“This is our spot, home of Madam and Mistress Heart,” Kristina remarked cheerfully.

On an initial cursory glance, Darius wouldn’t have noticed anything strange about it. Similar to most of the other buildings he saw, they were mostly wooden with bits of stone here and there to act as supports. Only, on closer inspection, he noticed the way wood met stone, like it was fused together, the way the stone was filled with minerals as if it had just risen from the ground rather than molded to form.

Darius also watched as animals would roam inside, including what looked like the occasional skunk partially mixed with some type of insect, a mantis from the look of it. Probably the most horrifying thing he’s seen all day. Their oneness with nature aside, the single doorway that led inside held a small wooden sign with what Darius believed were words on it.

“That sign, what does it say?” he asked.

“Are you illiterate? Heart’s Healers, this is their workplace. Seriously, can you not read?”

Looking at the words more closely, Darius could vaguely see how they the letters could vaguely spell out those words. “We share similar language, but our written word is different. I recognize some of the letters, but your words are structured differently, and some of your letters have different sounds than mine.”

“Well, I really don’t feel like teaching you Stellish along with teaching you about wattiez, so I’ll just read the sign for you. Vitnova help me, what am I, a primary teacher?”

“Can’t help that I’m so inquisitive, been this way my entire life. Either way, are you sure we should really be going in here? As an expert on trashy residences, I can say with certainty that this place doesn’t give off a good healer vibe.”

Kristina opened the door and walked inside, but quickly closed it behind her, leaving only a small crack to show her face. “Don’t let the place fool you, Madam Heart is one of the best healers on the whole continent, but she should be gone right now. Instead, we’ll have to rely on Mistress Heart, an old friend of mine, but she doesn’t really like talking to strangers. If you would wait out here for a bit while I go inside, I’ll make sure she’s ready to see you.”

It didn’t take much for Darius to realize what Kristina was really saying. “So, what you’re saying is that you are going to tell her not to reveal who you really are, and you’re going to make sure there’s nothing around that would make your identity obvious. Sound about right?”

Kristina’s cheeks ballooned red as she opened her mouth to say something, but all that came out was empty air.

Darius responded with a slight chuckle, “No need to say anymore. You could say I’m a bit of a professional when it comes to keeping secrets, so trying to hide things about yourself is okay with me, since we’ll be working together to slay-”

“Not slaying, hunting, killing it should only be our final resort. If we’re able to make it leave the area without taking its life, that is what we’re going to do.”

“Noted, all I’m saying is that I won’t pry into who you are, and if you help me, I’ll help you.”

“Maybe I was being a little too hard on him,” Kristina conceded. “Fine! I won’t make you wait outside but let me do the talking. I don’t want you scaring my friend.”

Darius smiled while giving a shallow bow, gesturing towards the door in an exaggerated fashion, “After you, milady.”

“Smartass.”

The inside didn’t look too much better than the outside of this place. More spacious, maybe, but just as dingy as Darius expected. A dark grey, almost metallic interior, plenty of rooms but none of them seemed lived in, and a feeling of emptiness so pungent that Darius felt the need to speak to Kristina even though she requested silence from him.

“So, this Mistress Heart… anything I should know about her? She around our age? She like the color green?”

Kristina put a finger on Darius’s lips, “Don’t touch her unless she tells you to, and let me speak to her first. In fact, if you don’t have to, just don’t speak to her at all. You don’t need to worry, she’s not at all dangerous, and we’re almost there.”

Darius frowned; he didn’t like this girl’s definition of “almost,” and considering she was hunting a griffin, presumably alone, he didn’t enjoy her definition of “dangerous” either. His line of thought was interrupted when he heard a loud clattering noise.

“I assume that’s your friend?”

“Not again,” Kristina internally groaned. “Amelia, are you okay!”

Inside the room, Darius and Kristina were met with an elderly woman with long greying curly hair. She wore a bright orange, frilled, flower dress that clashed with her sea blue eyes, along with an excess of jewelry. Her rings and earrings caught Darius’s attention as they seemed to be made not gold or silver but jade. Her skin was also extremely pale, though that fact may have been intensified because she was currently doused in milk.

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“Amelia, honey, I told you to stop wearing those heels, they’re not doing you any favors.” True enough, Amelia was wearing a pair of jewel encrusted heels that seem to have been recently repaired, though now it was easy to see that they weren’t repaired well.

“Krista is that you? You’re not dead?!” For an old woman she was really able to move, “Krista, Krista, what happened, you look like garbage, and who is this with you? Sit down! Let me check up on you.”

