A Dream, A Fairytale (Zel)

[Midna]

Caila~
Well, this was a fine start to what was supposed to be a fun, helpful trip to the city. Not. She'd packed the night before, enough supplies for a couple of days. Then of course, it had to snow that night. Also, the horse was lame, so Caila was riding the neighbor's mule to the city. It would make a great first impression for the world-class doctors overseeing her internship. A once in a lifetime chance, and this had to happen.

Yes, she was mad. But there was nothing she could do, so she was trying to keep her spirits up, even as the poor old mule trudged through the foot deep snow. It was supposed to be less than one day trip, even with the delay, and she wasn't even there yet! Dear Nayru, she hoped she wasn't lost. In this snow, it could take ages before she got herself back on the path. Maybe she wasn't even on it anymore. She'd be so late if she wasn't.

Caila suddenly noticed that it was starting to snow, and her usually cheerful face turned into a scowl. Great, more snow. Exactly what she didn't need. Then a cold gust of wind suddenly blew behind the mule, nearly knocking her off of him. It seemed like the snow suddenly started to come down faster, and her eyes widened in horror. Not a snowstorm?!

Another gust of wind blew, knocking a branch nearly on top of her. It avoided her, but hit the mule. He bucked, and she barely managed to hang on. Then he was running faster than she'd though he could even go, and she had no clue how to steer him. Meanwhile, the snow and wind just seemed to get heavier and more violent, and it was getting harder and harder for her to see. But somehow, through the white, she saw something.

It was huge whatever it was, a building? Maybe the city! The mule was heading straight for it, which was good since she couldn't steer him at all. She hoped it was the city, then she could rent a room and a place in the stable for the mule and have time to rest up before her internship started the day after next. She'd promised to write to her brother once she was in the city, so he knew she was safe. This would be quite the story to tell.

But as they got closer, she saw that it wasn't a city. It was a castle, and an old one at that. Some parts of it looked like they were falling down, and it looked abandoned. The mule stopped at the steps, breathing hard, and she slipped off its back to look around. Maybe there was an empty room she could stay in until the storm ended?

Wait a second. That was a light. Up in the window, she'd seen something. A glow, maybe of candlelight? Maybe someone was here. She took a step forward, then whirled as hoofbeats sounded behind her. No, the mule was gallopping away! "Hey! Come back here!" She yelled, but it was gone, the hoofprints in the snow quickly vanishing in the storm. And she was suddenly scared.

She had no choice. She had to wait it out here. Maybe they were friendly? Hesitantly but spurred by the cold, she walked up to the large door and knocked.

Caiden~
Even with the snowstorm, Caiden was still running errands. There were things Caila had asked him to do that really couldn't be put off, like buying groceries and returning his sister's library books. He tried to keep his mind on them instead of worrying about her, but it was hard not to worry about his little sister. Hopefully she'd made it to the city before the storm, or found shelter if not that.

He returned her books first, making sure to tell the librarian that she really liked them and would probably be back for the sequels just as soon as she was home. The store was packed, so he decided to wait a day; he'd survive on his own until then. Then after a few other errands, he changed course. Hopefully the archery range would still be open in this weather. It was one of the things that made him forget his worries, which usually included Caila.

"Caiden? What's a handsome guy like you doing out here in this weather?"

And dreading running into her. Running away wouldn't work, he'd tried that already and it never did. So he stopped and turned, wanting to end this conversation as quickly as possible. That never seemed to happen either.

"Lady Kinsu."

"Oh don't be so formal. We're friends. So?"

"I'm running some errands for sis while she's gone." Dang it, why did he say that? Sis was his helper in keeping her away from him; the two did not like each other at all. Kinsu at least tried to be civil, around him at least. Caiden wasn't sure why Caila disliked her so much, but if it kept Kinsu away from him, all was well.

"Caila's out? That's charming of you, Caiden."

"I have to eat too."

"Yeah... So I wanted to invite you to dinner. Tonight around sundown?"

"Sorry, milady, I think I'm busy." A lie.

Apparently she could tell. "Oh no. You're not getting out of this one." A look that loked suspiciously like a smirk crossed her face, and he gulped. "My house. Sundown. See you there, honey~!"

She was gone before he got a chance to refuse, and he changed course, heading home with a frown on his face. Why did the Goddesses put him and her in the same town together?

He hoped Caila was okay. Maybe she'd be home soon. Otherwise, he'd just have to wait for her letter and hope for the best. She never forgot to write her letters.

