((SO SORRY FOR NOT POSTING!!! I HAVE BEEN SO FLUSTERED LATELY))

Nikk was leaning against the wall when Elaina came to him practically begging him to teach her. "You want to learn how to become a mage?" He asked. "I Dont even know where to start with that besides the fact that it is something that you persue since you were a little kid. Its almost like your practically born with this skill." He looked the angel over and thought about it. "I might know a few spells that I can cast to make you slightly stronger, but I dont know about teaching it."

Bia turned around in her sleep. She was uncomfortable for some reason. It was like she was having a nightmare of sorts.

Elaina smiled, "All I need is to become stronger. The magic I do possess is weak, I just want to strengthen it. After all I'm only as strong as my weakest subject." She made an ice crystal floating in the air then made it disappear, "I would be a fool to think that I'm the most powerful, I'm not. What I want is to be strong enough to protect myself and..." She didn't finish the sentence. Elaina didn't want to reveil too much about what was going on. She just wanted to become stronger, for herself, and for them.

Nikk shook his head thinking about it. He didnt want to do it simply because he didnt want to. Elaina had only caused him problems and this would only create more. "You should know the stereo type of Mages." Said Nikk who was not smiling. "We dont do anything unless we get something in return." He looked at the angel. She already knew that he didnt want "her".

It was true that mages were baisically shut ins that didnt like other people, especially other mages. They were always busy with their potions and magic so they didnt cause fights too often, but everyonce in a while there was that one that ruined it for everyone.

Elaina tensed, she found that she really had little to bargain with. He’d made clear that she was of little interest to him, but that Bia was of great interest. Her unexplained youth coupled with a great magic within her beyond her years must make it difficult for him. She looked into his eyes and ventured a bargain, anything that would get her the training to improve her magic and defend against William. “I may be a bit intense sometimes, and I like arguing and fighting. What you don’t know is my past. Why I am the way that I am? I’ll let you ask any question, for every skill I improve upon. You can even put a truth spell on me so you’ll know I’m telling the truth.” She threw down her sword behind her and put her daggers on either side of her to show that she was disarmed. Though she kept the barrier firmly in place to protect the others she lowered herself into a defenseless stance. Not that I’m a match for him anyway, he can just as easily cut off my magic from me if he’s afraid I might become “too powerful”. This was all she could offer, total honesty. For the first time since she was first betrayed did she feel an inclination to share her story with another living being.

Nikk smirked. He was acting different. He seemed to have an evil glint in his eye. It quickly dissapeared tho with his next words. "How bout instead of answers about you. You tell me some secrets about the angel society." These secrets were way more valuable to him than secrets about her past although Nikk felt like he might be asking some questions about her past also. "Tell me whatever I want to know and I will teach you to the best of my ability." Nikk looked at her smiling. The angels were secretive creatures. He wanted to know more about them.

Elaina tensed, what he was asking was a dangerous proposition. He was already a powerful mage, and his interest in her people’s society came as a shock. It was true that they were a secretive race, but not even she was privy to her people’s greatest secrets. Her thoughts turned to William, if it hadn’t been for him she’d most likely be on her way to becoming an Elder. What about William’s betrayal though? It was possible that he’d already betrayed his people’s secrets, why couldn’t she? They were already hunting for her, it wasn’t like they were in any hurry to listen and believe her anyway. What was the harm in revealing a few secrets so that she could become more powerful?...There was too much risk…but he was a mage. She could agree to this pact, but only if he were willing to bind the secrets she shared with him so that he could never reveal the secrets with anyone else, whether he did it willingly or not. “If I agree, are you willing to magically bind the secrets to yourself so that you can never reveal what I teach you about the angels to another? For I am risking a great betrayal on those who are my kin, and my only justification is necessary to make myself stronger. I will learn from you as you will learn from me, but much of this knowledge is dangerous for me to tell you. These I will teach in exchange as you teach me to guard against getting my magic cut off from you or others. As I said before, I don’t want to reveal them, but as it is the only way I will convey them to you.” She looked at him earnestly, she meant all of what she said. This was more important then some, no all of the angel’s secrets. What they were up against was to protect this world, and this existence. It seems like her past is catching up with her and she needs the training to protect not only herself, but the others as well. The only question was, how would Nikk use this information?

