Fantasy St. George's School for Young Hunters (closed)

[Reynarda]

Scarlet walked away muttering "Sacred-smacred", but did not argue any further. Clearly, Agni's decision had been made, so there was no real reason to argue with him. As long as May didn't die, he would be fine, so really they didn't having anything to worry about. Still, she was surprised Agni was not a little more on their side since his own life depended on it.

The whole thing was messed up, in her humble opinion.

"We'll meet you lot back at the hotel," Bram said.

"Yes, be careful," Vlad added before turning and following Agni.

Devon glanced over his shoulder at their disappearing guardians. If he knew his sister--and he unfortunately did--she would not be going back to the hotel. He just hoped they would do something productive with their freedom. Just his luck Winona would decide to try running away again (he hadn't run away since he was twelve, yeesh, Win), and they would have to go running after her.

Come to think of it, Devon was a little surprised Vlad and Bram had let them go off on their own. But then the person next to him sighed, and he remembered Scarlet was with them. He eyed her suspiciously. Though in the body of a perpetual nineteen-year-old, Scarlet was in her nineties. And the past few months had proven she was not as nuts as she pretended to be.

But then Winona turned around and tried to hand her food off to them. "It's your food, you deal with it," he said with a huff. "Anyway, they told us to go back to the hotel."

"Eh," Scarlet said, adjusting the curls she had trapped in a messy bun. "They said they'd meet us back there, and to be careful."

Devon scowled at her. Who's side was she on?

"Look, baby sis," Scarlet said, "we gotta be careful. We say one wrong thing and we could seal May's fate. These people obviously don't think like us. We want these people to like us, so we gotta be nicer than we feel." She flicked her eyes between the twins. "Got it?"

Devon rolled his eyes. "I'm not the one you have to worry about."

"It's a yes or no question, Dev."

He huffed. "Yes."



"This place looks like fun," Bram said as they approached the storefront. He grinned at Vlad. "Haven't been in once of these places in a while. Remember Jack the Ripper?"

"I asked you never to mention that again," Vlad muttered.

Bram would have continued teasing Vlad had a young woman not quickly opened the door. He and Vlad turned polite smiles on her when she looked them over. Once inside, Bram looked around with interest while Vlad merely looked unimpressed. At least it was air conditioned, in Vlad's opinion. Bram wished the bar was open.

Bram ceased his survey of the "front room" as soon as a new woman joined them. Too bad he was not allowed to flit with her, because dang. He shot Agni a sympathetic glance. "Sorry, kiddo."

Vlad arched his eyebrow at the woman's comment. He wanted to say something snarky back, but it wouldn't be in May's best interests, so he just smiled. "And you must be the Tiger."

"Nikola, right?" Bram asked. "I'm Bram, and this is Vlad. Nice place you got here. You probably run a pretty booming business, right?"

Vlad flicked his eyes up to Bram, but mentally shrugged. At least he wasn't rushing forward to the purpose of their visit.

 

[Mikotsuhime]

Nikola couldn't help but smile as Bram and Vlad introduced themselves.

"Yes, you are definitely friends with the little serpent," she said. "He is the only one who calls me that. He gave all of us names, because he thought it was a waste we didn't have them. Nobody else uses them, but he was very set on it."

She headed over to one of the couches and gestured for the two men to sit.

"Now, we should get straight down to business, should we not? You are here to try and convince me to stay the little serpent's execution. I and the little dragon have not yet voted. My vote would break the stalemate and then he would likely vote with me."

She headed over to the bar and pulled out a bottle of whisky and a glass, pouring herself a little bit before she turned her eyes to Bram and Vlad.

"Would you like some? As you say, business is booming, so I won't even charge you for it. If you want to have your way with one of the girls, though, that's a different story," she said with a little smirk in Bram's direction.



May hummed as he ordered a pistachio cone and handed it to Alex, then took his own mint chocolate chip and licked it contemplatively.

"Well, growing up, it was just my dad and me, you know? My grandparents helped us out sometimes and stuff, but mostly it was him and me. And surfing, you need a board and lessons and all that kind of stuff, and that's hundreds of dollars. My dad, he gave up his dream of living on the mainland to raise me, so I didn't want to ask for too much when I was growing up. Especially with all my magic stuff, because gems aren't cheap, you know? But I've always wanted to try it, and since I started working for Gabe I have, like, a ton more money than I did when I was working at the grocery store. So now I can afford to try it, I'd like to!"

He grinned as he looked back at Alex.

"Well, since I don't have my swimsuit, we could probably go down to the caves. As long as we avoid the magic parts we shouldn't run into anybody."

 

[jones573]

Winona nodded affirmatively at Scarlet’s interpretation of the directions they had been given. Neither Bram nor Vlad had actually told them to go back to the hotel. Which they would be doing anyways- Eventually.



“Yeah, okay,” Winona agreed, not overly bothered by Scarlet’s implication that Winona did not come off ‘nice’. “’Xactly why we should talk to someone who might actually be helpful. And- Knows us.”



She was going to say ‘likes us’, but they hadn’t really spent that much time with May’s family. But she was fairly confident they would at least like what they were trying to accomplish- May not getting killed.


[[[WHAT FOLLOWS IS OPTIONAL DEPENDING ON HOW WE WANT TO TAKE THIS:

“We gotta avoid Henri’s mom, though,” she reminded them as they neared the home, and she ducked off of the main street and into the alley.

She figured Henri was a better bet than May’s dad- As May’s father, there would have been a more concentrated effort to exclude him from any sensitive information, and being involved in the Guardians, Henri might have had more opportunity to learn such information.

She pointed at a window in one of the houses, a bedroom with garish coloring that could be seen even from a distance. “That’s May’s room,” she concluded, “So… That’s Henri’s?” She pointed at the window opposite, on the other house, and sniffed at the air to find little answer in it.

She wasn’t a werewolf, and she wasn’t even considered to have started her proper vampire adolescence yet. So she turned to her more fully fanged siblings and raised an eyebrow in questioning, hoping they might be able to discern something she couldn’t.

END OPTIONAL PART OF REPLY ]]]



Alex felt awkward as he licked at his cone. Maybe he should have bought the ice cream- It wasn’t like he’d ever had to worry about money, for any reason. Alex probably had savings accounts with more money in them than May’s father could make in several years.



“Caves sound cool,” he finally said, having consumed too much ice cream at once in order to avoid saying anything, and given himself a brainfreeze that was apparent on his face.



“Magic caves are a popular hang-out spot?”

 

[Reynarda]

Bram blinked, just now realizing May had named all of the guardians. That was adorable. How could they even think of destroying him when he'd freaking named them?

Vlad and Bram settled on the couch--Bram flopped onto it while Vlad settled primly next to him. Vlad tugged at his t-shirt, wishing he had known they would meet with the Tiger tonight. He certainly would not have worn jeans and a t-shirt had he known. Bram, on the other hand, had no problem with his blindingly-white Dutch shins being out in the open.

