Thalian had to stop very suddenly to keep from running into the horses. They were very startled and agitated by this, and stamped around unappreciatively. Thalian grabbed their reins, and took firm control over their whining before they got too out of hand. He was the boss here, not them.

"Hollow!" he cried out, worried that she might have run away again.

"HOLLOW! It's alright to come out now! You're safe! I wasn't going to let anything happen to you! Please come back!"

Even Thalian thought his last couple statements might have been too... touchy.

"Gods damn it all woman! Get out here right this instant before something else tries to eat you!" he yelled.

"There." he thought. "That should make up for that unnecessary sentimental moment."

He blushed inspite of himself, which only made him more angry. In utter irritation, he kicked the tree where Hollow was perched. The tree responded by lifting one of its roots and tripping him instantly. He laid on the ground, cursing and muttering to himself.

Even the horses seemed to be laughing at him at this point.

Hollow had to flitter up on her tree to keep from falling off. When she saw how the tree reacted she had to laugh. A laughing bird would of course be a little off and she knew that she would be spotted. She still tried to keep her disguise tho. It was quite differcult when you were snickering to yourself. Hollow couldnt help it tho.

She ruffled her feathers and hid her head inside her chest like a normal bird, but she was trying to keep herself from laughing. He was so pathetic. What did he see in her anyway? What did he want from her?

It wasn't long before Kitara got the chance.

They passed many tall portraits in the dark hall depicting various people and scenes in The Realm. One portrait changed as they approached it, changing into a picture of Kitara... which winked at her, before changing back again as they passed by.

Kara ushered her into a very large guest room. It was of the same dark stone walls and floor, with an intricately painted ceiling portraying beautiful spirits and landscapes. It too, was lit by a large fireplace on the far wall, accompanied by a very deep soft four poster bed with crimson velvet curtains and practically overflowing with rich blankets.

A large trunk sat at the base of the bed, and it was this to which Kara darted. She beckoned Kitara over, and unclasped the trunk. Inside were so many different gowns, tunics, robes, capes, boots, and shoes that it HAD to have been enchanted to hold it all!

"Help yourself!" Kara beamed at Kitara.

Thalian stood up, standing still and staring straight ahead with clenched fists at his side. Without looking in Hollow's snickering direction, he spoke.

"If I were you, I would float your fat pidgeon self down here where I can keep an eye on you!" he scowled.

"We're going straight to my father's house from here! No more trouble from ANYBODY! Is that well understood!" He really was angry. One couldn't really fake a tone like that.

He waited, unmoving, in the center of the path for Hollow to gather up herself and her cargo to follow him the rest of the way to his father's house. He wasn't sure he could handle any more trouble tonight, and that included sarcastic comments from Hollow.

He wasn't even sure why she was able to aggrivate him so much. Nobody else did. He continued to pout about it somewhat while he waited.

"Oh but I INSIST!" Kara said excitedly.

Anthony leaned against the doorframe of the room grinning at all of Kitara's reactions. He hadn't been this entertained for days; not since he turned his sister, Rowen's, hair into live snakes. The grin from on his face quickly vanished as he remembered the consequences of that, and he made sure his donky tail was out of sight, at least from Kitara.

Kara ruffled through all the clothes, holding various ones up to Kitara. She would look lovely in just about any of them!

"YOU choose." Kara said finally. "You would look beautiful in anything! I can't decide which one is best!"

The creature was taken aback by Aideen's hostile response to him. He had been so close!

"Oh well," he thought. It looked like getting Aideen out of here without using force was no longer an option.

However, Aideen was coming upon him quicker than he had anticipated. Not only did it look like he would have to use force, but he probably wouldn't escape without further injuries either.

Before he could even process these thoughts, Aideen was right on top of him.

Hollow flitted down onto Thalians head. "I need my clothes." She said simply trying not to laugh. She had definetly won this battle. "I'm not going anywhere without my favorite jacket." She had bent herself down and was now looking at Thalian crosseyed.

Hollow had received the jacket from the magician that brought her into the realm. It was her favorite and it was a tiny bit enchanted. Well atleast she thought it was, for some reason it seemed to keep her safe. She wasnt going to do anything till she retrieved it. Hollow was still laughing. She decided not to bring up the 'sentimental' part that he had intended no one to hear, but he was definetly going to get alot of sarcasm from her. Its just who she was.

Kara's eyes practically sparkled with Kitara's choice. Her golden fur would look wonderful next to the pale green and white! She noted Kitara's confused look as she studied her tail and the dress. Kara quickly interjected her thoughts.

