly. But given how much she had been through, he just tussled her hair and offered her a small handful of gold coins. “On your way, let Mistuki take you to buy some sweets,” he said. “By the time you’ve finished them, your mother and I will be back.”

Though Mylie was clearly still frightened, the prospect of that much gold’s worth of sweets was enticing. The little cat girl didn’t often get more than a single coin’s worth, and even then, she was told that she had to spread it out over days. Now, Jame was telling her she could buy and eat candy to her heart’s content. Still, even though she took the money, she wouldn’t let go of Jame’s leg.

“It’ll be okay,” he said. “I promise…”

[Nekoprincess]

"Jame..." Rainee said in an exasperated voice. "Do you know how bad it is to give a little girl that much money for sweets?"

Jame was surprised Rainee was this concerned about her daughter's eating habits, all other things confused. In a hushed whisper that he hoped Mylie wouldn't hear, he told Rainee, "I was just trying to cheer her up... she was scared half out of her brain."

Rainee let out a sigh as she averted her eyes from Jame, in a hushed voice she murmurs "I know..but you could have given her that money for a teddy bear, or some other stuffed animal. Sweets aren't always the answer." She then lifted up her head again and said gently "I only want my daughter to be healthy. Even if she did just see death, and she is scared, comfort through things that cause ill health..isn't always good."

"She'll be okay," he said. "It'll be just this once." giving her a warm smile he continued "Don't worry about this when we have bandits to deal with."

Mollified Rainee relented as she said "Fine." She then turned to smile at her daughter, bringing her into a warm hug she said gently "Go with Mistuki honey. Enjoy your time. Spoil yourself."

Mylie meowed as she nestled into her mommy's warmth. She had let go of Jame leg to run to her mother and wail. "But mommmmy! I want to stay with you and Jame! What..."her little nose begin to sniffle as she said with tears in her eyes "W..what if you and Jame die without me there?"

"We'll be fine darling." Rain answered soothingly as she stared into her daughter's wet green eyes. "I have my weapons and Jame has his. We'll be fine my sweet angel."

Sniffling, Mylie stared into her mother's silver eyes for a good five minutes. Seeing reassurance there she whispered, "Fine, but come home to me mommy!" She then turned to look at Jame with love and said, "You too Jame!" She then moved to Mistuki and held her hand.

Gripping the little kitten's hand tightly Mistuki looked at the two. In a soft voice she murmured, "Take Mylie and myself to the Bed of the Queen on Valsharess Boulevard. Alright," pausing for a moment, the mink haired girl looked at Jame as she asked "Is a suite ok?"

"There is enough money for a deluxe suite," he said. "Get one of those instead."

Mistuki's green eyes widened at his generosity, in an awed voice she murmured "Thank you Jame. This is very kind of you." She then turned to leave with Mylie, however she stopped and called over her shoulder. "Then I guess we'll see you guys later." Seeing concern in Rainee's eyes she murmurs "Don't worry Rainee, I'll keep your daughter safe." The two then made their way down the quiet street.

Once they were gone, the sounds of the factories became all to loud. Rainee's eyes were sad, but firm as she said softly "Thank you Jame. I'm glad they'll be safe. But, what are we going to do now Jame? Do you have a plan?" Her heart was beating rapidly after she asked this. She was nervous, she hadn't expected to go up against bandits so soon. At least this time, she wasn't alone. This time at least, Jame could help her, she knew Omarion had assisted her, but he could only do so much. Jame she knew could do much more, Rainee trusted that he would protect her, the same as he had back in the mines in Kachuck and in the Fire Palace in hell.

(Note to Moderater- Jame's dialogue was written by Call Me J.)

[Call me J]

Jame had the beginnings of a plan, but he wasn’t sure if it was a very good one. If Rainee remembered things about the bandits, then it was a good sign. He had never been to this Sister’s Grove place, but he knew it had been in Corone. If these bandits were new to the area, it meant they were sloppy. And if they were sloppy, Jame knew that he’d be able to catch them. He’d been in Alerar long enough to know a bit of how the criminal scene worked, and there was a local dive bar, even seedier than the Yellow Dog, where thieves and the mob would congregate.

“I have a plan,” Jame assured Rainee. “At least a beginning of a plan. We’ll have to see where it takes us… There is this bar not too far from here, in the opposite direction from the Bed of the Queen, it’s called The Bottomless Pit. It’s not a good place at all, but it’s where you can find the gangs and the mob. One of them is bound to know something about these guys of yours, and we’ll figure out from where what we’re supposed to do.”

Jame watched as Mylie and Mistuki walked away, and the moment they left, he locked his hands with Rainee’s and smiled at her. “But more important things first,” he said. He leaned down to kiss her again. “It’s good to see you.”

Rainee blushed as her fingers intertwined with his. In a soft voice she murmured, “I’m so happy to see you.”

Though he wanted to say so much more, Jame hesitated. He could feel it in his heart now that he really loved Rainee. He marveled about the care that she could show for her child, the courage that she had shown through their experiences fighting Kedx in Hell, and had been floored by her beauty. Still, he had always resisted telling her that, not because it was a lie, but because he had been caught up in so much trouble since he had come to Alerar that he couldn’t, bring her into it. Instead, he continued going to bar after bar, night after night, sleeping with strangers instead of the one he loved. It wasn’t satisfying, it was just vacant. Still, it was what he could afford.

Jame stared at Rainee a few seconds too long before he said anything more. He loved the way that her hair framed her heart shaped face, and the way that her eyes could look so wise and endearing at the same time.

For a moment, Jame decided that he couldn’t help himself.

“Rainee, I- I,” he began. But he couldn’t let himself finish the sentence. Quickly, he changed the subject. “Rainee, I wanted to know how your fur ended up blue?”

(Moderator note- Rainee's dialogue was written by Nekoprincess)

[Nekoprincess]

Curiosity filled the half cat's silver eyes as she heard for the first time Jame's sure voice stutter. His gentle red eyes had grown warm, and his lips curved into something of an embarrassed half smile as he began to say her name and try to admit something, as her heart beat rapidly as she waited to hear his words. She hoped he was going to express his love for her, now she knew. After all the time they had spent together, when he had saved her from the mines, when he had risked his own life for her to protect her from her foul ex-husband Corin. She knew that she loved him, its just, she couldn't admit that because she wasn't sure that he loved her. The half cat mother had to know that Jame was ready to accept her and her daughter, and was ready for the love that they would share together.

Licking her lips, Rainee's mouth begin to open, to respond to what she was sure was Jame expressing his love for her. However, his lips soon uttered another question. Which caused her love drawn mind to sink into confusion. Opening her lips, her eyes were bright with shock as she said "How did my fur turn blue?" Her brain, on the other hand thought Damn it! I was so hoping that he'd say he was ready! I need him, he is so different from Corin! Corin was nothing but an asshole! He was greedy, he desired to much...the man became to big for his britches! Jame on the other hand is nothing like that! He is self-sacrificing...a noble knight! He rescued me and he has not put me in danger like Corin. I...wish...that he would admit his love for me. I don't know how much longer I can keep my feelings for him, from him. I would have thought...that the kiss would have shown my great need for him... Sighing, Rain pursed her lips as she put her feelings for Jame back inside the recesses of her heart.

Trying to smile at him, she slowly responded "My fur, turned blue from an accident. I met this young cat-girl named Jineh. We met in a local bar right here in Ettermire and she found this flyer. It, was for a scientist, his name was Doctor Wrarin. He needed assistants to help him out with his research. But, he turned out to be.." her tongue ran over her lips, her eyes darkening a bit at the memory. Shaking her head she says softly "lets just say he wasn't a gentleman. He caused trouble for the young cat-girl and I. I , let my temper get the best of me and I punched him into one of his work tables. Some vials fell and leaked onto both Jineh and I. One was a fur changing potion and it changed both mine and Jineh's fur to different colors." Smiling at him sheepishly, she finishes "That is how my fur turned blue."

Silence then passed between the two for a few moments. The sounds of whistles from one of the factories hissing into the soft air. Looking at Jame briefly for a few moments, she squeezed his hand warmly as she whispered "Lets go Jame. The sooner we head to the Bottomless Pit, the closer we are to getting those morons who escaped justice in Sisters Grove." With her hand still entwined with his, the half-cat begin to walk down the street.