[Snow]

~Kitten

Kitten read by moonlight, his tail tip twitching. He sat near the window, letting the moonlight dance off of his cat-like green eyes and his pink hair. He really liked this story, he truly did. It made him so, so happy. Well, he was always happy, since he was cursed to be that way. He was always either happy or depressed. Just thinking the word depressed made him slightly sad. His hair, laced with curls, drooped slightly before he cheered himself up by reading the book again. 

He could smell the snowstorm outside and hoped that no one was lost in it. It was certainly a surprise when there was a knock at the door, since he hadn't a visitor for a while... 50 years, maybe? Time wasn't the same for the residents of the house as it was for those outside. That made keeping track of time hard for the residents, except for his silver-haired older brother, Zel. Zel seemed to notice every single second ticking by, and it only made things worse in the house.

Standing up form his perch, he swung towards the door with catlike grace, opening it up with the same fluid grace.

"Oh, a visitor! I love visitors! I haven't had one in forever, but you should come in out of the snowstorm. Silly girl, don't play in the snow until it stops snowing!" Dragging the poor girl inside without a second thought after speaking so quickly, he quickly shut out the storm and started up a fire. He was ever so careful not to burn himself while making the fire, since he had a tendency to be so clumsy.

The poor pink-haired cat-person winced as a shriek of alarm came from upstairs, followed by the sound of thumping feet running down the stairs. He glanced back just as a silver-haired form stumbled and fell, batlike wings outstretched in an attempt to keep himself from falling. Now Kitten was alarmed, and ran forward to help his older brother. He caught the batperson and mumbled reassuringly to him.

"Shh, it's okay, it's just a girl. I promise she won't hurt you, she seems friendly and civil enough.."

He looked up into the clouded, blind, stormy grey-blue eyes of his older brother, and suddenly time seemed to slow down. For a startling moment, everyone in the house could hear the tick-tick-tick of a clock as seconds passed by, ticking away the time they had left. Zel struggled away from him, the ticking ceasing. Just as suddenly had he been afraid, he was now so emotionless. Too emotionless to care that some random girl was inside his manor and probably getting everything ruined.

"Make yourself at home," he deadpanned, his voice no so eerily emotionless. Then he looked absolutely disgusted to the max. "I'll send Wolf to care for you, to get you some new clothes. Because you are dripping wet and getting things ruined."

The silver-haired, blind brother started to walk away, then stopped and looked at her, his expression thoughtful.

"Oh, and before you ask, my name is Zel." Then the master of the house was gone, leaving a confused Kitten and a probably even more confused guest.

~Zel
It had been hours now since the girl had come. He'd sent Wolf, the brother closest to his age, to care for her. Now all he had to do was sit in his room in the west wing, listening to his time slowly leak away. This frightened him to now end, the emotion spiking from his old curse. So now instead of just a light fear of time as it had always been, it had developed into chronophobia, the fear of time. He could hear it, he could hear it all, the seconds ticking away as his rose wilted.

It had been fifty years of this, fifty years of no peace. He had stopped sleeping from such fear, fear which all of his brothers called irrational and silly. Silly and irrational it may be to them, but they did not hear the tick-tick-tick of a clock all the time, they did not feel the seconds ticking away as the rose wilted, they did not feel their lives ticking away. Then, from just behind him, a dreaded sound.

The sound of a clock.

Turning quickly as his curse flared his fear up to the max, he sensed the metronome. Tick, tick, tick, tick, perfectly in sync with time, with the seconds that ticked by just as slowly. Slowly edging towards it, the emotion he was feeling very suddenly switched to rage, the need to destroy it. And destroy it he did. He flung it down the hallway, relishing the sound of snaps and crashes as it broke. He lunged forward, grasping it with fumbling hands, hands that had nothing to tell them where they were going.

He smashed it again and again, until it was simply splinters and metal gears. And still he wanted to break something. Then the feeling vanished, replaced by the blank, numb emptiness of being emotionless. That was the only thing that scared him more than the ticking of time, tick-tick-ticking away at his rose's lifetime. However, there was nothing he could do about that. There was nothing he could do to keep the empty, numb feeling away, to keep the emotions with him.

The poor master of the house moved back to his room, hiding away in his room as he slowly rocked in a corner, trying to keep the tears from overflowing onto his face as the tick-tick-ticking of what little time was left for his rose got louder and louder, more insistent, taunting him. Taunting him ever so cruelly, tortuously, as it whispered to him.