"Oh don't worry! It's tailored to accommodate for unnatural... er... appendages. Though there is no hole for a tail, your tail will slip right through the back as if it were air, and a hole will form around it! A good friend of mine named Valerie taught me the little spell needed to do this shortly after they gifted me my wings!" Kara twitched her strange feather tipped wings excitedly.

Indeed, Valerie had taught the spell to Kara not a moment too soon as well. Kara had cut up several perfectly good gowns and shirts to try and make do with her new wings, which both of them, unhappily, had to repair. It made for an amusing memory though.

Thalian's white ash face turned a deep blushing color when Hollow mentioned she would need her clothes to retransfigure back into her normal self. He hadn't even thought that she might be...

"Damn you woman!" He grapped the little bird off his head and held her square in front of his face. Some of his anger and embarrassment must have been leaking into his shaking hands, because he squeezed Hollow a little harder than was necessary, which only seemed to amuse her more. Clearly this girl thrived on the amusement from ridiculing others...

Still squeezing her in his hand, he set her on top of one of the horse's saddles and bent over to pick up her discarded cloak. He threw it on top of Hollow, the mound of rumpled clothing over the lump of bird making the horse look more like a camel. He stalked off behind the nearest tree, still fighting the uncontrollable blushing and anger that accompanied it, to wait for Hollow to change and dress herself.

The fire poker struck true, it's blazing hot surface melting the flesh of his neck as Aideen impaled him. He cried out, panicked, because he was also melting under the extreme heat of this woman's fiery transformation and rage. His head came loose from his shoulders, and fell away around the makeshift weapon in his throat, landing in smouldering gooey chunks on the floor. His entire body quickly followed suit, and soon he was nothing but a pile of sticky charcoal.

All the pieces crawled and clumped together, rapidly oozing along the floorboards away from Aideen and out of the window sill on the far side of the bedroom.

He would need more preparation before making another attempt at Aideen, now that he knew what she was capable of. His laugh echoed throughout the room once more before he disappeared into the night.

"You'll sssseeeee Aideen... you'll ssseee. Sssoon, if we don't come looking for you, you will come looking for ussss... We have allll the anssswersss..."

He was gone.

It was very curious why no one in the mansion had heard the commotion and come to help? It must have been a spell... Valerie was certainly in deep trouble, and Aideen did not even know what state Rolgen was in.

Hollow was still laughing as she shifted back into her human body. She was well hidden in between the horses so even if he dared to peek.... She wiggled into her pants and then into her under shirt. Next she put on her jacket, but she kept it open and loose. She couldnt find her shoes so she forgot about them. They didnt really matter anyway. She could walk barefoot. The snow was comfortable enough.

Hollow had calmed down enough to become her normal self. "Dont you dare read my mind again boy! I swear its just not right to get into someones head." Hollow guessed that she could trust the Valrae. If he wanted to kill her he would have done it already. There was obviously some other reason for taking her in.

From the way that Thalian blushed Hollow guessed he wasnt around girls his age too much. She was going to have fun with this boy for however long she was going to be around. She actually hoped that it wasnt to much longer. She had matters to tend to back in her home town.

Anthony started like he was going to say something smart before Kara shot a glance at him that glued his lips together. While he fought to pull them apart, Kara turned to Kitara with a smiling face.

"You may change in here! This is where you'll be staying until I get a room fixed up for you. Until then, I hope this will be comfortable enough."

One would have trouble thinking of a room that could be more comfortable than this.

"I'll come back in a few minutes to check on you!" Kara said tartly as she walked back towards the doorway, putting Anthony in a headlock on her way out, dragging him along with her while yelling at him.

Kitara could only hear small snatches of the Kara's lecture to Anthony. Something about an ass and another thing that possibly sounded too obscene to repeat. No matter. She was alone for the first time since she had bumped into Nelo. She had a comfortable room, and a pretty dress to change into. Hopefully she would not feel so lonely or lost now.

Thalian felt a shiver run down his spine. There was something wrong... something very very wrong... and it was coming from the direction of the city.

"Mother... Father..." he whispered, almost choking on the names.

He had to get back to the city, and quickly. He dashed out from around the tree whether Hollow was dressed or not, once again scaring the skiddish horses who seemed more than fed up with him.