The air as they passed shops that were filled with little mechanical gadgets, was cold. It felt as if a message was being sent through it Now isn't the time, turn back. Rain knew that this wasn't her brother, but she also knew that she might just be having a case of paranoia. After all they were about to head to a place where she had vowed never to go. A place for low live, mobs, thugs...even bandits. This was not a place where someone who had morals, who valued life and goodness would never be seen, and yet, here Rain and Jame were heading straight for such a place.

Soon the quaint little shops with their cute knick nacks was gone, replaced with seedier looking merchants. One was selling black clothed sacks, inside their seemed to be herbs. But the healer could only guess that these had poisonous side affects, shaking her head as she merchant tried to wave her down, she firmly shook her head. Pressing herself closer to Jame as they approached a dark looking tavern, she whispered "I'm scared Jame. Please stay close to me." her heart was beating rapidly as the two approached the door. In shining red letters was the name Bottomless Pit.

Two Drow thugs, both dressed in dark leather trench coats with cigarettes in their mouths, looked the couple over. The thicker one said with a toothy grin "Well, what have we here? Whats a babe like you doing in a place like this?" his black eyes then fell on Jame as he said suspiciously "Who might you be? You look to nice to be a regular here...."

[Call me J]

Jame didn’t much care for the way the drow were treating Rainee. He stepped in between the two of them and answered the question for her. “She isn’t your babe,” he replied. “And I’m not your regular, at least not yet. My name is Jame Kaosi, perhaps you’ve heard of me. I was thinking of becoming a regular, with a few of my Graf friends. The thing is though, I’m really just looking for information on a local wasteabout named Benny. He’s new to Alerar, and probably not up to any good for you or me…”

The two drow looked at each other, exchanging glances as they tried to deal with Jame’s request. They knew exactly what the half dragon was trying to get at, it was either they gave him the information that he wanted on an insignificant pawn, or he would make sure that they paid for it. Places like the Bottomless Pit existed based on unspoken agreements. The local criminals got free reign, as long as they kept things decent, and in exchange, any criminal outside of their organizations would be served up to the government on a silver platter.

The drow hesitated longer than Jame thought they would. They acted a bit hostile towards him, one of them even went so far as to blow smoke in his face as he stared at them. Still, the half dragon didn’t so much as flinch. He wanted them to know not just that he could bring the law, but that if necessary, he would fight his way into the tavern. He had no intention of fighting his way through the Bottomless Pit for information, but that was only because Rainee was with him. Otherwise, Jame would have even taken their silence as reluctance and have punched out one of them to show that he meant business.

It wasn’t that Jame wanted to be rough, but his time spent in the high politics of Alerar had taught him that in Ettermire, people only responded to force. He was disgusted by the fear that the bandits had caused, especially to such undeserving people. The way that Mylie had cried was almost heartbreaking, and Jame knew that no amount of gold’s worth of sweets would be able to make up for the fear that had been in her eyes when she feared for the fate of her mother.

More than anything else, Jame felt guilty that he hadn’t known about the adventure in Sister’s Grove, even though he knew how strong Rainee was, he always wanted to protect her. The sudden appearance of Benny and the other bandits had given him the opportunity to fix that. Now, Jame swore he was going to take action so that the likes of Benny never bothered Rainee again.

Now, Jame was beginning to wonder why the drow were taking so long. He cleared his throat expectantly, and made a sarcastic comment about how the lady was hungry and that if they didn’t give him answers soon he might just need to go in and buy a bowl of soup.

One of the drow finally spoke. “Your Benny might be in there,” he said. “You can train him if you want, but that’s all that I’ll give you. No fights in the alley.”

Jame smiled. “Fine enough,” he said. He turned towards Rainee and smiled. “You should probably go back to be with Mylie,” he said. “You wouldn’t want to go in there, the Bottomless Pit is dirtier than the place where you were. Go take care of Mylie and I’ll handle this for you, okay?”

[Nekoprincess]

Rainee's eyes widened, shaking her head she whispered firmly "I understand that the place is for low life, but Jame, I want to stay with you!" Despite the pleading look she gave Jame, all she got in return was a firm shake of his head. She could see the look in his eyes, the look that told her he wanted to handle this for her, to protect her. Relenting Rainee leaned to kiss Jame's cheek and whispered "Alright. I'll go look after Mylie. Just come back to me ok?"

She then turned to leave, her ears drooped slightly as she took a few steps away from the Bottomless Pit door. However, before she could move out of the strong smell of smoke. A voice rang close "Hey now. The lady shouldn't leave! They get treated best here!" Shivering a bit, due to the slimy quality of the owner's voice, Rain quickened her pace. She knew Jame would prevent any trouble from following her.

Fear was quaking in her body as she continued to make her way out of the seedy part of Ettermire. Luckily, she ran into no greedy eyed merchants, not even any of the slimy looking locals came up to her. It seemed that Jame had some authority here, she could see that from the way he had bargained with one of the smoky smelling thugs.

Relief though flooded her body as she stepped out of the shadowy area of Ettermire. One more standing in the shade of a shop selling glittering pieces of jewelry. The half cat walked over to the clear frosted window. Eyeing a shiny emerald necklace, Rainee could feel her heart calm, not from the jewel's evident beauty, but from the fact that she was away from the crudeness, the uncomfortable atmosphere of the mob's part of town.

Moving away from the store, Rainee soon followed Jame instructions to get to the Bed of the Queen. As she moved away from the nicely decorated shops, she soon saw even more luxurious shops dining a very pretty street. Trees shining and well kept dotted the small jewelry factories and high end stores. As she passed a store selling furs and fine clothes, she soon saw a very pretty bed and breakfast inn. The name was the Bed of Queen, Rain's jaw dropped as she saw its elegance.

Jame had gone to such trouble, to make sure that her little girl and Mistuki were well off. He had even made sure that she was here, safe while he did the dirty work. Her heart swelled with her love for him as she said aloud "Jame, your such a noble guy, you make sure I am safe, and my little girl is well. I can't repay you again, all I can say is that I hope one day, you accept the love I feel for you. That all I can give to repay you...."

She then headed into the beautiful inn, once there a pretty Drow woman, her dark black hair upswept in a french twist greeted her with a smile. In a low voice she asked "Can I help you miss?"

Rainee felt a little out of place, she had stayed in rich hotels before with Corin, but normally he had done all the talking for her. The accomdations had already been made and she had simply went to the room. Now she had to explain that a room had already been booked, but it wasn't under her name. Nerves were in her voice as she asked "Mistuki? Do you have a room under that name?"

The sound of a date book could be heard as the gorgeous woman flipped through a leather bound book, soon coming across recent check ins, she nods as she muttered "Yes ma'am, there is a Mistuki here, checked in with a little cat-girl?"

"That'd be her, did she say to expect anyone else?" Rain asked as her eyes were still awestruck by the inn's posh appearance.

"Yes she did, she ordered some extra keys, to be held for one Rainee Miyami and a Jame? These two keys are for a deluxe suite?"

"Thanks." Rainee said gratefully as she approached. "I'm Rainee. I"ll take the keys, Jame is with us."

The young woman eyed her a bit, she seemed suspicious before she nodded and murmured "Alright miss. But, just one moment." She then picked up a call system, ringing the bell, a short conversation was had through wires, she then nodded and said "Miss Mistuki confirmed that she knows both you and the young man that you named. Here are your keys, welcome to the Bed of the Queen."

Grateful that their hadn't been too many problems. Rainee took the keys, she then looked at one. The number 22 was printed on it. Heading towards the stairs, she soon hurried to the second floor. Trotting her way up to the plush carpeted stairs, she soon entered a hall that was decorated in a soft plum color. Their were plum tulips in crystal vases lining the corridor as Rainee made her way to Mistuki and Mylie's room.

Once she got there, she inserted her room key into the lock, it clicked smoothly as she entered a gorgeous room. Two queen sized beds dominated the first room, along with roses, their sweet fragrance perfuming the lovely room. Their was also a small hot tub situated on a marbled tiled area of the room. The bathroom itself was located by the door, and Rainee could see a whirlpool style tub with copper faucets accenting the tub. The towels were plush soft terry cloth, and the accommodations were all rich.