Bram tugged on Vlad's t-shirt to get him to sit back instead of sitting ramrod-straight and flicked his eyes to the Tiger. "Yup, that about sums it up."

Vlad forced himself back into the couch and relaxed marginally. After all, he was a bit concerned about the sanitation of the couch he was on.

"I'll take some, since you're offering," Bram said, cheerfully draping his arms across the back of the couch. "My friend, here, is not a fan of the stuff, though."

"I am fine, thank you," Vlad said. He was about to add that his companion would bother none of the girls when Bram beat him to it.

"I dunno why you're looking at me," Bram said with an easy grin. "Vlad's the one who likes to have his way."

This did the trick, and Vlad relaxed enough to roll his eyes. "In every way but that sense, yes."

As she rejoined them on the couches, Vlad crossed one leg over the other in a way that told Bram he was getting down to business. "You will have to pardon us as we are new to your customs. But I must ask why the guardians are at a stalemate if the serpent is indeed in danger of returning."




"So, what?" Devon asked, glancing at the home in question. "Are we going to climb in her windows?"

Scarlet shrugged at Winona when she glanced over for conformation. She hadn't actually met Henri. Fortunately, she was one of the few Drakoniis who had a half-decent sense of smell. "Well, there's someone in there. They've got a very interesting smell. I'm not sure if that's Henri, though. I don't even know what she looks like. I think maybe we should just knock on the window?" Scarlet shrugged. "IDK, that sounds a bit stalkerish. Desperate times, and all that."

 

[Mikotsuhime]

The Tiger smiled, pouring a glass for Bram and sitting down at the couch opposite to the two of them. After handing Bram his drink, she leaned back in her seat and swirled her own drink around in its glass.

"Glad we're on the same page," she said. "If you have to know, the little serpent has charmed a few of us. There are those who like him as a person and don't wish for him to die. There are others who believe that the serpent's resurrection is impossible either way, so there is no reason to kill a child. However there are still others who believe him to be a risk we cannot take, and would want that risk eliminated. The rest, quite simply, do not care about this world or the beings that live in it. Those are the ones who abstained to vote."

She looked to Vlad critically, knowing that of the two of them, he was likely to be the one with a plan and the one to be reasoned with.

"I happen to quite like this world, and the people here. I do not want to risk it all being destroyed. That being said, I and the prior dragon are the only ones around today who actually knew the original serpent in life. I think he is a stubborn old fool, and he deserved what he got, but I don't think that he is as big a threat as the others believe. That being said, I am first and foremost a businesswoman. I will not simply give you my vote for free. I want to come up with an agreement that will benefit both of us."

She paused for a second, turning around and waving a finger. A curtain was pulled across the entrance to the back hallway, and she turned back around with a little sigh.

"Pardon me. This concerns the little dragon, and I do not want him listening in."



May grinned and shrugged his shoulders.

"Well, not really for tourists. For guardians, yeah. They're kind of like the only place where the two worlds connect, so if we were to run into one, they, uh, wouldn't look like us, that's for sure," he said. "And some of them aren't very friendly. But we should be good, I think."



Henri had been stewing in her solitary confinement with a pizza she had ordered, and was planning on sulking for the rest of the night when she heard voices outside her window. Raising her eyebrows, she went to her window, only to see the group of May's friends from the holiday party, sans May and Alex, and their guardians. She wasn't sure who the other woman with them was, but seeing Winona and Devon put her at ease.

She opened the door to her little house - which was more of a shed than anything, but it was enough - and turned on the porch light.

"You're May's friends," she said as she looked between the three of them. "You actually came all the way here. Uh, come in, come in. It's a little small, but if we go into the main house we'll run into grandma, and then you guys will never escape."

 

[jones573]

“No, knocking is polite,” Winona corrected. She was pretty sure stalking involved not-knocking. Luckily it was a moot point, and Henri saved them from having to discuss it further.



“Of course we came,” Winona said with a frown. They weren’t going to just let May get voted to death. She followed Henri inside, and remembered her manners.



“Scarlet,” she said, pointing at Scarlet. “And Henri,” she told Scarlet in turn.



She had done worse, when making introductions.







Well. That didn’t sound ominous at all.



‘Some things are better left alone,’ Maria had cautioned. But really… Eff Maria.



“Lead on, then,” Alex said with a smile, grabbing May’s hand with the one not holding his own ice cream come.

 

[Reynarda]

Vlad watched the Tiger thoughtfully as she spoke. She seemed very logical about this, which he appreciated. She also seemed more favorable towards May than he had anticipated.

Bram, however, frowned a bit when she said she wanted a transaction to occur rather than just doing what Bram considered to be the right thing.

“Yes, of course,” Vlad said as she stepped out.

The second she was gone, Bram turned to Vlad. The pair had decided Vlad’s mother-tongue was least likely to be spoken by any of the locals and so Bram switched easily into it.

“She wants a deal?!”

Vlad ran his fingers through his hair, hoping it didn’t appear sticky with sweat from the heat. “Not everyone is like you, Abraham.”

“I know that, but she’s just using something she would do anyway to get something.”

Vlad smiled slightly, and Bram rolled his eyes.

“Which is something you do all the time, of course. If someone called your bluff, though, you probably would still do it.”

“We are not in the position to call anyone’s bluff,” Vlad said. “We will have to take her price. I am more concerned about what we could possibly offer to a guardian.”

“Think she wants money? How much have we got?”

“Enough,” Vlad sighed. There went his savings for the inevitable recession. “But I am concerned that is not what she wants.”

Bram frowned and dipped his drink. “What do we even have?”

Vlad hummed. He was still puzzling through how this would concern Agni. “Connections on the mainland, perhaps. Or skills.”

“Ah,” Bram mumbled as he looked into his drink.

“We will simply have to ask her.”

“And if her price is too high?”

“Plan B, then.”

Bram downed the rest of his drink and rested the glass on his knee. “I like Plan B better than all this politicking.”

“But this assures a higher-likelihood of being left alone.”

Bram made a murmur of disagreement and turned to look to the curtain the Tiger had disappeared behind.




Scarlet was rescued from having to dissuade her silblings from climbing in people's windows when the owner of the little home stepped outside.

"Yes, of course," Devon said at the same time as his sister. "He's family."

"Yes, hi," Scarlet said as they stepped into Henri's house. "Believe it or not, I'm these giants' big sister."

Devon smiled a little shakily at Henri. "Vlad and Bram--uh, that's our guardians, I'm sure you remember--are talking with one of the guardians now. The... Tiger? I think? Anyway, we thought we'd come talk to you. See what you think about all this."

 

[Mikotsuhime]

The Tiger was gone for a few moments, magically locking doors to soundproof the main hall before she returned, a pleasant smile on her face.