Nikk smiled at her. "I will agree to magically binding myself to not tell anyone." He said it so easily. "We are going to leave this fairy hill in a few hours. You should get some rest before we head out." Nikk turned to leave. He actually had no problem with not telling anyone. He wasnt going to give out information that was very valuable out anyway. There was no point in it. He couldnt become the greatest and most powerful mage if he evened out the playing feild. Nikk decided he would come up with a query of questions to ask her when they got started and he also started to decide on how he would carry out the lessons.

Teva paced. She couldn't sleep, couldn't so much as doze while she had no idea what was going on. Or what that thrice damned angel was doing, trapping people in a room like prisoners. Hooves periodically scraped at the door, which refused to budge. The centaur had long since given up on using the knob, or picking the lock. At least the pacing wouldn't wake anyone up, thanks to the magical shoes.

"What are you doing out there, Elaina?" she muttered softly.

Akino woke up after only a short while, somewhat distressed for some reason. she sat up and saw that Teva was still pacing and looking even more agitated than before. perhaps she couldn't sleep because the atmosphere in the room was getting so filled with that pacing energy. "does Elaina still have use locked in here?" she asked in a tiny voice.

Teva's ear twitched at the timid sound of Akino's voice. At least it was a friendly voice. She stopped pacing, and turned to the fairy. "Yes. Locked and magicked too, I think. We're trapped. Why would she do this? She didn't so much as say why! When she comes back, I don't know what I'll do…"

akino frowned. "You know, I'm sure she had a good reason. I mean, she's not nice but she's not evil either...." she leaned forward and stretched her wings, the propped her elbows um on her knees. "But I do wonder why she did it...."

Teva sighed, and twitched her tail. Talking to Akino was soothing in the same way that being alone with her own thoughts was agitating. She didn't feel quite as trapped, talking to a friend. "No, she's not evil. I don't think. But she is thoughtless. And when she returns we will ask her why she saw fit to… to throw us in a stall and refuse us access to pasture."

The horse metaphors were coming far too easily. It didn't help that one of those she'd left behind in her old world, the one she'd hoped to marry one day, was a member of the King's Cavalry. They did like to talk shop, those Cavalrymen…

Akino raised an eyebrow at Teva's choice of metaphor. "I understand though being so small, I can't say I feel so....locked up." Truly she understood teva's annoyance, but akino herself didn't seem to mind all that much. it wasn't like she wanted out right now and a locked door made her feel slightly safer even if it locked them in as well. it was rather strange though. "I wonder if she's coming back soon though? the night's half way over already..."

Elaina nodded and gathered up her weapons, “I’ll see you in the morning then.” She didn’t wait for his reply, this negotiation had cost her much. It’s for the greater good. She had to remind herself as she opened the door to her room, the first thing she saw being a disgruntled centaur and a curious pixy. “Shouldn’t you guys be asleep by now?” She asked them begrudgingly.

"It would be easier for you to escape if something happened," Teva replied, glancing over her shoulder. "Or hide, if you couldn't slip through any cracks. I can't do either right now." She needed at least one or two exits to feel safe. Multiple escape routes was the ideal, for ranger and centaur alike. "She only said she'd be gone an hour, didn't she?"

Then the door swung open, and in sauntered the angel. The second thing Elaina saw was the disgruntled centaur up close and personal, looking down on her. "Sleep? Who can sleep? Are we your prisoners now? Tell us what is going on!

Akino grinned to Elaina. "Why yes indeed!" she dived under he covers and hugged the pillow. "but you seem to have rather annoyed Teva and now I am going back to sleep. have fun chatting, girls." she curled up and peeped out with one eye to see what Teva was going to say to Elaina.