A bit overwhelmed, the mother's eyes soon found that her daughter was sitting on one of the beds. Near her little paw was a bag of sweets, Rain could see that Mistuki had bought her little girl really fine chocolates and some sour candies. Sighing, Rainee opened her mouth and said strictly "I hope you haven't been overindulging Mylie dear."

Mylie jumped a bit, her hand exiting from the sweet bag, as if she had been caught with her hand in a fire. Looking at her mother, the guilt was in her eyes, but her voice was quite different "I've been good mom! I haven't had too much!"

Rainee laughed, she would have scolded her daughter because she could tell that Mylie was not being truthful. But, she was just too happy to see her daughter safe and sound. In a warm voice she murmurs "Your forgiven this time, but next time Mylie tell me the truth! Or else you will get punished!"

Mylie squeaked as she shook her head and protested "Alright mom! I get it!" Her little green eyes then warmed as she said sincerely "I'm glad to see your ok...but, where is Jame?"

"Doing business." Seeing Mylie look worried she said softly "Don't worry honey. He'll be fine, he can handle himself!"

Mylie sniffled but nodded and bravely said "Ok! I believe you mom!"

The sound of laughing from the other room could be heard, Mistuki was quietly reading a fantasy novel. Hearing Mylie talking, she peeked her head in and saw Rainee. Smiling she murmured, "I see Jame sent you here. Is everything ok? There is not any trouble?"

"No Mistuki. I just told Mylie I'm meeting him here later, when he finds out the information that we need to know."

Mistuki nodded as she murmured "Alright then Rain, I guess just relax with your daughter and wait until Jame gets back."

Rainee smiled wryly and said softly "You did not have to tell me that Mistuki!" She then moved to lay next to her daughter, for now she would relax and wait until Jame returned with news.

[Call me J]

The moment Jame entered the tavern, he felt a hard blow to his back. Quickly, he turned around, only to realize he was staring right at the bandit from before. Immediately, Jame grabbed the man by the throat and pushed him up against the back wall. The half dragon heard the click of a flintlock rifle from behind him, but Jame didn’t loosen his grip.

“Let’s take this easy now,” Jame said, unsure of why the rifle was aimed at him. He hoped it was a tavern worker concerned about damage, but feared it was one of the other bandits. Tightening his grip on the bandit he had in his grasp, the half dragon added, “I have fingers that can slip as well.”

The muzzle of the rifle was now placed on the back of Jame’s head. “You overvalue how much we care about life here,” the reply came gruffly.

“You undervalue how much I want to kill someone,” Jame replied through gritted teeth. He was glad that Rainee hadn’t come in with him now, it seemed that the whole thing was a trap. From the corner of his eye, he could see the two drow bouncers heading towards him. He realized it would be futile to resist any longer. He took his hand off the bandit he had captive and held them both up in the air, his entire body language suggesting disappointment.

Instead of hitting the half dragon, the two thugs with the rifles gestured Jame towards a table. The half dragon, warily took the seat, only to stare at the man sitting across from him in utter disbelief. Sitting right across from him was one of the most well connected members of the New Dragon syndicate in Alerar- a human man who went by the name of Griffin Norisaki. He was a lean, tall man with a long scar running from his ear down the length of his jaw, and he had stern, merciless eyes. Though Jame had never met him before, the description could not have been one that fit many men.

“Benny and his friends are friends of mine…” he began coldly. “And we know what that little slut who likes to call herself a princess did to them in Sister’s Grove. One of my best friends, a man named Manny Ravenclaw, was killed there, and I find it quite problematic.”

Despite the guns aimed towards him, Jame replied with sarcasm. “So sorry for your loss,” he intoned. Jame knew that he couldn’t afford to be intimidated, because that would only encourage these bandits to torture. In the Bottomless Pit, there would be no one to stop them. He looked around uneasily. There was nothing but seedy mercenaries playing cards with each other, the sour smell of stale ale and the constant wafts of smoke coming up from the fighting pit where the majority of the people had gathered. There was nothing that could help him.

Before anyone replied, the muzzle of one of the rifles had returned to the back of Jame’s head. Griffin waved it away, and it left, but the muzzle left reluctantly, like Rainee’s lips from his. Jame tried to remain steadfast.

“I only want the girl,” Griffin said. “Rainee Azure Miyami. You wouldn’t think a little piece of cat trash would cause that much trouble, but you see, me and Manny killed some friends of hers a while ago, and now I think she wants revenge. It was chance meeting her on a hold up, but we want her, and the other girls too. We don’t want to leave any loose ends this time, you know?”

Jame had been afraid of this. He knew defiance would only lead to torture, so he lied. “I sent them out of here on the first train out of town,” he said. “They’re at the station.”

“But don’t you know that we can kill you?” Griffin asked. “I know when you’re lying.”

The drow interrupted. “We can always follow the girl…” he suggested. “She kissed him and left right before she entered. She said she was going back to the others. It was cute really…”

Practically shaking with rage, Jame watched as his hands and legs were tied together and his body was left lying on the tavern floor. He wanted to struggle, but he soon realized he’d have an easier time breaking the bonds with his dragon transformation right after they had left.

“We’ll leave you here to rot,” Griffin said, as the bandits began to leave. Jame could only watch as they began to head out the door. “You do what you want here on the floor, but by the time we’re back, if the girls aren’t dead, we’re going to make you talk. That is, assuming no one else wants to play with you instead…”

Jame let them leave without saying another word, only because he was eager to begin the transformation that would sever the bonds that tied him. Almost immediately once they had moved out of the tavern, scales began to appear all over his body, and his size more than doubled within a single minute. Patrons and staff alike could only watch in awe as Jame bounded out from the Bottomless Pit, running through the wall because the door was too small for him to fit through.

By the time his transformation was completed, both Rainee and the bandits had disappeared. Jame, not knowing what else to do, took to the sky and kept flying until he landed on the roof of the Bed of the Queen. He only hoped that he wasn’t too late to save Rainee. She had been traumatized enough by bandits in her life that he couldn’t live with the idea that he’d failed her.

[Nekoprincess]

"Mom?" Mylie said softly, as she rolled off the soft satin comforter. "I'm hungry! We still have some gold left, can we go down to the restaurant to eat?" Mylie's soft tail wagged behind her after she asked this, her green eyes looking imploringly at her mother.

Rainee laughed at the look, her silver eyes were warm as she replied "Sure darling...lets j.." hearing scuffling outside the hall and the shouts of "You can't just enter here! You didn't register!"

An unfamiliar voice hissed "But ma'am, I paid you to leave us alone! If you continue to pester us then." the sound of a pistol being cocked could be heard, as the lady let out a gulp and said 'Fine!" the sound of feet moving away could be heard. Then the door was banged on sharply before the sound of a lock being picked could be heard.

Gulping, Rainee grabbed Mylie roughly, as the kitten was about to shout "What is it mommy?" the mother pressed a finger against her daughter's mouth. Shushing her little girl, Rain then gathered her into her arms, hugging her tightly she whispered fearfully 'You need to hide honey. Don't look for mommy and don't come out!"

Mylie's eyes were wide and fearful, gripping her mother's shirt tightly she murmured "What is going on mommy?"

The half cat's eyes soon landed on a thick white laundry hamper, it was big enough for her little girl to fit in. Yelping as the sounds of a lock clicking could be heard, Rainee moved to gently place her daughter inside the hamper. Pressing a finger to her lips she hissed "Quiet Mylie..." She then turned and found her eyes level with Mistuki's, as the door begin to creak open, Mistuki hissed. "What should I do Miss?"

Rainee groaned, her mind churned out What is Mistuki? Eight? Were in a crisis and she panics..... a sigh escaped her as she finished her thought Well, she doesn't have much life experience...I guess that is why she looks to me for guidance... Smiling half heartedly she whispered "Go to the sitting room Mistuki...wait until you hear men's voices, then quietly open the door that leads out into the hall. Run and find Jame, tell him what happened!"

Mistuki squealed in fright as the door opened more, a man's face could be seen peeking into the room. Letting out a frightened squeak, the mink haired girl nodded mutely as she pivoted and scurried quickly into the sitting room.