"Well, then, let's get down to business, shall we?" she said, sitting down once more and grabbing her drink. "You've taken care of the little serpent for the better part of half a year now. I imagine you're quite attached to him, so this shouldn't be too much of a tall order for you."

She took a sip, swirling the liquid around in her glass as she leaned back in her chair.

"To put it simply, regardless of the result of this vote, the little serpent isn't long for this world. An artificially made body can only last for maybe twenty five years, though I assume you're already aware of that." She exhaled slowly, before a slightly sad, but mostly fond smile came to her face.

"It also means the little dragon's time is short too. And frankly, I am quite fond of him. He is very young, which is something that none of us others are anymore. He is also very sheltered, even after spending time away from home with me while I looked after my other shops. This island has been a good home for our kind for a very long time, but it is not a good place to raise a child like that. I would like to expand his horizons a little bit, and allow him to see some of the world he is bound to protect before he disappears."

She reached into the pocket of her blazer and pulled out a chequebook, her smile turning sharper.

"Of course, I am willing to pay for larger accomodations, should you require them. Because, to be frank, the only way he'll agree to leave, or let the little serpent leave, is if he is given the job of looking after him. I cannot imagine that given what I have heard about your little family, you have much room in your current home without renovations. So? I assume we can come to an agreement on this, if you want me to vote in your favour."




Henri looked a bit surprised to see Scarlet, tilting her head to the side as she allowed them in.

"Well, I guess it does make sense that you would come," she mused. "You all really care about May, so at least I can trust you. Honestly, though, I'm not as worried as I was."

She scowled a little bit then, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Yeah, I spoke to the Tiger too. Or, I spoke to Rowen, her representative. Humans aren't actually allowed to speak to the guardians themselves. Anyways, she's a manipulative bitch, as always. But from what I heard of you guys' dads, I think they'll probably be able to make a deal with her. Once she votes for May to live, the only problem is that ignorant little fuckwad." She ground her teeth, storming over to her bed in the corner of the room and plopping herself down.

"I can't believe he /demoted/ me. Went back to the Big Bitch to do his bidding, because at least she worships the ground he walks on. And I'm not allowed to leave the yard or the main house until after the vote! Apparently he can't trust me to be impartial. Arrogant prick."

She paused for a second, eyeing the three of them, grabbing the pizza box from the bedside table.

"Sorry I don't have any couches or anything. I don't really get guests. You guys want pizza? Do vampires eat pizza? The only one I met was the stuck up lawyer mafia boss. Can't see him eating pizza. Guy acts like he shits out gold."

She huffed, then visibly deflated as her anger began to simmer out.

"I think I'm gonna have a beer. You kids want any? I won't tell your dads if you don't."



May grinned, squeezing Alex's hand as he led him down the beach. Eventually they reached beyond the areas frequented by tourists, the shoreline getting rockier. May pulled out his phone, juggling it with his melting ice cream when they reached an indent in the edge of a cliff, flicking on the flashlight as he led Alex inside. The cave was rather dark, but when he shone the light on the rock of the walls it glittered prettily.

"Come on, I'll show you my special place. It's just down this tunnel," he said with a smile as he led the way. They took a few turns, and the path forked a few times, but May seemed to know where he was going, and eventually they came out in a large cave covered in luminescent moss. May grinned as he turned off his flashlight and put his phone away, the entire cave covered in a somewhat eerie green glow. There was a pool of water in the center, and May pulled off his shoes with his free hand, sitting down and dangling his feet into the water.

 

[jones573]

Not our dads, Winona thought internally, but kept it to herself.

“He is… A piece of work,” she agreed diplomatically. She looked at the closed door furtively. “He’s such an asshole! And seems a bit too partial himself, if you know what I mean. So.”

She snorted at Henri’s assessment of Gabe. “Think he’s on a special diet, yeah. But we already ate,” she told her, holding up the box of leftover seafood. “You want some ocean bug?"

“Was hoping you might have advice on dealing with him. And the others? Seems like there’s a lot of rules and shit here,” she admitted. “And he won’t explain at all! Hardly lets May tell us anything, either.”

Hopefully Alex was using his time well.






Alex was using his time very well, just probably not in a Winona-approved, information-gathering way.

It was fun to see May in his element, confidently leading the way. He clearly knew the area and enjoyed the chance to show it off.

When they reached the cave, Alex’s mouth dropped open a little.

“Wow,” he said, looking around in awe. His hand hovered as if to touch one wall of the glowing moss, but then he thought better of it.

“How did you find this place,” he asked. There must be dozens of caves and tunnels in the island, and even with a whole childhood, it might have been easy to never find this particular one.

He peered down at May’s feet in the water. “Is that... Safe? I mean, for me to do,” he clarified. “I don’t want to awaken something from the depths with my outsider status or anything,” he joked, but it was a genuine concern.

 

[Reynarda]

Vlad tensed slightly as Nikola returned. What would she ask for? As she began, he nodded in agreement. Yes, he knew. When May had come to live with them, Vlad had done a great deal of research into all of the accounts of created bodies--of homunculi. His findings had not been good, and Bram had noticed instantly that Vlad was upset. It had taken some doing, but Bram had dragged it out of him in the end.

Of course, Bram was optimistic. Maybe if they fed him healthy food and made sure he got exercise. Vlad let him think this, and even had a small flicker of hope in his own mind--Bram's optimism was a tad infectious.

Vlad's eyebrow shot up into the hair stuck to his forehead the second the Tiger mentioned the island was no good for a growing child. Oh no, she was not--she was. He sat in stunned silence.

Bram blinked, running that back through his brain to make sure he was understanding this. The price was taking on Agni? That was it?

"Of course!" he blurted, and Vlad actually pinched his knee--hard. "Owch! What? Vlad--"

Vlad lifted his nose primly. "May I remind you that the Little Dragon came into my home, insulted myself and my family, and then threatened several of our children?"

Bram rolled his eyes. "Screw your vampire pride--"

"Not to mention, what would the rest of them think?" Vlad raised his eyebrows. "May might not be delighted considering they are not exactly on friendly terms. Winona might even try to stick a knife in him."

Bram rolled his eyes again. "If you don't stop using your Council voice on me, I will hit you. Are you just upset about having to move?"

"Abraham!" Vlad sighed. "One of the reasons we are so protected is the magic we have built up around our home over the past years."

"So we'll move the dirt."

"The dirt!" Vlad exclaimed. "That would take some doing--"

"Isn't it worth it for May?" Bram asked, even though he figured he knew what Vlad was up to.