Your time is running out, little bat. Your time is ever so slowly, ever so tortuously, coming to an end. And when it does end, what are you going to do then, the one person who can't see in front of his own face?

[Midna]

Caila~
She didn't hear any footsteps, and frowned. Maybe they didn't hear her? Maybe they thought she was some mass murderer or something and was trying to lure them outside? That might have been true if they'd spotted the scalpel she alwasy kept in her pocket for emergencies, but she was a doctor for Nayru's sake. Learning to be one anyway. Caila was not a killer.

She'd just raised her hand to knock again when the door swung open, making her jump in surprise. She hadn't even heard footsteps. ...What in the world was up with this guy? He definitely did not look human, and she took a nervous step back. He might be some kind of monster with his pink hair and ears and... was that a tail? The way he was talking immediately made her assume he was crazy, and she wondered what the hell she'd just gotten herself into.

Then she'd been dragged inside, the door closed and probably locked behind her. She didn't even have time to scream, and reached for the scalpel as soon as he let go of her, backing towards the wall. The fire soon lured her into the open though, with it's promise of warmth. In the castle, the snow on her clothes had melted, and they were soggy.

She was just about to sit down in front of it when a shriek made her jump up, holding up the tool like a dagger just in case she needed to defend herself. Then her eyes widened in shock as a boy with silver hair and wings ran down the stairs and nearly fell, seemngly terrified out of his mind. Pink caught him, and she watched in shock as he tried to comfort the older boy. Was she the one scaring him? A little ashamed, she put the scalpel back in her pocket, and that's when she heard it.

Ticking, repetitive loud ticking that she was sure she hadn't heard a moment before. She glanced around for the source, and didn't see any clocks. Where was it coming from? The sound seemed to echo in her mind. She put a hand to her forehead, wincing. This was going to give her a headache.

Then it stopped as fast as it had started, and she saw the silver haired boy finally get away from the pink one. For a second, the fearful look remained in his eyes. Then they turned emotionless, and nearly empty. She shivered, whether from cold or what she wasn't sure. It took her a moment to realize he was speaking to her, and then his voice change, and she flinched at the disgust it now held. Then he was gone, and her brain took a minute to figure out what he'd said.

So Silver was actually Zel, intresting name. But who was Wolf? Probably not Pink, and hopefully not a real wolf. She stared after him, suddenly nervous. What was with these people? Both boys had seemed like they weren't okay in the mind, and they didn't look completely human. Had she found a safe haven? Or a den of monsters?

It would be nice to get some dry clothes on. Stupid mule had run off with all of hers.

A few hours later, she was clothed in a plain, blue dress that looked like it had last been worn several decades ago. It smelled like it too, but she hadn't complained. Beggars couln't be choosers after all. Her wet clothes had been hung by the fire, and she was sitting by it and watching the flames. The snowstorm hadn't stopped, just slowed, and there was no way she could make it home this late, or maybe tomorrow if this kept up. the snow would be too deep for her to move, much less find her way. She'd have to wait until it melted some, or freeze outside.

For the moment, she was alone. From what she could tell, several of the boys she'd seen liked to keep to themselves. She wasn't sure how many there were; earlier she thought she'd seen a small one disappear into a room, but she wasn't sure. It might have just been the mysterious Zel, who she hadn't seen since their first meeting.

Suddenly, she heard a crash, and her gaze snapped to the ceiling. What in the world was going on? Another crash and the sounds of breaking glass sounded, and she flinched, shrinking away from the sound. The crashing continued, and the fear in her grew as it went on. When it stopped, she realized that she was shaking. The house and its inhabitants were interesting at their best, but maybe she'd been right in thinking they were crazy. As soon as she could, she was getting out of here.

Caiden~
Though he didn't want to, Caiden arrived at Lady Kinsu's manor right as the sun set, dressed in fresh and less snowy clothes than he'd been wearing when they met earlier. She answered the door, wearing a bright pink dress that was probably the latest fashion. Silly fashion, he thought she looked a little silly but didn't mention that to her. Why get her mad at him?

She babbled on about the latest social gossip and stuff while they ate, and he tried to listen, but really. There's only so much he could take, and he reached that point long before they finished the food. Even if he didn't like spending time with her, at least the food was nice. Still, he didn't eat as much as he probably would have on a normal day. His thoughts kept slipping back to his sister and hoping she was okay. He hadn't heard any word from her today, not that he expected any. But as many times as he reassured himself that Caila was okay, still his mind kept telling him that maybe something was wrong.