With both Mistuki and Mylie safely hidden, Rainee turned to face the group of men that finally entered her hotel room. Bowing graciously, Rainee readied her myhril gauntlets, securing the leather tightly around her wrists, she then dove for the bed. Rolling across the thick softness, the half cat landed with a grunt on the plush carpet. Reaching Sparks Petals, she moved the titanium blade up into an offensive position. Just as she did a man, a noble from the looks of it, looked at her smugly.

In a suave voice he coaxed "Aww pretty kitty, you really want to play with that sword?" Motioning with a finger, three men cocked and aimed flintlock rifles at Rain's slender figure. Looking smug he purred "You really want to fight when guns are aimed at you kitty cat?

The half cat grinned right back, this was a game of negotiations, opening her hands she murmurs "There is only one of me and four of you? You really want to shoot, when you don't know where my companions are?"

Griffin's stern eyes were dark as he hissed "If you value your life, you'll tell us where the other girls are!"

Rainee laughed loudly, in a meek voice she kidded "Yes master!" She then begin to glow, lightening begin to course through her body, behind her back, a large crackling ball of blue begin to form. As she worked her lightening magic, she tapped her free hand against her chin. In a mock voice she stated "But master, if I tell you where they are, you'll kill me anyway won't you?" Rainee then grinned as the lightening ball fully formed. Throwing it quickly she cooed "So I don't think I will. Lets play a game instead!" She then dived behind the bed, as three separate shots were fired.

The sound of breaking glass could be heard as the bullets whizzed straight through the glass window that was near the bed. Shards rained down on the crouched half cat. Wincing as some sharper pieces cut into her hands and her arms, she gritted her teeth as slight pain begin to work through her body. Rising slightly so that she was level with the bed's height, she watched as her own ball of electricity headed towards Griffin and his men.

Griffin threw back his head and laughed heartily, tears came to his eyes as he said lightly "Oh the kitty knows magic? Ooohooo what fun!" He then unsheathed a small walking stick, looking at the jeweled tip, his eyes glowed a light red, looking over at the cat-girl's position he said mockingly "You really think your little magic can harm my men and I?" he then formed a small gray orb in his hands, thrusting it at Rain's lightening magic, he laughed and said "I think not." He then directed his men to duck for cover as he simply held the cane out in front of him.

The two balls of magic collided with each other and an explosion occurred rocking the fancy room. One of the beds was blown clear into the wall, shattering the frame and raining satin and wood splinters all around the room. A barrier protected Griffin and his men, but Rainee was not so lucky, she managed to get up a shield of crackling electricity, but not before some bits of wood landed and embedded themselves into her skin.

Whimpering in pain, the half-cat fought to keep her barrier up as she used her blue tail to take out the splinters, she then gingerly begin to remove the glass. Wincing as blood gushed from her wounds, she shakily rose to her feet. Now standing at her full height, her silver eyes were dark...angry, growling at Griffin she shouted "Just who are you? What do you want with my daughter and my friend?"

Griffin laughed heartily again, in a baby voice he cooed "Ah now the little princess is asking questions! Temper temper!" he could see the signs of the half cat's more animalistic nature surfacing. Shaking a finger he whispered "Bad animals need to be tethered!" He then waved his walking stick, the bright red jewel glowed and ropes flew towards Rainee.

Rain's eyes widened as she tried to dodge the ropes, however they were to quick. A yelp and a loud scream escaped from her soft mouth as they bound her tightly by the ankles and her wrists. Wriggling like a caught fish, Rain's eyes begin to tear as she saw Griffin walk closer to her.

Moving to pick up Rainee by her shortened blue hair, he brought her ear close to his lips, in a jovial voice he cooed "Meet the man who killed your parents little baby. Manny Ravenclaw was a brother to me, a part of my family. You took him from me, now you pay. First, I'll find your little girl and torture her and kill her. Then I'll kill your friend. Last I'll save you, the prize that got away!"

Rainee fell limp against her binds, this information was all to much to bear. Tears welled up in her eyes as she shouted "You monster! If...I get free, I"ll make sure you pay!" The criminal's only response was a cold laugh. She then heard feet shuffling away from her and Griffin conversing instructions to his men.

Mistuki meanwhile had quickly sneaked out of the sitting room. She now was in the inn's hallway, luckily for the mink haired healer, Griffin had not placed any men to watch the hallway. Scurrying across it, her heart beat rapidly. Fear was like a drug in the young teenager's system as she thought Jame where are you? Rainee needs your help!

[Call me J]

It was only after Jame had entered the building that he realized he had no idea where Rainee’s room was. He supposed he could ask, but if the bandits had already been through, he doubted the receptionists would give anyone else that information. Shaking his head, he wished he had some way of communicating with Rainee. His frustration was mounting as he moved through the stairwell. Jame was beginning to panic, and he cursed himself for letting Rainee go off without him.

“If she’s killed, I’ll never forgive myself…” he realized. Jame could barely hold his hands steady as he tore down the stairwell, hoping that if the reception desk was no help, he might be able to catch the bandits before they reached the cat girl.

As he moved, Jame heard a door open behind him. “Jame!” a girl called out to him, her voice quivering with fear.

Immediately, Jame turned around, unsheathing his claymore as he swiveled to look at the source of the voice. It was Mistuki. The young mink haired girl’s eyes were wild with fear, and Jame’s unsheathing his blade had caused her eyes to bug widely. “Where’s Rainee…” he asked. Mistuki was too startled to reply immediately. “Rainee damnit…”

Unable to come to grips with words, Mistuki merely pointed back through the door. Jame busted through, to enter into the hallway. There had been violence there, or at least carelessness. A few vases had been knocked over, and mud had been tracked all over the carpeted floor. As the half dragon looked around, he was just grateful that there had not yet been any blood.

Mistuki joined him seconds later. “What door?” Jame asked, still forgetting the niceties that should have been essential considering he was dealing with a scared, young girl. She gestured towards the end of the hall, and Jame nodded.

With his sword already drawn, the half dragon now began moving much more stealthily. Given his large size, Jame was more used to bursting into places than walking quietly, but now, he wanted to use surprise to his advantage just like Griffin and the rest had done to him earlier. Putting one finger to his lips he reminded Mistuki to be silent, though he gestured that she stay out of trouble when she began unsheathing a dagger to help him.

“Don’t go in there with me,” Jame said in a harsh whisper, moving back towards the girl as he saw her getting ready to join the fight. “Are you stupid? They’ll kill you where you stand!”

Mistuki’s face wrinkled. “I only ran because Miss Rainee told me to,” she said. “I wanted to stay in there and fight, to save Rainee just like she saved me in Sister’s Grove.”

Jame frowned. “You’re not going in there,” he said sternly. “Stay here where it’s safe.” He wondered what he would do if the girl refused him. Part of him wanted to just knock her out just to stop the argument, but Jame knew that was his panicking, uneasy side.

“Please…” Mistuki begged.

For a moment, Jame considered telling her to remain back where she was. He only considered himself a warrior in the times that he had to protect Rainee, so maybe Mistuki was a warrior in those situations as well. Since coming to Alerar he had received training that gave him advantages he’d never had before, but even then, the half dragon didn’t know how much he could protect the mink haired girl when his biggest priorities were Rainee and Mylie. Still, the whole reason Rainee was in danger now was because Jame had sent her away. Perhaps, if he did the same with Mistuki, she would end up in trouble too.

“You have a bow there?” Jame asked, looking at the quiver and bow that Mistuki carried across her back. The girl nodded. “When I’ve broken the door, I want you to fire,” he said.

With that, he started running, shoulder first, until he knocked down the door. Seconds later, his entire body was covered with scales. Before the bandits could even turn around, two arrows went flying through the air in quick succession. One passed by Jame’s ear narrowly only to crash against the window on the other side of the room. The other flew straight into the thigh of one of the thugs.

“Get Mylie…” Jame called out to Mistuki as he prepared for battle. “Don’t leave her alone!”

[Nekoprincess]

Rainee struggled wildly against her bonds, the fibers were burning against her wrist as she tried to shift and use friction to loosen the ropes. As she desperately tried to escape she saw Griffin and his men searching through the debris. Her heart filled with fear as one of the roughly dressed thugs, neared the still intact laundry hamper. Biting down on her lip she thought Oh god no! Mylie stay quiet honey! Don't give yourself away! With bated breathe the half cat mother watched as the thug scanned the heavy laundry hamper. She saw him reach a hand down to lift up the cinched rope.