Vlad flicked his eyes back to the Tiger. "I am sure you are aware of the task you are asking us to undertake. Taking in the Little Dragon would upset our current family dynamic--which is already turbulent. Agni is spoiled, and that would not get him far in our home. Everyone pulls their own weight. His status as the little guardian of the twelfth month would hold no standing in our home. He would be treated equally as the rest of our charges. That would be difficult for him--and us. And the guardians--including the older dragon--would have no say in how we manage our family. Besides, we are often in danger as we have many enemies. You would have to be willing to risk that. Not to mention the task of moving our home. Due to the nature of my magic, we will have to move it with us when we move. That will take a considerable amount of time."

Bram shrugged. It would take some doing, but he wasn't about to point out that Vlad was far more capable of moving his actual magic with him than most other vampire families thanks to his nomadic mother. And Bram had not been kidding about moving the dirt. When they had made America their permanent home, they had shipped some of the dirt from Vlad's ancestral land and spread it around their land.

But a new house. They could build it themselves, Vlad could infuse his magic into the very foundation. The kids could all design their own room. He and Vlad wouldn't have a combined armory/bookshelf anymore. And he would the biggest damn kitchen he could design. With two stoves--no, THREE stoves. And, they could move more out in the country where Winona could roam. Vlad was a happier vampire the further away from a city they were, too. They could get dirt bikes and four wheelers. It would be amazing. His day-dreams were cut short as Vlad took a breath to speak again.

"And that," Vlad continued, "is only the beginning of it. Short amount of time or no, we have at least five or so years. While that is not much to us, it is a great deal of time to the young ones. It is not a one time deal--not a one time vote. If we are to essentially raise the little dragon, a one-time vote is not equal to your request. While money is not necessary"---here, Bram shot him a look as free money was free money--"we would expect your political support for the duration of the little dragon's and May's stay with us."




Scarlet listened thoughtfully, guessing who was who. If she remembered the chatter of her siblings, Henri and her mother weren’t best friends. She tried to imagine Agni imperiously demoting Henri, and considering Henri seemed to have twice the brains he did, it was an amusing image.

“I’m sure they will,” Scarlet agreed. “Our dads made a deal to keep me, then a deal to keep them”—she indicated the Von Batts twins with a thumb—“so making a deal to keep May should be easy peasy lemon squeesy.”

“I hope so,” Devon said, figuring the alternative was fleeing the island with May tucked under their arms. “But what should we do about Agni? He seems.... controlling.”

“Clingy,” Scarlet said at the same time.

“Any advice, Henri?” Devon asked. “You know him best.”

 

[Mikotsuhime]

The Tiger actually snorted when Vlad mentioned insulting him.

"Yes, well, he tends to do that," she said, then smirked. "A good knifing might do him some good, actually. Teach him some humility."

Upon realizing that that might not have been as funny as it was in her head, she cleared her throat.

"Of course, I am not afraid of any danger that might befall him. Our kind is quite resilient. If anything, he would be quite the asset to you against your enemies, should you win his trust. Which I have no doubt you can do, with how you've charmed the little serpent. Henrietta even entrusted him to you, so your exploits must have made an impression on her as well. From what I know, you were school teachers, were you not? Surely you have experience dealing with unruly children."

Vlad's list of grievances hardly seemed to phase her, and she seemed to have an answer for each one.

"As for pulling his own weight, you seem to have made a rather quick impression of him. I won't deny that he is haughty, but spoiled? Hm," she mused.

"I am, of course, willing to offer you my unending support. And that, in turn, would mean the support of some of the other guardians who sit on the fence, should I push them. No offense, but I hold far more sway than the two of you do," she added quickly. Overall, she still seemed very confident, and pleased with the deal so far. As Bram had said, she was only doing something she would have done anyways, but was getting something out of it as well.

"I admittedly am unfamiliar with how vampire magic works. We are able to access our power anywhere, as long as we are connected to our original bodies. As I said, you are welcome to my resources if you require them." Her face softened a little bit then, and she let out a little sigh. "I realize it is a big thing to ask. However, he has stayed with me long enough for me to realize that I am not equipped to teach him about the outside world, and I am the most worldly among us."



Henri snorted through her nose as she reached over to the mini fridge and pulled out a can of beer.

"Nah, I'm good. Growing up around here you get tired of ocean bug eventually," she said as she opened the can. "And yeah, he has his head stuck up his ass. Honestly, he's not the worst among them, but when he gets in a mood like this, he's just, so--! Ugh," she groaned, taking a swig of her drink.

"As for how to deal with him, that depends. Right now he feels all justified and shit because Olivia is sucking up to him. He's mad that I didn't kiss up to him so he put her back in charge." She gagged and rolled her eyes. "He's blaming me for the serpent almost reawakening. Says that I went behind his back, which I guess I did. But May was miserable here. He wanted to go out and see the world, and make new friends who didn't see him as, like, a cursed object, you know? Especially after the little dragon up and left. But he doesn't see it that way; he was expecting to come back and have everything be exactly the same as it was before he left."

She sighed and leaned back against the wall.

"He likes to have his way, I'll say that much. As for how to deal with him, well. You need to get him to respect you, I guess. I always just tell him when I think he's doing something dumb, and usually he pouts about it but we manage to work out a solution. Right now he's just throwing a temper tantrum because he didn't get his way. Honestly he's like a little kid in a lot of ways."



May laughed at Alex's nervousness.

"Well, if he's down there, he's probably already awake," he said with a little grin, and then the water began to ripple as a very large shadow began to move beneath the surface. "Oh, he is down there. I didn't know if he would be or not, honestly. He showed me where this place was, back when I was a little kid. Gave me a spot to go when I was upset and needed to cool down, you know? Agni doesn't even come here."

-And yet, you brought a friend today, little serpent.-

The words echoed through the air even though the being beneath the surface hadn't come up yet. It was a little similar to the way the dragons spoke with their minds, though it didn't seem to be restricted to one person. May grinned, gesturing for Alex to come closer as the shadow got larger, and then the head of a very large beast breached the surface.

It was too dark to get a good look at its body, but it was very large and very long, its head alone as large as May's entire torso as it moved up and butted into him affectionately. It almost resembled an anglerfish without the antennae, with rows of needle sharp teeth and large, sunken-in eyes. Its entire body was long and slimy, with spiny fins that traveled down its back, which was lined with eyes on either side, all of them turning to focus on Alex. It was a rather dull green in colour, with yellow spots around its eyes, and was overall pretty frightening to look at.

May, at least, hardly seemed bothered as he wrapped his arms around the thing's head tightly.

"Alex, this is Enrico," May said as the thing cuddled against him like a very large and scary puppy. "Or the Eel, I guess. He's another one of the guardians, but he's friendly."

The eel purred.

-Of course I'm friendly to you, little serpent,- it said. -Though it is rare that you bring anyone else with you. Is this a special someone? Is our little serpent finally dating?-

 

[jones573]

“The serpent reawakening is mostly our fault,” Winona admitted. Not that that helped much in the long term, but she didn’t think Henri ought to feel any guilt about it.