Kinsu stopped talking for a second, and that pause was enough to bring his attention back onto her. She was giving him an expectant look. "So...?"

"I'm sorry, I missed that. What did you say?"

She rolled her eyes and sighed, looking at him with a look one might give to a small child who didn't understand something. "You weren't listening, were you. No need to lie, I can tell. I asked if you'd marry me."

...That caught him off guard. He hadn't been expecting that at all, especially not from her. He was stunned into silence, and stared at her. She raised her eyebrows at him, and he finally choked out a "What?"

"Clearly you heard me. I want to marry you."

"...Why? I'm sorry Kinsu, but I don't love you."

"You don't need to. Think of it like this. If you marry me, not only will you be the richest guy in town besides my father and have servants to attend to your every want and need, but you'll also be invited to all of the high class parties and socials, and people all over town will envy you. As for me, I'd get a caring, sweet, handsome guy as my husband and be the talk of the town when I show up to parties with you on my arm. It's a win-win situation."

"That sounds more like a business agreement than marriage. And why me? Every other guy in town would sell their soul to get a chance with you."

"And? They're not you, and you're my favorite. Besides, you don't want to live in your sister's house forever."

Doctor or not, Caila would literally kill him and then Kinsu if he married her.

"Kinsu, no. If I marry, I don't want it to be like that. And I like my life the way it is."

She raised an eyebrow, looking stunned that he'd refused and confused as to why. And he couldn't help but feel bad for her. This might be the first time she hadn't gotten what she wanted. Then she sighed again, and her look was a little colder than it normally was.

"Fine. I get if you want time to think it over. I'll leave the offer open for now. But Caiden, neither of us are getting any younger, and I just might pick someone else. So choose soon."

He was about to say that he'd already chosen, but thought better of it. Kinsu could make his life absolute hell if she wanted to. He did leave soon after that talk though, complaining of a headache and being tired. He was tired, tired of her, and she might have given him a headache eventually if that kept up.

When he finally collapsed into bed that night, tired and just wanting to sleep on all of his troubles, his last waking thought was of Caila. He hoped she'd be home soon. She'd know what to do about Kinsu. She always did.

[Snow]

~Squirrel
Squirrel, the poor young soul, peeked downstairs. The guest seemed rather unhappy and, while he was afraid(he always was), he couldn't help but feel a flash of pity for her. She must be wondering when she could go home. Poor girl, she didn't know that she couldn't go home until someone either came to get her or gave themselves up for her freedom. She would have to stay here.

The little boy, only 10 or 11 years old(the boy had forgotten), crept down the stairs to be a little ways away from her. Being the resident witch, he wasn't cursed to any sort of form. To her, he'd look totally normal.

"U-Um... m-my n-n-name is S-S-Squirrel... u-um...  d-do you w-w-want to, um... t-talk?" The little boy, with his soft voice and timid light turquoise eyes, probably looked just about ready to faint, which is what he felt like doing. He probably even looked a little bit goth, black ahir hanging on half of his face, only revealing one eye. He carefully, timidly, sat down close to her, close enough that he didn't need to talk any louder than the whisper he normally talked with but far enough that he could get up and run if he needed to.

Which he just might need to. He smiled softly and began to speak again. "W-W-Would y-you like t-to, u-um, h-hear a s-small l-l-legends?" And so, very very quietly, he began to tell the tale of 5 brothers and how they were cursed to their night forms because they hadn't realized that the three haggard old women who came to their manor door were the Goddesses in disguise. None of them, except for the resident witch, a little boy named Squirrel.

~Wolf
Kitten shot out the door into the snow, laughing happily as it floated up around him. His twin, Wolf, wandered outside shortly after, unwilling to leave his younger twin out in the snow alone for too long. Suddenly, Kitten heard something to his left and shot up, following it.

"Hey! Kitten! Get back here!" Wolf called, but Kitten paid no attention. Pretty soon, the pink-haired twin came back with something concealed in his arms.

"Wolf, Wolf, look what I found!" Wolf's eyes widened as he saw the animal in Kitten's snow-covered arms, a raccoon. 

"Oh, Kitten, let the poor animal go before I let Shrike kill it." Wolf said this ever so sweetly, so sweetly in fact that Kitten 's eyes widened and he dropped the animal back into the snow where it skittered away. Wolf only rolled his eyes and laughed, fiercely loyal to his twin. Kitten crouched and pounced, catching the cobalt-haired twin by surprise and bowling him over.