Mylie was balled up inside the laundry hamper, her little legs were wrapped against her chest. As she saw the shadow looming over her, she had to stifle a fear filled yelp. She was crying, her tiny body slightly rocking against the laundry hamper.It wasn't enough to make the hamper move, but it was enough to show how scared the little kitten was. Her mind had kept repeating only one phrase Jame save mommy! Please don't let mommy be hurt! Along with this phrase, came the thought of Rainee being able to beat these awful men. But at the same time, the little cat-girl wasn't sure that her mother was strong enough to take on four ruffians.

However two things happened in quick succession; one, was the appearance of Jame covered with scales and looking quite angry, the second was two arrows flying swiftly through the room. One landed against the already shattered glass window, a few more shards flew to the plush carpet from the arrows sharp tip. The other arrow landed in the thigh of the very thug who was investigating the laundry hamper.

As the horrible man crumpled onto the soft carpet, clutching at his knee. Mylie who was about to let out an even bigger yelp of fear, saw the shadow disappear. Relief filled the little cat's heart as she thought Did Jame come? Did mommy take care of them? Curious to know, Mylie was about to pop her head out of the laundry basket, but then she stopped Mommy told me to stay put, I better do as she said. The bad men might still be out there... The little brown haired kitty then snuggled back into the hamper, her knees pressed gently against her chest.

Mistuki, her hands filled with her bow shouted back at Jame "I don't know where Mylie is! Shouldn't we be concentrating on rescuing Rain?" Her green eyes then swerved to look at Griffin. Fear was evident in them as she shakily aimed her bow at the man. In a shaky voice she ordered "Let Miss Rainee go! She is innocent! What has she done to you?!"

Griffin looked quite unfazed by the appearance of the half dragon and the mink haired girl, shaking his head he muttered "Tsk tsk, pests appearing out of the walls! Men! Take care of these bugs!" The sounds of flintlock rifles being cocked could be heard, before the shots were fired, Griffin answered the green eyed girl's question "What has she done to me? She killed a member of my family!" Boring his eyes into hers, he hissed "As did you! Your the first to die!" He then flicked a finger down, ordering his lackeys to fire their shots.

Mistuki screamed, her bright green orbs filled with fright as she dove behind a battered bedside table, the wood took the bullets heavily as the shots ricocheted off the thick wood. Panting heavily, Mistuki then tossed a dagger towards Rainee, in a high pitched voice she muttered "Use that Rain! Get yourself free!"

The ropes binding the half cat were nearly burned through, however Rain could feel her wrists throbbing, the pain from the friction she had used to try and free herself was making her attempts hard. Looking at Rainee gratefully, she meowed and said softly "Thank you Mistuki." Her tail then reached for the dagger, just as she heard the men cocking open their rifles to refill the powder and bullets. Using this brief lapse in action to free herself, she used her tail to maneuver the dagger carefully across the ropes still binding her wrists, once she had freed her hands. She moved the dagger from her tail to her right hand, she then bent down and quickly cut the ropes free from her ankles.

With this finished, she then jumped to her feet, but winced a bit as the blood from her small cuts and bruises started aching again. Meowing a bit in pan, Rain's silver eyes fell on the men trying to quickly reload their rifles. Shaking her head, she bent down and picked up three jagged pieces of wood. Closing her eyes she shouts "Guns against swords, you men play real nice!" Her eyes then begin to glow soft blue, rising the splintered pieces of wood level with the barrel of each gun she shouted "Lets put a stop to your unfair advantage!" She then sparked her own lightening magic into the pieces of splintered brown oaken wood. Smiling as the pieces begin to smoke and spark, she then tossed each pieces at the guns.

Using them as a plug, her magic jolted the guns, causing the men to drop them sharply. Yelping a bit as each man held burnt fingers. They then looked at Griffin saying hotly "Damn it! You said this job would be easy! Why aren't we done?"

Griffin glared at his men, his jeweled cane pointed at the nearest one. In a dark voice he hissed "You'll obey my orders! Or else you'll die! You louts are expendable! You should learn your place!" He then turned back to the cat-girl as he ignored the half dragon for now. Addressing her he said "I see why you killed Manny. He was foolish and thought you were a precious sweet flower he could easily manipulate. I see that your not, I see you need to be killed!" He then moved into the folds of his jacket, pulling out a black leather sheathe. He unearthed a mythril katana. Smiling at the kitty he growled "Lets play! Your sword verse mine you worthless brat!"

Rainee giggled as she moved to pick up Sparks Petals, checking it over to make sure it was fine, she purred "Your on! I swear you'll die by this blade!"

[Call me J]

Jame began to move quickly. Rainee’s clever move with her lightning magic had made the situation much easier. The half dragon had managed to deflect one bullet that had come his way by pure luck, it had hit his delhar claymore instead of his face and ricocheted off into the wall. With Rainee taking the attention of all three of the bandits, Jame was able to take advantage of the situation and knock one of them unconscious by hitting him hard in the temple with the broad side of his blade.

The half dragon had killed, and he knew he could kill again, but lopping off the head of a man who caught unaware seemed excessively cruel, even if the man was an enemy. Jame watched as he crumbled to the floor. Jame looked at the fallen thug just long enough to know that the man had been incapacitated, only to turn his attention to the other henchmen.

Anger boiled inside of the half dragon as he looked on to one of the last thugs. Jame could see him licking his lips lewdly, looking over towards Mistuki like she was nothing more than a meal for him. He puckered his lips and blew her a kiss in the air, and as Jame looked back on the young girl, he could tell that she looked as though she might vomit. Even if she had wanted revenge, Jame knew that she wouldn’t be able to get it. With both of the criminals reaching for their swords as their leader began to attack Rainee, Jame knew he was going to need her help.

“You take the other one,” Jame said, knowing that he didn’t need to specify. Mistuki, pale faced by the whole ordeal, only nodded. The half dragon regretted getting her even this far involved, but he worried about Rainee’s chances against Griffin. The power of the leader of the New Dragons was quite well known around Alerar, and even though Jame had seen Rainee’s strength and courage first hand, he wanted to finish off the other bandits and help her as soon as possible.

Jame knew exactly who the bandit who had disgusted Mistuki was. The half dragon wanted to wipe the lewd, twisted smile off the man’s face so badly, that he could barely control his anxiety as he burst past the other thug with a quick spin to the side. “You must be Benny…” he said before bringing his sword down towards the degenerate’s neck.

“That’d be me,” he laughed as he blocked Jame’s attack and responded with a simple parry. The half dragon blocked it easily.

The way he laughed just made Jame angrier. He knew he couldn’t afford a piece of trash like Benny to get under his skin too much, it would lead to him making rash decisions. Jame had already been compromised by being so close to Rainee, and having all the feelings for her in his heart running through his mind. One of the things that his teacher Dexter at Valshath d’Isto had taught him was that he could never succeed in battle without a clear mind. Now, he just had to make the best he could do as he made another strike, this one targeted for Benny’s leg.

Benny blocked again, and then just prodded forward to get more space between himself and Jame, even though his blade was considerably shorter than the half dragon’s claymore. Jame shook his head infuriately. He realized that Benny was just stalling for time, with the expectation that Griffin would make short work of Rainee. Jame could tell that he was the better swordsman, and in an even fight, he would eventually win. However, time wasn’t on his side.

He didn’t want to kill, but now he was going to have to. Flame had already been collecting in his lungs, now he was going to use it.

“I can keep going all day…” Benny began, only to be enveloped in a large breath of flame seconds later.

[Nekoprincess]

Adrenaline was thick in Rainee's blood as she charged over the plush carpet, her heart was beating rapidly as she aimed Sparks Petals above her head. Her mind was shouting Do it! Kill the monster that slayed your parents! Leave nothing behind but this asshole's memory! She then thrust the titanium blade down hard, aiming for Griffin's thigh. Her silver eyes were sparkling from her rush as she hissed "I won't let you murder anyone else! You're nothing but a monster!"

Griffin easily blocked the blade with a twist of mythril katana, pivoting around her, he aimed a slash right at the half cat's thigh. In a sweet voice he cooed "Aww little angel, scared? You know your momma was too! She whined and pleaded with us to let her live. She was big with you, heavy. We would have killed her fast, but her damn husband got in the way! I was the one who finished him off! Hehe he tried to protect you! But he failed!" His feet brushed against a wooden splinter, growling a bit in anger he hissed "He is dead now! You shall soon join him little girl!"