Getting Agni to respect any of them didn’t seem feasible- Winona would have no issue telling him he was being dumb, but she doubt she’d have the same results as Henri.

“What about the others,” she asked. “Like, should we offer gifts if we talk to them? Or is that a no-no?”

It seemed to be a sign of respect when you met with new people. But it might be taken as an attempt at bribery, which sometimes became an insult instead.

“Can I try some?,” she asked after a moment, pointing at Henri’s drink. She didn’t want to open a new one if she didn’t like it.







Alex frowned a bit at May’s reply. At first he thought May was keeping up the joke, but when he saw the movement in the water, he paled a bit. Quite a bit.

“Umm-”

He flinched a little at the sudden voice filling the cave, but he didn’t look back towards the exit at least.

holy shit

The creature- Enrico, Alex amended- was absolutely massive. If he hadn’t just seen it emerge out of the water, Alex never would have believed it could have fit in the cave’s pool. It must be much deeper than he had guessed it to be, he supposed, which was a nice safe thought to consider for a moment, instead of the dozen of eyes looking in his direction.

May needed a refresher on marine biology, because that was not what an eel looked like.

Alex needed a refresher on how to breathe, which he ran through in his head for a half second, along with a few reminders.

He was a Yates. He could talk to intimidating people.

He was a Moraes. He could talk to intimidating… Not-people.

“Alejandro Moraes Yates, sir. It’s an honor to meet you,” he said, bobbing his head in deference because he was pretty sure hand shaking wasn’t on the table. “As it is also, to be considered someone special in May’s life.”

 

[Reynarda]

“Yeah, I always thought letting kids fight it out was a good idea,” Bram agreed with the Tiger’s thoughts on knifing. At Vlad’s scowl, Bram said, “You were an only child. Sibling fighting is entirely normal.”

“But you never ‘knifed’ your sister,” Vlad reminded him.

“Yeah, but she could knife me with her fingernails.”

Vlad was a bit relieved to learn Agni would most likely survive any attempt on his life—be it by friend or foe.

“Yeah, I was the headmaster,” Bram explained. “But I also taught Combat I&II. Vlad was my secretary.”

Vlad bristled at this. Mostly because he had taught Vampire History and Politics all while doing the busy work for Bram’s classes on top of administrator assisting.

“But we also raised a werewolf,” Bram said.

Vlad sighed. “Amya was an angel compared to our current charges.”

Bram snorted. “That’s just ‘cause there’s more of them. But yes, he’s not really worried about the raising bit. He’s more concerned about how the other kids will take it. “ And no doubt about having to mediate fights between Winona and Agni which would entirely ruin the cold shoulder he was currently treating Winona with.

Vlad made one of those strange vampire hums that Bram could never replicate. This one was a combination of amusement and decided disagreement and was directed at the question of whether or not Agni was spoiled. Treating some one as a deity their entire life was in the “spoiled” category in Vlad’s book.

“None taken,” Vlad said easily. “This is your realm, not ours. I pray you will ‘push’, them, then,” he added with a slightly amused smirk.

Yes, yes, his pun was very clever. Bram patted Vlad’s head. “He’s too prideful to take your money, but I’m not.”

“Abraham,” Vlad began.

“You’re taking money from Von Batts for the twins.”

“For their college fund.”

“Well this can be for Agni’s room fund, then. We’re building a new house, remember.”

“I can use my magic where I please,” Vlad said, igniting a small black flame above is palm to emphasize his point. “But to have protective magic strong enough to keep out powerful invaders, I need reserves.”

“By ‘invaders’ he means his teleporting ex,” Bram said with a smirk.

“I meant invaders! Anyway, we were NEVER—“

“But look, he’s actually quite good at moving it. We’ve lived all over this planet. It’s not that big of a deal, it’s just time consuming.” Bram smiled easily. “Building a new house is a big deal, so we would appreciate your assistance with that.”

Instead of protesting, Vlad sighed through his nose. It would not be a battle he would win anyway. “It is a big task,” he agreed. “And so to ease the little dragon’s transition, we will need to understand you’re culture as much as possible. Anything you could tell us would be a great help.

And there was the information angle. Bram patted Vlad’s head again. He’d let him have it since he had let Bram win over the money issue.





In all honesty, Scarlet would have liked a cold beer, but she had gotten a bit judgey when she had seen Henri's "beer". Still, she wasn't about to stop the kids. If anything, watching their "dads" deal with a drunk half-vampire would be hilarious.

Devon glanced between Scarlet and Winona. If neither of them were telling, than he might as well. He had had alcohol, of course. Several times in his troubled youth days, and then that one time he had gotten into Bram's jenever. Since which Vlad had started counting the number of bottles and Devon did not dare.

"I'll have some," he said, not because he liked the stuff but because he wanted to be cool and edgy. "And how do we get Agni to respect us? I honestly can't say I've ever gotten anyone to respect me."

"Sounds to me like that wanker just needs a taste of the real world, then," Scarlet said cheerfully. "Let it beat the crap out of him. That'll humble him real fast."

"What about the others?" Devon echoed Winona. "Should we negotiate?"

 

[Mikotsuhime]

The tiger smiled, clearly happy that she had won.

"Yes, well. He can be a bit... difficult to get along with, at first," she admitted. She wasn't going to try and pretend that Agni was a saint or anything. "However I'm sure your children will get used to him. They got used to the little serpent, after all."

Not that May and Agni were very similar outside of the whole guardian aspect, but oh well.

She watched Vlad's little magic trick with interest, then turned to her checkbook. She reached into her pocket and pulled out a pen, then scribbled down an amount with a lot of zeroes before tearing the cheque off and handing it to Bram.

"I take it that will suffice?" She asked, a little smile on her face. She had no issue with throwing her money around to show off.

"As for our culture, what is it you want to know? I could go into a history of the guardians and our purpose, but that could take a while. The little dragon is not quite like the rest of us, anyways. He's far more... human, you could say? He feels things more than we do. He is not quite as jaded."




Henri handed her beer to Winona, then leaned over and grabbed another can from the fridge for Devon. She caught Scarlet's eye and sighed.

"Yeah, I know, we don't got none of the good stuff. Costs an arm and a leg to get that shit imported," she explained. She just sort of shrugged when Devon asked how to get Agni to respect them. "It depends. He respects age, mostly. I'm, like, seven years older than him. And dignity, not that I got much of that."

On the topic of the others, she hummed.

"Honestly, I doubt you'll meet many of them. The eel will probably come around, since he's May's friend. But you don't need to worry about getting on his good side or anything, he always votes in May's favour. Thinks the whole thing is barbaric, which it is. He's the only one who'd actually talk to you anyways, besides maybe the rabbit. The rest would send their representatives, though I doubt they're very interested, besides the tiger. I'm surprised she's even talking to the other two herself instead of leaving a message with Rowen. You guys must have impressed her. As for gifts, probably not. They tend to be persnickety about that sort of thing."