Quickly rising from the floor, Amelia attempted to grab a chair for her friend. Forgetting that one of her heels was broken, along with the wet floor, she would have been left tumbling to the floor had it not been for Darius and Kristina’s quick reactions, each catching one of her arms.

“I-I-I…” Amelia stuttered.

Darius could feel his hand strangely vibrating. Amelia was shaking from half of her body while carrying a face stricken with a sense of sickness. Perceiving a terrifying future awaiting him, Darius decided to step away, leaving her to be dealt with by Kristina.

“And this is why I didn’t want you touching her. Just wait here and don’t touch anything that looks important. We’ll be back.”

Holding Amelia close, Kristina took her to one of the nearby rooms and laid her on the bed. Simple in design, the room was filled with only the bed and a large desk. The only thing of note within this room would be the scores of paintings of old buildings. Colleges within the University of New Dawn, each signed by that college’s dean. Kristina was glad to see the Madam Heart had not forced Amelia to take them down… yet.

“Did you manage to settle things with your mom while I was gone?”

The color was finally starting to return to Amelia’s face, only to be immediately drained. “You’re gone for two weeks, and you think that you get to ask the questions? That griffin must have hit you much harder than I thought. Let me see.”

Kristina complied, sitting down on the floor between Amelia’s legs, “Health.” Amelia eyes changed from a sea blue to a fiery orange as she probed Kristina’s body. “Nothing broken, but you have a few minor fractures and dozens of cuts and bruises. At least you take care of your face. I can also notice a foreign substance in your body, but it’s already breaking down, shouldn’t take long. While you’re here, I might as well redo your hair, it’s a mess!” She opened the desk and took out a pair of pliers using them to remove the twigs from Kristina’s hair.

While she worked, Kristina took the chance to speak her mind, “I’m sorry I left, but I’d rather ask your mom for forgiveness rather than permission. She would’ve broken my legs before letting me go hunt the griffin.”

“Given a second chance, I would have done the same! I thought you were joking Kristhalla! A griffin? Are you suicidal?”

“Could we refrain from using my real name when there is a stranger in the house?”

“Also that! You know how I am with strangers, yet you brought one in the house without telling me first.”

“Sorry about that too.”

Amelia stared at her friend below her, anger quickly fading as she saw all the many, albeit minor, injuries covering her body. “You’re lucky to be alive Krista. I can only do so much, I’m not my mother, and I’m tired of seeing you get hurt.”

“I’ll stop when I’m recognized as a great hero.” Krista said while looking up and giving Amelia her biggest genuine smile.

Amelia responded by pinching Kristina’s nose, “You’re a terrible liar.”

Krista laughed while holding onto her stinging nose, “And you have a terrible habit of letting me do what I want, so are we done here?”

“No, I want to try curling your hair a bit, I never did know why you keep it so short and straight. In the meantime, you can tell me about that stranger you brought here.”

“Darius? He’s harmless or rather he’s not… that’s why I brought him with me. He’s a good shot with that bow and is special.”

Amelia eyed Kristina very closely, “Special how?”

“I can’t, rather, won’t say why. We agreed to keep our identities a secret, but on the plus side he doesn’t have a problem with me being untethered. Not only that, but I think he has a few screws loose. He willingly jumped on the back of a griffin just to get it off me. Now that’s the type of person I think I could work well with.”

Kristina wanted to laugh off the experience with Amelia, but she was met with her stricken face instead. “That griffin wouldn’t have happened to have been a venomous type?”

Kristina could feel a cold sweat slid down her back. “W-Why do you ask?”

“That foreign substance… it was venom, wasn’t it?!”

“To be fair, I had Darius there! He had my back when it paralyzed me and-”

“It paralyzed you?!”

“I never know when to shut up, do I?” Kristina groaned. “That’s not important. What is important is that I’m back here safe and sound, right?” Kristina could feel Amelia gripping hard on her hair, “Too hard! Too hard! Can you please let go?” Something warm and hot hit Krista’s forehead. A liquid. “Amelia?”

Amelia sat there crying hot tears while fruitlessly trying to wipe them away. “When will it stop? Why do you have to keep hurting yourself?”

“Amelia.”

“No, don’t Amelia me! I already know what you want to say - I’m destined for this! This is just who I am! I want to show others than I’m better than they think I am!

“I already know how amazing you are, so you don’t need to keep hurting yourself!”

Kristina held tight to her friend, “I already told you, I’ll stop when I become a great hero.” As Kristina held her, she looked deep into Amelia’s eyes. Staunch and unwavering as ever.

This time Amelia chuckled. “You liar.”

“Maybe so, but at least I’m not the one lying about her age, pretending to be a grandma. Change back to normal so we can surprise Darius.”