Rainee couldn't help it, the man's cold words were affecting her, despite her adrenaline, tears sparkled in her eyes as she gasped "They never hurt anyone! They did their duty! How could you? How could you monsters be so cruel?!" however, due to her hysterics from Griffin's heartless revelation, she did not notice the slash that the evil thug had made at her thigh Her scream was loud and pained as blood gushed slightly from the wound. Anger sparked in her eyes as she shouted "I'll kill you! I swear!"

Griffin laughed coldly, his dark stern eyes were shining as he said playfully "Oh it is easy! If you get paid enough, killing is fun!" He then licked his lips as he saw the cut in Rainee's thigh, a bit of her creamy skin was revealed, noting this he said sagely "I can see why Manny was fooled by you, all that creamy flesh, the innocent eyes. You give the appearance of a sweet little princess, one who can't fight. But if you look again, in the eyes;" he then locked eyes with Rainee's silver ones "you can see the darker urges, you defend when its necessary, when provoked, but it doesn't come natural to you!" He then begin to build up another explosive magic strike in his hands, moving closer to the half cat as his magic built he shouted "I"ll finish the job Manny started!" he then released the gray orb of magic, its path was swift and quick as it headed towards Rainee.

Rainee's body shook violently, despite her injuries, she still felt light on her feet. As she watched the gray bit of magic head towards her, her eyes frantically searched for something to stop the magic. Seeing the splintered night table, Rainee quickly sprinted towards it. She then dropped Sparks Petals briefly on the carpet, she then used all her strength to lift up the night table. Once she had it balanced, she then pivoted as quickly as she could and hurled the piece of furniture at the magic ball.

It connected causing an explosion which caused Griffin to fall backwards and Rainee to slam her body against the side of the only intact bed. Rising to her feet, she felt woozy and dizzy as she thought I have to end this quick, Mylie's still safe, but if this isn't finished soon...then he might find her and I'll be at a disadvantage...

The dark eyed man rose from the blast, looking slightly dazed, his sword had fallen a few feet from him. Looking at where it was, his eyes fell on the white laundry hamper that was standing upright near his glinting blade. His eyes widened as he realized something That half cat...she sent the mink haired girl to get help...but her daughter must still be in this room! with this realization he begin to walk towards the laundry hamper. A grin was on his face as he shouted "Should have hid your precious little cargo better cat!" He then moved a hand down to un cinch the rope, his smile was bright as he thought Now to end this charade!

Mistuki meanwhile had been fighting with her own bandit, the two were currently locked in a clash, the mink haired girl using her bow to defend against the man's daggers. Looking over at where Griffin is she shouted to derail him "I sent the little girl away! She is gone!" She then gave the bandit a swift kick to his groin. Causing the man to crumple to the floor dazed and out of it. She then moved against the carpet to aid Rainee as she shouts "Her daughter isn't here!"

Griffin laughed as he murmured "Oh I can tell your lying little lady, I see the fear in your eyes!" He then un cinched the rope and looked down at the pile of white towels and little white white clothes. Through the white he saw a peek of brown, thinking this out of place he cooed "Come out little kitten!"

Mylie heard the strange voice, her ears pricked down in fear; as her body begin to shake she thought I don't know him, I must get him away! Running on both fear and instinct the little cat toppled out of the laundry hamper, effectively getting herself away from the man's hand. Without even looking, the young kitten then leapt into the air, using her paws to latch onto the man's shirt, she immediately moved to bite into the nearest part of the man's body shouting "Get away! Leave my mommy alone!"

Griffin screamed, his dark eyes widening as he shouted "Ugh! Get this crazy animal off me!" He then begin to move rapidly around, his body slamming into the broken coffee table, as he waved his arms around trying to throw Mylie off.

Rainee seeing this opportunity moved to impale Griffin with her sword. It seemed to take an eternity as the thrust headed into the man's stomach. His screams of pain stopped as he body crumpled to the floor, Mylie fell with a light THUD next to Griffin's still body. Blood was staining the plush carpet a dark red.

Mylie, ignoring the warm taste in her mouth, ran into her mother's arms shouting, "Mommy! You're ok!"

[Call me J]

Jame had tried to get to Rainee to help her, but the last remaining bandit stood in his way. Mistuki had done her best to fend him off, but the young, inexperienced girl had been quite overwhelmed. By the time that Mylie had bit down on Griffin’s hand, the thug had Mistuki’s life hanging by little more than his whim. The mink haired girl was pinned up against the wall, her entire body shaking with fear, her dagger and bow having fallen already because her hands were shaking too much.

Though he might have been able to run by the man to get to Rainee, Jame knew he couldn’t let Mistuki die like that. If he did, Rainee would never forgive him, especially when it took little more than a hard hit to the back of the head with the pommel of his claymore. The thug collapsed unconscious, and Mistuki instinctively wrapped her arms around Jame.

The half dragon looked back towards Rainee, and watched, as seconds later, the notorious hooligan Griffin died by the hands of a woman who he had tortured as a girl. It was poetic, though also the slightest bit tragic as well.

“You two alright?” Jame asked, feeling a bit awkward since Mistuki had not yet let go of him.

As Jame looked on, he could see Rainee’s heart beating rapidly as she pulled her blade from Griffin’s body with one arm as she hugged Mylie with the other. “Yeah, we are,” she murmured weakly.

Jame nodded. He looked at the dead bodies sorrowfully, wondering why it was that Mylie would have to see corpses at such a young age. The acrid smell of Benny’s burned corpse was beginning to fill the room, and even after his battles with Xem’zund, Jame still felt his stomach churn every time he smelt charred flesh.

More than anything else, he wanted to remove the little girl’s memories of the day. Jame always contrasted Rainee’s tough childhood to the way he was spoiled, and he always hoped that Mylie might have things better. He imagined that Rainee was quite like her in her youth, because the mother’s imprint on the child was not hard at all to see. He knew that Mylie wouldn’t have been able to go through her entire life without witnessing death in Althanas, but would have wanted to delay that day for as long as possible. At the age of eight, it was utterly inappropriate.

The half dragon looked on Griffin in anger, angry that even in death, the criminal could have stolen another childhood. Though he knew the futility in revenge, he almost wanted to go and kill the other two thugs that lay on the floor, just so they could never turn and ruin a childhood the way Griffin had. However, any thoughts he had of revenge were soon eliminated by a group of people from the hotel staff, who had rushed up to the room after all the commotion.

They gasped when they saw none other than Griffin Norisaki, leader of the New Dragon clan. “You- you killed him?” one of the staff members asked, stumbling with words as it seemed he was trying to deal with the fact that there was a dead mob boss in their hotel.

Unsure of whether it would be seen as a good or bad thing, Jame spoke quickly. “He attacked first,” Jame said. “I’m Jame Kaosi, assistant to the High Graf, and I witnessed the entire ordeal. Miss Rainee Miyami should receive a medal…”

One of the staff member’s eyes shot open widely. “You’re Rainee Miyami?” he asked, looking straight at the cat girl. “You saved Eluriand from the undead with Wicked Things!”

Jame was stunned to hear that. Wicked Things had been a group for a tournament that Damon had worked with to liberate Eluriand. The thought that Rainee was involved in his father’s most proud accomplishment floored the young half dragon.

“Well then, we’ll send people to clean this up,” the first staff member concluded.

Everything now seemed quite surreal for the heir of the Kaosi legacy. He had always thought of Rainee as a peer, but it would have made sense that when she was around eighteen, she might have had that opportunity. It was strange to think that she and Damon might have met. He wondered if his father had ever flirted with her.

Before he could sort out those emotions, Mistuki gave him a light peck on the cheek. “It’s my turn to thank you now,” she said with a shy giggle, before going back to her things.

[Nekoprincess]

Rainee groaned as her ears flattened on her head, she recalled when she had saved Eluriand from the undead. She had been searching for her bastard of a husband then, wondering why he had disappeared on her again. While she had been looking for him, she had met up with her old friend Leon, and had worked with a short midget named Poe and a beautiful woman named Skie. Damon had been there as well, in all respects it was due to Damon's strength that her team had got out alive.