Laughter rang out through the cave, and Enrico's eyes shut for a moment.

-You are so formal! Did this old man scare you? Most humans find me quite frightening.-

May at least looked a little sheepish at that, and stopped petting Enrico's head for a few seconds.

"Yeah, I should have warned you he might be here," he admitted. "A lot of the guardians are kind of freaky looking. Besides that, Alex isn't even human."

Enrico's eyes opened again,training on Alex once more while he turned his head to face him.

-Oh? Are you a werewolf, then? You are definitely not one of us. You do not smell like island, so you must be from the mainland. I am not familiar with the creatures from the mainland. I have met sirens a few times, while swimming in the seas, but you do not look like one of those.-

"He's a vampire. Did Henri not tell you that I was living with vampires? I've been gone for almost two years now, you know."

-Is that so? It did not seem that long. Time flies when you get to be my age.-

He chuckled again, and May grinned.

"By the way, Enrico, Alex and I were talking about trying surfing before we came here. Could you teach us tomorrow? I don't think we'll be staying too long, since Nikola is talking to our guardians tonight."

Enrico seemed to light up at that, his tail swishing back and forth excitedly.

-You're finally going to try it? Of course I can teach you. If your boyfriend is alright with it, of course.-

 

[jones573]

Winona gave her brother a funny look as she took Henri’s beer. She supposed she didn’t ‘respect’ him exactly, but his behavior from when they’d first met had changed enough that she’d gone from ‘actively seeking opportunities to punch’ to ‘would punch someone on his behalf’, which was something.

“Doesn’t smell as bad as Bram’s beer, still tastes awful,” she reported frankly after a sip. She passed it back to Henri and said, “No thanks to any more,” in a more polite tone, in case that hadn’t been clear.

She frowned at Henri’s assessment. “So there’s not much we can do to sway the vote? Ugh.”

Not surprising, but annoying nonetheless. She looked at the door again.

“Do you know if May’s magic can be traced?”






A warning might have been nice, Alex silently agreed, not that he was going to admit that in front of Enrico.

Alex chuckled a bit. Not a werewolf, and definitely not a siren.

“Yes, I am nosferatu,” he agreed. “The changing vampire. I’ve still got awhile before I’m full grown, though, so I tend to be on my best behavior with those older, bigger, and more powerful than I am,” he joked with what he hoped was a charming, relaxed smile. Which eyes was he supposed to look at? That was so many eyes. “And friends of May. Especially when those overlap.”

Were those eyes on the tail, too…. Alex was reminded of the neighbor’s dog when Winona came over to play with her, except this tail could probably knock a full grown man to the ground if its owner got too enthusiastic. He was glad they were clear of the splash radius. Though it sounded like they may not stay that way-

“Uh- Sure,” Alex said, because it wasn’t like May needed his permission to do anything, especially on this island, where he felt at ease hugging massive, inter-dimensional beings very very close to their many teeth. “I certainly wouldn’t be much use as an instructor!”

 

[Reynarda]

Vlad merely arched an eyebrow at the Tiger's assertion that Agni only took some getting used to. And May was a cinnamon roll, not some arrogant child. Well, except that May gave Vlad indigestion with his apparent lack of self-preservation and love of explosions.

Bram reached over and took the check. He raised his eyebrows. He supposed guardians didn't really need money, but still.

"Just a moment," Vlad said, frowning slightly at her Tiger's smile. "We have not agreed to anything."

"Vlad," sighed Bram.

"This affects the entire family," Vlad said firmly. "This requires a family meeting."

"It what," Bram asked in a flat tone that suggested he had heard perfectly but was not believing it.

"Inviting a new person into our home--"

"We didn't do a family meeting for Scarlet," Bram sighed.

Vlad shook his head. "Scarlet is different. She is... well, our first-born."

Bram groaned. "Some people are not gonna like this."

"Which is exactly why we need to discuss it as a family," Vlad said.

Bram let out a long sigh and flicked his eyes to Nikola. "I'm sorry. This is... a vampire thing. The final decision will be ours, but we have to open the floor to argument and complaint." He glanced at Vlad. "Our final decision will be to take your generous offer, so really, we could just agree to it now."

"No," Vlad said evenly. "What is the point of having a family meeting if we have already made the deal?"

"But we're going to go with it!" Bram groaned.

"That is beside the point," Vlad said.

"No, that is exactly the point," Bram grumbled.

"I am presuming you would like our decision as soon as possible," Vlad said over him. "We will meet with our family. They should be back to the hotel by now," he added, glancing pointedly at Bram.

"Oh, shit," Bram muttered, pulling out his phone, opening the family group text, and typing, talks done. Vlad's calling a family meeting. back to the hotel.

"We should have the answer to you in a few hours," Vlad finished as Bram typed. "Do you have a preferred method of contact?" He thought for a moment, head cocked to the side and then asked, "You do not have texts I could peruse to learn more about your history and culture, do you?"

Bram sighed, knowing Vlad was absolutely using the old meaning of "peruse" which was "taking a freaking long time to read a butt-ton of books".




Scarlet just shrugged at Henri's apology. "No worries. Maybe we'll have to send you some, then." She glanced over at Winona and snorted. "Don't let Bram hear you calling his jenever 'beer'. You will get a gin history lesson."

"I'll just have my sister's," Devon sighed, taking her open can and passing back the unopened can. He didn't want to make Henri hate them by wasting her beer after she was being cool and giving it to them.

Devon scowled. Who was older than Agni? May, Scarlet, maybe Alex (Devon could never remember how old Alex was because either he was behind on the development train or a super smart grown-up fourteen year old, and Devon's money was on the latter). He took a sip of his beer and tried to hide a second scowl. Beer was still gross. But he was not about to admit that when his sister couldn't stand it, either. So he just held the can, hoping he looked cool.

"That would explain why Agni wasn't messing too much with Bram and Vlad," Scarlet said. "Other than calling them immoral for having kids without being married."

Devon frowned. "So, what? We just hope they go alright? Should we try to meet with the Rabbit and Eel?" He glanced over at his sister and frowned, wondering what she could mean with such a sudden random question.

Scarlet's phone vibrated, and she pulled it from her shorts' pocket. "Uh, kiddos." She held up her phone. "We're being called to a family meeting." She nodded to Henri, "Sorry, it's a vampire thing. We do it for when there's a serious decision to make. The heads call all the kids and fledglings and stuff and explain a situation then get input. Though, to be perfectly honest, I think my sire's partly doing it because he's delighted to actually have enough people to call a family meeting." Scarlet shot a quick message back. "I wonder what the Tiger had to say. You could come, if you wanted," she added to Henri. "I know you're under house arrest, but we could sneak you out. May'll be there an all. I bet Vlad'll let you in. He probs won't let Agni in, though, 'cause Agni insulted his home, so you won't have to worry about bumping into him."