"Hollow! My home! We've been attacked! I'm not sure who, or why, but I'm sensing that somebody has assaulted my mother and father! I HAVE to get to them NOW! I am sorry I must leave you here after all the trouble we've waded through just to get to this point, but we've strayed miles from our original course and I can't afford to fight you all that way to my home! I am truly sorry. I will not keep you bound to me. Go where you wish once I have gone, and I wish you the best of luck in your travels."

Thalian wasn't kidding. He really was leaving her there. His face was pained with panick and apologies, and it showed. He really DIDN'T want to leave Hollow there, but he had no choice. His mother and father needed him, and he couldn't waste his time arguing with the girl any longer.

His wings snapped out and his eyes silvered over once more as he bounded into the air over the trees, drawing his sword as he did so. The blade dripped light across the canopy of the forest as he raced to his city. He was so torn. He kept thinking of his mother and father, but tried to shake the guilt of leaving Hollow behind from his mind.

"Oh she's just a silly, stubborn, nasty girl!" He practically yelled at himself as the wind bore into his face. He was getting angry again. Why should he care? She treated him with NO respect whatsoever. No kindness or gratefulness to speak of. Not a gentle bone in her body, or a soft feature in her face!

....Her pretty face.

Thalian clubbed his forehead with his fists angrily, forgetting about the sword hilt in his hand which promptly gouged into his face just over his eyebrow, which started to bleed...

This infuriated him to no end. Between the events that had taken place, Hollow's nagging thoughts, and his self-inflicted injury he could pummel the next being that crossed his path. He cursed the newcomer his father had taken in so casually. It was probably that damn fire elemental's fault!

"I will strike her head from her shoulders if I found out she was responsible!" He hissed to himself as he dove onto his father's balcony on the upper floor of the mansion, only a few rooms away from where Aideen stood in the doorway of his mother's personal chamber.

Hollow was a little startled when Thalian came rushing out from the trees. "Wha..." Before she could say anything he was gone. The horses were still as they seemed to watch him fly off. They then looked at her and she looked at them. "Well that wasnt much fun. Well i guess i can go somewhere else now."

Hollow started to walk off back into the woods, but the horses refused to move. "Why now!" She tugged on the reins, but they refused to move. "Hey horse..." The horses started to walk in the direction of where Thalian flew off to. "Wait wait..." Hollow couldnt get any of them to stop.

Hollow gave up and stood infront of them. "If your going that way then your going to have to give me a ride!" Hollow felt stupid for talking to horses, but they all seemed to be looking at eachother then at Hollow. Eventually one of them turned to the side like he was offering his back. Now Hollow wondered why she even wanted to go. She guessed there was something about Thalian that made her want to go... She quickly shook her head. He was just good at putting up a fight and amusing.

He was trying to befriend her and most of the time people just wanted her for what she had to sell. He was right she had no real friends. One of the horses pushed Hollow. "Fine fine Ill go." She attempted to mount one of the mares, but had trouble seeing as there was no saddle on the horse. Another one of them pushed her up.

"Okay." She said hesitantly. "Hold on tight." Said one of the horses. Hollow looked down at the horse she was riding "Wha...?", but the horse didnt let her finish before it dodged off down the path. Hollow screamed as the horse sped down the trail. How did it even know where it was going?

Hollow had to let go of the reigns of the other horses, but they kept to her side. The one she was riding was obviously faster than all the others. The forest was a blur as they raced on.

"Enjoying yourself?" said a strange, but soft voice from the doorway.

A tall woman with long rich dark brunette hair that hung in waves down to her knees stepped into the light of the room. She wore a very simple sapphire colored gown that touched the floor; held tight about her middle with a plain brown leather belt. Over the top of the gown, she wore an intricate dusty colored corsette that laced up the front quite nicely with a brown leather cord. Her face was nearly identical to Anthony's, and they both looked a lot like Kara. She had Kara's kind eyes, and Anthony's mischievous smile. Kitara could note a small wand tucked under the belt by her hip.

She grinned at Kitara again.

"Well?" She asked. "Are you excited about something? Hahahaha"

Her humor was direct, but not crass like Anthony's.

"My name is Rowen. I am one of Kara's daughters. You must be the Kitara everyone keeps talking about." she chuckled.

"You certainly look as cute as Leaowynne described you, not to mention I couldn't get Nelo to shut up about it."

Rowen was definitely a very level-headed down-to-earth individual. She would not be difficult to get along with, that much was for certain.

"You do." Rowen said frankly.

"Have you seen my brother around anywhere? I have a little something for him."

Her tone made it sound like this "little something" would be more beneficial to herself than to Anthony.