Waving her arms in modesty, she replied honestly "Yes I did help save Eluriand from the undead, but it wasn't just by my doing. Damon and the rest of Wicked Things all deserve due respect for that accomplishment." She then waved off the rest of the staff as the man who had recognized her tried to come up to her to ask for an autograph. Shaking her head she murmured "No, while I respect that you are proud of my accomplishment, I can't in all honesty sign that piece of paper for you."

"But, Miss Miyami! Your a hero!" The man said, his dark green eyes lit with awe.

The half cat shook her head as she said sagely "It isn't me, Wicked Things as a whole are the heroes."

The man seemed disappointed as he placed his piece of parchment and his quill back in his pocket. Moving to usher some of the maids to begin cleaning he stated "I'll see that your room is refunded Miss Miyami. Its the least we can do for the trouble that occurred."

Rain's eyes widened, before they softened as she said kindly "Thanks, but we should be the ones apologizing, the bandits were after me...."

The man waved his wide hands as he said gently "No, its modest of you to say, but when your a well known hero, its understandable that trouble would follow."

Rainee didn't speak, she simply smiled gently as the maids begin to clean the room. She then turned to look at Jame, her silver eyes soft as she asked "Does it worry you that I knew your father?" She then paused as she looked sorry. In a kind voice she stated "I apologize for not telling you before Jame. Its just, I had forgot that I met him before...."

Though he was visibly scowling, Jame answered with a quick, "whatever..." It was apparent that he was more interested in changing the topic than anything else.

Rainee bit her lip as she saw Jame scowl, moving to touch his arm she murmured "Touchy subject?" Seeing the look not change, she let out a soft meow as she moved to draw Jame into a hug. In a gentle voice she muttered "Don't worry about it. So I'm a well known hero! So what! I'm sure you've had your share of heroic deeds Jame." Her eyes then softened as she leaned to whisper in his ear "Your my hero. You saved my life countless times. I," a blush spread across her peachy cheeks as she finished "don't know how to repay you for all your help..."

[Call me J]

It wasn’t that Rainee was a hero that bothered Jame. He had recommended her for a medal minutes ago simply because he wanted to see her succeed. However, he would rather Rainee think he was jealous than know the true nature of his uneasy relationship with his father. It was quite a complicated situation between father and son, Jame kept feeling as though Damon had set him a measuring stick and a set of goals that he had no interest in ever achieving.

However, the half dragon was in no mood to explain that to Rainee. Not in front of strangers with dark elven staff taking care of the bodies of recently scared criminals. Jame’s antagonism towards his father was something he didn’t like to share, because it made him vulnerable. Admitting that he wasn’t the person that his father was, made him seem weak. To admit that he didn’t want to be like Damon meant confessing that he didn’t want to be a hero, that he wasn’t the same kind of person as his father.

Though he wanted to, Jame couldn’t voice that difference. Though it meant a lot to him to be a different person than his father and he found the differences quite apparent, he knew everyone else saw him through the prism of his father’s accomplishment. The fact that Rainee had just called him her hero made it that much more difficult if he had wanted to say anything.

“Yeah, I guess I’ll be a hero one day,” he said, as a somewhat offbeat reply. Seconds later, realizing that he couldn’t just leave the situation as it was, he added a sincere, “But I’m glad that I’m your hero.”

Mistuki piped up. “You’re also my hero,” she said eagerly. “You didn’t just save Rainee this time!”

Mylie grinned. “Jame was my hero first,” she said, beaming proudly. “Because he rescued my mommy when I asked him to.”

Rainee laughed as she clung to Jame saying loudly, “You’re all wrong! He is MY hero!” She then gave her daughter a pout, but gave Mistuki a pointed glare saying, “Stay away! He may have saved you, but he is MINE!”

Jame smiled. It was a bit of an embarrassment to be treated that way, especially when he really didn’t consider himself a hero. He had failed to do the heroic thing too many times recently, especially since arriving in Alerar. It seemed sometimes that it was only when he was with Rainee that he was heroic, and that reminded him why he cared so much for her. It was because she brought out the best in him.

“Let’s get out of here…” he said. “There is another hotel down the street from here, a little less lavish, but it would be a good place to finally relax. How about we go there…”

Though Jame had a flat nearby, he didn’t want to go there. It was dirty and in a bad condition, since he rarely did more than sleep there and drink. He didn’t want Mylie to see the empty liquor bottles all around the place, because he would have been ashamed to have her innocent eyes violated any further. He didn’t want Rainee to see it either, because he would have been embarrassed to let her know the way he lived. Even though he knew it was part of an illusion, he liked being thought of as a hero by at least someone who mattered to him.

[Nekoprincess]

The room was a mass with dark elven maids, the sounds of mopping and dusting could be heard. The blood was slowly leaving the plush carpet due to a heavy mix of some thick magical solution one of the woman was brushing into the carpet. It appeared a light purple color, but slowly changed to gold as the blood disappeared. Aside from this, three heavy Drow men were moving the broken bits of furniture and the bed out of the room. Three more men were bringing in an exact replica of the destroyed bed, they placed it with a light thud on the cleaned carpet. The window was also being repaired.

Relief filled Rainee's heart, as she watched the damage that she had caused being fixed. She hated seeing destruction, furthermore, she hated that her little girl had to see all this. Turning to look at Mylie she whispers "You alright sweetie?"

Mylie looked a little scared still, though she seemed happy to be with Jame and her mother. Nodding she murmurs "I'm alright! I'm happy to be with you and Jame." Seeing Mistuki look hurt, the little kitten then added "You too Mistuki! Thank you."

Mistuki smiled briefly as she had gathered all her things. Nodding she murmurs "I'm glad you didn't forget me little one." She then turned to Jame with a puppy dog look in her eyes. In a soft voice she murmured "Thank you again. I hope that I'll see you again Jame. I have to get back, I only came along from Sin Nomine because Rain asked me to help her watch little Mylie." She then turned to leave, pausing to give Mylie a hug, and to give Rain a kiss on the cheek. She then stopped in front of Jame a blush still heavy on her cheeks as she said quickly "We'll meet again I hope..." she then scurried from the room, her face a deep cherry red color.

Once Mistuki had left, Rain couldn't help but feel a tad jealous. The young teenager had openly showed her affection for Jame. While she had yet to tell Jame her true feelings, sighing, she still held these feelings inside as she whispered "Yeah, lets get out of here Jame." The half cat then led her daughter from the broken room. Once they had reached the receptions area, the young drow woman who had checked her in held up a finger.

"One moment Miss Miyami." The woman then ducked beneath the check in table and pulled out a sack of gold, handing it to the young cat she murmured "That is your refund Miss. This is also from our manager." She then handed both Rainee and Jame two coupons. "Those are for two rooms. You both have free room and board here for one night if you use those."

Rainee looked a bit frazzled. Taking her coupon, she noded as she murmured politely, "Thank you miss."

The Drow nodded as she said "It is not a problem."

Tucking the coupon into her bag, the half cat then exited the Bed of the Queen. The air outside was cold and fresh as the trio made their way towards the hotel. While they were walking across the quiet streets Mylie piped up, "I want my own room! Sharing a bed is noisy." Her little green eyes lit with mischief as she said, "Besides, it looks like you and mommy want to be alone Jame."

Rainee blushed as they approached a building covered with ivy. The bright green leaves were accented by the red brick as a sigh flashed the inn's name Ivy Leaves . It was much less lavish then the Bed of the Queen, but it looked quaint.

Entering the building, Rainee smiled at the young Drow girl manning the desk. In a quiet voice she asked "Can I get one room for three? With an adjacent room for my daughter?"

The young receptionist smiled as she murmured "Sure thing hun. Just sign here." She then held out the guest book for Rainee to sign.

Rainee smiled as she moved to sign the guest book, with her hand squeezing Mylie's, she signed her name and handed over the required amount of gold. She hoped that this time their stay here would be peaceful. She prayed that no one would burst in unwelcome interrupting her time together with Jame.

[Call me J]

Jame was somewhat surprised at the hospitality they had received after essentially destroying a room at the Bed of the Queen, but he was just happy that the bandits were going to be taken care of. He supposed the two that had survived would be taken to jail, and the bodies would be either left to rot or taken by the remnants of the New Dragon clan. For his part, Jame was just happy to get out of there and in another hotel where he could finally relax.