Sighing heavily Elaina sank onto the closest bed, “You’re not prisoners, I’m only trying to protect you from someone. Plus I think I’m selling out my own kind in order to do that.” She hoped that would appease Teva, she wasn’t in the mood to deal with her irrational fears. “Get some sleep, we’re heading out tomorrow. I’d like to do some training while we’re underway and I want both of you guys focused.” Yea like she had any right giving them orders, then again training them could be the only way they’d stand a chance against William.

"That's one reason for imprisoning people. Protection. From what, exactly?" retorted Teva, following Elaina to the bed. "And now you tell us you're a traitor to your people? How am I supposed to take that? How am I supposed to sleep?"

“Teva, unlike you I’ve been living here all of my life. I was a part of the angel society, that is until one of our own betrayed them and used me as the fall guy. I’ve been hunted by my own kind for decades as well as the traitor who put me in this situation. Now I have to become stronger and the only way Nikk is going to teach me is if I give him angel secrets. I don’t care if you believe me or not, but I’m doing what I can to become stronger. Yea, it might make me a traitor but at least now my people will have a viable reason to!” She curled up her wings around her and lay down on the bed, to signal the conversation was over and that they should get some sleep.

Teva just stared at Elaina as the angel went to bed. How was she supposed to take that explanation, exactly? Were all angels traitors, then, or at least prone to treachery? Not that she'd been tired before, but how was she supposed to sleep now?

Not that the angel was exactly sleeping. Teva could hear it in her breathing, the rustling of wing feathers, even the angel's heart rate, if the centaur concentrated. She waited for perhaps fifteen minutes, listening for these to change, and when they did not, she finally spoke up. "Fine then. But I am not tired. Let me go back to the range. I should practice my aim in the darkness, anyway. I may work up the need to sleep a bit before sunrise that way."

Laying in the bed Elaina decided whether to pretend to keep sleeping or to let Teva go to the range. She wrestled with her decision for a bit then sat up and glared at Teva, “Fine, I’ll go with you and help, but don’t say I never did anything for you!” She stormed ahead of Teva and waited until Teva was out of the room to put the barrier back around Bia and Akino. “But I’m only watching to see that you do it right, you are a horrible fighter and I don’t have the patience to teach you tonight.” Elaina kept walking.

Teva glared back at Elaina, and then followed her, protesting. "I don't need your help, not for archery. And melee I can learn from Eli. I only need to be alone with my bow. Is that too much to ask?" The last thing she needed was the angel staring at her. She needed to find her center again, and she could only do that away from prying eyes.

“Do you want to live long enough to see tomorrow?” Elaina was sick of the complaints, she was responsible if something happened to Teva. If anything happened to her and Elaina had the opportunity to protect her and didn’t she’d never forgive herself. She hadn’t known what William was going to do before, but now she knew. She wouldn’t let him harm this group if she could help it. “Are you afraid that if I watch your archery will become more of an abomination then it already is? I doubt it, but I can see where you would be embarrassed by it.” She had just reached the range when she noticed how clear the night sky was.

"My swordplay is an abomination," Teva retorted. "It's never been brilliant. But my archery, you haven't even seen, so who are you to judge?" There was no danger in the range, she was certain of it. And she truly did need to be alone. Elaina would hinder any attempt at meditation, and Teva doubted she could understand that.

Slinking off to a dark corner Elaina stood and watched Teva, her comments did little to convince her. Elaina would watch until the centaur was ready to sleep, little else mattered to Elaina then her travelling companion’s safety. Nikk could look out for himself, as could Eli. But it was the younger ones and the new worlders that concerned her. She stayed vigilant throughout the night. Elaina had become accustomed to staying awake for weeks on end, angels didn’t need much sleep. Though Elaina was greatly fatigued form Williams appearance she knew that he’d strike the second she let her guard down.