 

[Mikotsuhime]

The tiger definitely looked like a cat with the grin on her face, but when they announced a family meeting she shrugged her shoulders, taking the cheque back from Bram.

"Alright, well. This will be waiting for you here when you make your decision," she said, then turned to the bar and grabbed a pen and paper from behind it. "As for contact, you can get in touch with Rowen. I have a phone for the shop, but I don't like to use it for more personal business. Rowen is my official representative anyways, and she's the one you'd normally speak to on my behalf - I just thought for tonight that it would be best to handle things personally, since you aren't used to our customs."

She wrote a number down on the sheet of paper and handed it to Vlad.

"Just text her when you come to a decision, I'll inform her of the situation so she'll be up to date, and she'll get back to me," she said. "As for books, we don't write our history down the way your kind does. There are so few of us, and some of us have been around since the beginning, so there's no need to keep records. If you'd like, I can write down some of the basics for you. I assume you have an email address I can send it to once I'm done. If you're interested in the island's culture itself, there are some books about the beliefs of the region, but they're more personal accounts and studies than widely published information. I think I have a few copies somewhere, and if I don't, Olivia certainly does. I wouldn't recommend talking to her yourselves, though; Rowen will procure them for you, if you want them."



Henri shrugged her shoulders as she took the can back from Devon and opened it.

"Yeah, all beer tastes terrible," she said with a little smirk. "It's good at taking the edge off a long day, though."

She leaned back against the wall and thought for a moment.

"I don't know. I think if the guardians could actually trace it, the little dragon would have known May was gone from the island. So I don't think so. I don't think this is something that he can run away from, though. And besides, from what I heard earlier, the vote is pretty much guaranteed in May's favour, as long as your guardians go along with the Tiger's deal."

She actually snorted beer out her nose when Scarlet mentioned Agni's disagreement with Bram and Vlad's co parenting lifestyle.

"Yeah, well, his education on human culture was left to Olivia, and she's... an old-fashioned prude." There was definitely no love lost in Henri's tone. "So he's a little... weird about some things. As for a family meeting, that should just be you guys, right? I'm not really your family... though I guess I am May's family. I am technically under house arrest, but this is an important issue... Sure, I'll come."



-Nosferatu, hm? Not something I have heard of before. But interesting! It is always interesting to meet other beings who can change their shape,= Enrico said. =And you do not need to worry about being on your best behaviour with me. I bring rain, and that is it. I know I look frightening, but I am quite harmless. Especially to friends of the little serpent.-

May looked up at Alex and smiled.

"Enrico wins the surf competitions on the island every year," he explained. "He's super good at it."

Enrico seemed to preen at that, his tail swishing back and forth. He was interrupted by an alert from May's phone, though. The blond frowned and scrunched up his nose as he showed it to Alex.

"Uh, family meeting, it seems. Guess we gotta go, Enrico," he said, and the eel looked a little forlorn, but slunk back into the water.

-As long as you do not wait another two years to return,- he said, and May laughed.

"Nah, you can come see us tomorrow, if you want. We're at the big hotel on main street," he said as he turned the flashlight on his phone again.

 

[jones573]

Winona nodded thoughtfully at Henri’s speculation. Agni seemed like he would the one in charge of tracking May down if he were to go missing, and he hadn’t even known May had left in the first place.



It was reassuring to hear that Henri felt the vote would go in May’s favor, but that feeling was based on the assumption that Bram and Vlad would be agreeable to someone else’s terms… Based on past history, that was hardly a guarantee. She hoped whatever the Tiger wanted was reasonable.



She’d find out soon enough, she figured- That was probably what this family meeting was about.



“Let’s roll then,” Winona declared, peeking out the corner to make sure they wouldn’t run into Henri’s grandmother. “We want to be back before them.”



She supposed with Henri in tow it would be pretty obvious that they hadn’t gone straight back to the hotel, but plausible deniability was everything.







How in the world did the guardian enter surf competitions? Alex was fairly certain his appearance would create some alarm, at least with the tourists!



“It was a pleasure meeting you,” he told Enrico politely, ducking his head in a nod before following May out. He checked his own phone and found the same message May had gotten.



“Well that’s vague,” he muttered in annoyance.



After they were a safe-ish distance out of the guardian’s cave, Alex asked May to confirm his suspicion.



“Does Enrico have a more… humanoid form as well, then?”



He had to have one, otherwise May wouldn’t have suggested Enrico visit them, right?



Oh god what if he didn’t

 

[Reynarda]

Vlad took the paper from the Tiger, and Bram sighed. He knew why Vlad was doing this, of course. His stupid vampire was not about to agree to anything right away. It was a matter of pride. Besides, telling all the kids before officially making the decision would be best. This would be a big change.

"Thank you, any books you could procure would be helpful, and I would appreciate any information you could write down," Vlad said, standing.

Bram pushed himself to his feet and stretched.

"Yes, we will contact your representative." Vlad dipped his head with more respect than Bram had seen him give anyone actually powerful in a long time. "Thank you for taking time to meet with us. We are honored."

"We'll let you know ASAP," Bram assured Nikola.

"And we will have to discuss this without the Little Dragon present," Vlad added, glancing sideways in the direction Agni had been lead off. "You understand, of course."



Scarlet nodded and peeked out of Henri's home next to Winona. "Coast is clear. I think they'll guess we were out considering Henri'll be with us, there, baby sis."

Devon frowned and set his only partially consumed can of beer down. He wasn't really sure what to do about it, but it definitely was not coming back to the hotel with him. He didn't want Vlad's dad-frown turned on him again.

"How far is the hotel from here?"

 

[Mikotsuhime]

'Of course," Nikola said with a little smile. "I want to talk to him as well so that he knows the situation beforehand anyways."

"I take it you can show yourselves out?"



Henri glanced to Devon's beer and chuckled.

"You can just leave it on the table if you're done with it. I'll finish it when I get home," she said.

Following Scarlet's nod, she quickly began to shuffle them out of the room.

"Not that there's anything wrong with May's grandma or anything, but if she catches us we won't be getting out of here," she warned them as they all left the back yard to the main street. "And your hotel is down that way, just about a block or two. Everything's close together around here."



May glanced back at Alex and nodded.

"Yeah, he does. He can't leave the caves looking like that. The room we were in before was kind of like... I guess you could call it in between the two dimensions? There's a lot of little pockets down here that occupy both spaces at once. But in order to actually go out into the world, they need a humanoid body," he explained.

"I really am sorry I didn't warn you," he admitted, a bit sheepish. "Seeing the guardians is, like, really normal for me? So I kinda forgot it's not really normal for you. But man, you're lucky we ran into Enrico and not Agni. The first time I saw Agni's real body I pissed myself."