He smiled when Rainee mentioned that there would be a separate room for Mylie. Though he was certain that the little girl would require some attention after the scare she’d been through, Jame figured that Rainee wanted some time for them together in the hotel. “Guess she’s found a way to thank me after all,” he thought with a cheeky smirk.

Once Rainee had signed into the guest book, the three of them went up to their room. It was on the second floor, and compared to the one at the Bed of the Queen, it wasn’t all that lavish. Jame didn’t mind, there was a nice enough carpet, and in addition to the two bedrooms, there was a small bathroom and kitchen area. The three of them gathered in the hallway once they entered.

“Anyone need anything?” Jame asked. He doubted that they would. It was getting to be quite late, and he had noticed Mylie yawn a couple times on the walk to the hotel. While she was undoubtedly frightened by the events of the day, Jame figured that now that the initial shock had worn off, she would just want to sleep.

As if on cue, Mylie replied. “I’m tired.” She yawned again. “I just want to sleep now, but Jame you’ll be here tomorrow right? I want to talk to you, we didn’t get to talk…”

Rainee smiled warmly as she gathered her daughter in a motherly hug. Moving to kiss her little girl's cheek she whispered, “Jame will be here honey. You can count on talking with him tomorrow.” She then scooted her daughter towards the second bedroom murmuring gently, “For now honey, just sleep. You've had a long hard day.”

While the two cats went into the bedroom, Jame decided to take a bit of initiative in the other. He pulled back the sheets and lit some complimentary incense, just to create a mood. He had burned for the kind of contact that Rainee gave him since the last time they had met. There was something about her that made Jame feel honest, almost as if he had nothing to be ashamed about. Even though he felt as though he shouldn’t tell her about all his fears, there was a part of him that felt comfortable enough to do it. That was also the part of him that wanted to confess his love.

On that night, however, he would do neither. He would just enjoy Rainee. Soon, they would kiss, take off their clothes and soak in the passions together that neither of them would admit to. With an expectant smile on his face, Jame wondered if he shouldn’t take her to see Damon at some point in the future, when he knew for sure what he wanted. As for now, he wanted Rainee, but only most of the time.

As she came into the room though, Jame was overwhelmed with lust. “Is Mylie asleep?” he asked.

Rainee nodded. “I just settled her down Jame. She was drifting off when I left,” she said.

Jame smiled. Without a second’s hesitation, he leaned in and gave Rainee a passionate kiss.

[Witchblade]

Storyline

Continuity: - 7 The storyline was simple and well done, driven more by the characters than anything that was going on throughout it really. Without the connection between Jame and Rainee, this quest would have been another random and pointless kill the baddies. I wish there would have been more information given on Mitsuki and exactly what she went through and what happened in Sister Grove. For most of the thread I thought she was a lot older than she really is because I never could really picture her and she just came off as much more mature, especially considering Rainee kept putting Mylie in her charge. Over all though it was a good thread with an interesting storyline and though I would have liked to see one of them confess their love for the other, I think it was better that it didn’t happen.

Setting: - 6 Both of you could use a little more detail in your setting, especially Neko. You try to describe things sometimes, but it’s just the most basic aspect of it that you’re not giving the reader enough to really picture what they’re looking at. Remember, though you can see it in your head, you have to write descriptively enough so that the reader can see it in theirs too. Shyam did a slightly better job here, but there was a lack of good setting even from him. Both of you did make use of your setting several times throughout the story though.

NPC’s can also be thought of as setting and as such they need to be described too. The only NPC that was given a good description was Griffin, even Mitsuki and Mylie were not described very much at all. In fact, none of the characters really were, I had a basic understanding of what they looked like, but not a very good one. A good trick is to either use each other to describe your characters to do it in sections, instead of just dropping it in one clump, describe things as they move around.

Pacing: - 6.5 The pacing wasn’t bad, but I thought the bandits showing up were extremely abrupt and not very well written. They came, killed the bartender and left. There was no description of them moving around and collecting the money that they’d come for and barely a description of them, just some clothes. It was rather sudden, considering where the storyline went in terms of that. I would have wanted a little more interaction in the tavern scene. Jumping from the perspective of three different characters also affected the pacing at times too, especially in Griffin’s death scene. It went from Rainee for the majority of the post, to Mitsuki for about two paragraphs, then to Mylie. It was just a little too much. One part of the pacing in particular that bothered me was the fight with Griffin. Rainee formed a ball of electricity and threw it at Griffin, ducked for cover and stood back up without the ball hitting him. Griffin also had time to laugh at her, speak in a rather long winded way and then form and toss his own energy ball at hers. Was that thing moving at a snail’s pace?

Character

Dialogue: - 5.5 Playing children isn’t always an easy thing because one has to be able to embody their mind and their innocence. Shyam, whenever you took control of Mylie you did a good job doing this, but Neko, sometimes the things Mylie said just sounded too grown up. Kids do say the damndest things sometimes, but be careful of the way it’s worded or it’s going to sound like eight-year old Mylie is around twenty. Also NPC dialogue is just as important as anyone else’s. Even if you’re going to kill them off, you need to make them more believable then just, bad guy A and bad guy B. Griffin talked a lot, and I know he was arrogant and prideful and thought himself the victor once he waltzed into that room, but talking that much –especially in a battle—is just asking to get killed.

I want to make a note here about internal dialogue as well. Neko, you use internal dialogue a lot, almost every single post and not a small amount of it either, full paragraphs. There’s nothing particularly wrong with internal dialogue but when you’re jumping out of third person to first it can disrupt the flow and pacing of the post unless done correctly. You’re using it too much, yes character can have a lot of internal thoughts, but try incorporating them more into the third person narration than the first. You’ll find your flow doesn’t get broken up and it’s not as jarring to the reader. I find internal dialogue should really only be used to enunciate something, give it more meaning.

Action: - 6 Action for the most part seemed true to the character. I thought Griffin talked too much for someone who was renowned at being this extremely powerful and dangerous mob boss, I also thought he went down a little too easily. I did expect more action from Jame than what I got though and for the most part his excuse always seemed to be Rainee or Mylie. And Rainee, clearly hurt in the battle against Griffin, somehow finds it within herself to flirt with Jame some more, neither of them really noticing nor caring about the fact that she’s bleeding everywhere. The man sliced her thigh open and she’s got multiple cuts all over her arms and hands. Then there was the staff at the hotel, they just swept up all in there, in an oddly cheerful and apologetic nature. It was a rather strange scene.

Persona: - 5.5 I’m giving a lower score here because, though Jame came across really well as a character and so too did Rainee, Mitsuki and Mylie were often times left out of the persona side of things, especially Mitsuki. She was just scared shitless throughout three quarters of the thread, and having Neko jump around from three different points of view, detracted from the character development and personality of all of them, especially when going from all three of them in just one post. If you have three characters you like to switch between, try sticking with one throughout the entire post, or if you want to divide it up, make sure there’s good reason to do it. Jame came across as one of the stronger characters and after him I would have to say Mylie was played rather well by him, mostly because he played her from Jame’s perspective instead of jumping between them. Rainee at times felt like she had little to no personality, she was just there to cling to Jame’s arm and throw him into hormonal overload.

Writing Style

Mechanics: - 7 Both of you had the occasional mistakes, more spelling and misused words, or missing words than anything glaringly grammatically. One thing I will point out here to NekoPrincess is the word ‘begin’. You use it a lot in your writing, sadly begin is present tense whereas the rest of your writing is past tense. Began is the past tense version of begin.

Technique: - 6 Both of you have a good grasp at writing and the techniques to use during it, Shyam more so than Neko, but with a little more practice I can see Neko’s writing getting much better.

Clarity: - 7 Things were clear for the most part, though as a mentioned before, jumping around from three different characters can get rather confusing sometimes. There was also one time in the quest that Jame transformed into a dragon but I didn’t remember reading that he turned back to his human form, so I thought he was running through the hotel as a dragon still, until Mitsuki popped up.

Wild Card: - 6 An enjoyable read, but there were a few too many things that stuck out to me to give this a higher mark.

Total: 62.5

Reward:

NekoPrincess receives 1,900 experience and 250 GP
Call me J receives 1,800 experience and 250 GP

[Witchblade]

EXP and GP Added!