 

[jones573]

Winona had no real response to Scarlet’s logic, so she settled for rolling her eyes lazily in the direction of her ‘big sister’.



(Scarlet might be older, Winona agreed, but that didn’t make Win a ‘baby’, she thought with a huff.)



They made it back to the hotel without event, running into trouble only right outside the door to their suite, when Winona kept inserting the key card the wrong way.



Inside, everything was as they had left it- Winona made sure after she put her leftovers in the minifridge, checking all the windows and doors and satisfying her need to do a perimeter check.



It was a beautiful island, she thought as she looked out a window. A great place to grow up, probably. A rotten place to die.



“So, do we think a family meeting is good news or bad news,” she asked the others.







“Yeah, that makes sense,” Alex said with a bit of relief. In the otherworldly lighting of the cave, Enrico’s form was terrifying and awe inspiring, but at least it sort of fit. If the guardian had been sitting on their hotel couch, Alex would probably lose all ability to carry on a conversation in favor of gaping.





“No, it’s fine,” he reassured May as they followed the boardwalk away from the beach. “It happens- Though if you do think to warn me next time, that’d be good,” he said with a chuckle, scratching the back of his head a bit bashfully. “Especially because- Well. It was… Very unexpected.”



Alex had been thinking they might have a nice, private romantic moment. Enrico's appearance had been a very abrupt way to learn otherwise.

 

[Reynarda]

"Yes, of course," Vlad said.

Bram lead the way out into the heat of the island. Once outside, he glanced at his companion. "What do you think they will think about this?"

"Honestly? I have no idea."



Scarlet shrugged in response to Winona's question. "My guess is both. Probably there's a way to get the vote in May's favor, but the quid pro quo isn't awesome." She tilted her head. "Well, we can ask them."

The door clicked as the card key was inserted and Bram and Vlad stepped inside. Vlad promptly flopped dramatically onto the couch by the air conditioning unit, but Bram grinned at the gathered youths.

"Hey, kiddos, how's it going." He flicked his eyes over the group and frowned. Something was not right.

"What brings you here, Henri?" Vlad called politely from the couch.

Hold on, that was it, there was an extra kid, that was it. Well, she wasn't a kid, but she was still young--making her a "kid" in Bram's book.

"I invited her to the family meeting," Scarlet supplied. "Figured she could give us some insight."

Vlad hummed. "Yes, that will certainly be helpful."

"So?" Devon practically exploded. "What is the meeting for?"

The second Devon spoke, Vlad raised himself on his elbows and gave the teen a suspicious look.

Devon closed his mouth, hoping the guilt was not spreading across his face.

Sighing, Vlad flopped back down. "We will explain all once Alex and May arrive."

"It's good," Bram promised at Devon's worried expression.

"This coming from the optimist," Vlad clarified. "We can throw the vote in May's favorite, but it will require... sacrifices on our part."

"Stop making it sound so ominous," Bram scolded. "He means our lives are going to change. But it's good! It's a good change."

This exchange was not helping in the slightest, and Devon almost sent a text to Alex and May to tell them to hurry up. He was getting stomach ulcers from all this beating around the bush.

Or maybe it was the beer.

 

[Mikotsuhime]

Henri sat on one of the beds in the hotel room, raising a hand in a little wave when Vlad called out to her.

"I don't know how much help I can be, though," she warned, because she didn't want to get their hopes up. "I don't really have any power or anything right now. Little dragon is mad at me."

She listened to their not-explanation and raised her eyebrows curiously, before something that Rowen had said earlier struck her and her eyes widened.

"Oh she didn't, that crazy bitch," she breathed. "I thought Rowen was joking about that."

It was then that May opened the door and walked in, throwing off his shoes.

"Hey, guys, what's the family meeting ab--" He broke off upon seeing Henri, eyes widening as he pointed at her. "YOU are supposed to be under house arrest."

"I am still technically under house arrest, I'm just breaking it," Henri said nonchalantly as May bounced towards her and gave her a massive hug. She returned it awkwardly, and May grinned up at her before she pinched his cheek. He squeaked and let go, then pouted at her.

"Henrietta that was mean."

"Don't call me that or I'll pinch you again. Where were you two off to, all alone?" She asked with a leer, and May huffed.

"We went to see Enrico. Or, well, we didn't actually go to see him, but he was there, so we had a very nice visit," he said, and she rolled her eyes.

"Does he know he cockblocked you?" She asked, and May raised a hand to his chest in offense.

"He did not! We were not doing that! You know I don't-- God you're joking aren't you. I hate you sometimes," he grumbled angrily before flopping down next to her on the bed.

"So what's the family meeting about?"

 

[Reynarda]

Vlad sat up as May and Alex entered.

“I like her,” Bram stage whispered to Vlad and nodded to Alex’s tomatoesque complexion.

“No one is surprised,” Scarlet said.

Vlad flicked his attention to Henri. “Yes, she did.”

“Did what?” Devon asked.

Vlad nodded to the gathered group. “As you know Bram and I met with the Tiger. She is willing to cast her vote in May’s favor, but not without quid pro quo.”

Bram groaned. “Can we skip the rambling introduction?” He turned back to the group. “We’re adopting Agni.”

“What?!” Devon demanded.

“We are not adopting him,” Vlad sighed. Why did he even try? “He is of age.”

“But!” Bram added. “We will have to build a new house. And! Everyone gets to design their own room!”

“There will be a period of adjustment,” Vlad interjected, trying to bring the conversation back on task. “But Bram and I believe it is doable. However, we did not want to agree to it without consulting the entire family.” He glanced at the various faces. “Any questions or concerns?”

Scarlet raised her hand. “We finally building in that place in the mountains?”

Bram sighed. The mountainous area in question was forty-five minutes from any decent-sized town. Though, to be fair, it was probably thirty minutes if Bram was driving. “Yeah, that’s our compromise,” he said, nodding to Vlad.

“Finally building a home in the new world, wow,” Scarlet said.

Vlad shrugged as if it was not a big deal that they were finally settling down. “Anyone else?”

 

[Mikotsuhime]

May’s eyes widened when he heard the news.

“Wait, /what/?!” He asked, his voice a little higher pitched than usual. “He’s leaving the island? Like, without Nikola, he’s going on his own? With us?”

Henri fidgeted a little bit.

“Rowen said that the tiger wanted the little dragon to ‘experience life away from the island on his own’ or something like that. I thought he was joking, but I guess he was serious.”

May still looked absolutely flabberghasted, and then his face turned rather thunderous.

“This is kind of bullshit, honestly. He runs off for five years and doesn’t even send me a post card and now he wants to move in with my new family?!”

Henri put a reassuring hand on his shoulder.

“To be fair, it wasn’t his idea. I don’t even know if he knows or not yet.”