Laughing like an idiot just like Kitten, Wolf managed to pin his cat-person twin beneath him, his tail wagging happily. Kitten's tail was lashing wildly in laughter, and the pink-haired twin pushed him off and disappeared inside.

"Hey! I call cheats!" Wolf yelled, chasing after him and trying to keep in his laughter. He'd almost caught Kitten when the cobalt-haired twin suddenly stopped in panic. He could hear Zel upstairs, crying softly in such a quiet tone that Wolf could barely hear him. He carefully backed away and disappeared back to the kitchen, finding Kitten already there, his face pale and shaken.

~Zel
"Go away, go away..." Zel mumbled, rocking himself in a corner and the ticking became louder, its volume increasing and increasing. Tears streamed down his face as his chronophobia got the best of him, torturing him as he listening to incessant tick-tick-tick of a clock. Even after he'd gotten rid of all of the clocks in the manor, the ticking of a clock still continued to kill him inside.

He heard something skitter past him and, in instinct, he lashed out a hand, muttering, "Don't touch me, don't touch me..." It turned out to be Shrike, and he felt the pitying gaze of his violent older brother as he passed. He felt a flash of wrath, don't pity me, I don't need your pity, but it very quickly got overwhelmed by fear. He cried out and reached for the fiery brother, who quickly reacted and grabbed up the smaller yet older boy, whose tears quickly staining the front of his shirt.

"Bring me to the music room," he asked softly, choking on his own breath. "I want to write more music..."

What he asked was quickly granted, his brother carrying the blind older brother down the stairs, ignoring the resident witch and his new acquaintance. Once in the music room, Shrike put the smaller boy down and left, not saying a word. And Zel reached for paper and feather, beginning to write agonizingly slow across the already marked paper, completing music sheet after music sheet. Once done, he smiled, a happy feeling bubbling up inside of him, as he gently touched the title. Chronophobia.

[Midna]

Caila~
The timid voice from the stairs surprised her, and her head snapped up to see the source. Oh, it was another one of the strange brothers. This one was the youngest she'd seen so far, and he looked the most human out of all of them. He probably wasn't, but for a second she could almost pretend he was as a smile crossed her face. It would be nice to actually talk to someone mostly normal. Neither Wolf or Zel seemed to have any interest in talking to her, and Pink... Pink wasn't exactly normal. He was more like a hyper, crazy kid, and his attention span seemed to last less than a second.

"That would be great." she replied, her voice and smile warm and friendly, "I'm Caila. Squirrel is an adorable name." Even though she was a little nervous, she tried to hide it. He was clearly terrified, maybe of her?, and looked like he might dash away at any second. And she was curious about him and his brothers, really. Caila had already guessed that they were brothers; they looked too much a like to not be. The difference in appearance was strange though. One had wings, another a tail. Were they mutants or something?

"A legend? I'd love to hear it." Now she was even more interested. Legends intrigued her; she read them all the time at the library. If only there was a job that involved legends and being a doctor... She was no shaman or healer though, relying on technology to help her do her job and not magic. She listened intently to the legend, not interrupting him even when she had questions. Five brothers cursed because they turned away three old women who were actually as old as time; the Goddesses themselves. None of them recognized them but the youngest, called... Squirrel... His name was Squirrel.

When he paused, she took that moment to ask her questions, her eyes bright with interest and curiosity. "Wow... Hey, is this legend real? I've only met four of you so far, who's the fifth? And if it's real... Is there any way to break the curse?" If it was real, she pitied the brothers. All cursed because of one mistake. But wait, that meant that they'd actually met the Golden Goddesses! And incurred their wrath; not good.

She was distracted when multiple sets of footsteps sounded behind her, followed by the door slamming. Probably Pink with another brother, the one she hadn't met yet maybe. But if the legend was true, Pink's name was actually Kitten and the fifth was Shrike... Wasn't that a kind of bird? Maybe he had a flighty attention span like Kitten and liked to peck people. She nearly laughed out loud, but didn't, and her attention focused on Squirrel again.

Soon her concentration faded yet again when Kitten and Wolf ran back in, Kitten laughing. Then the pink-haired one froze, looking pale and scared. She found she could hear something, a soft noise that she couldn't figure out, and it seemed to stop Wolf in his tracks. Then they were both gone, headed to another room. What had that noise been if it had feaked them out so badly?

Caiden~
He awoke late that night to a frantic knocking at the door and staggered out of bed, drowsy from the lack of sleep. Who could it be? His first thought was of Caila, and he was instantly wide awake, shrugging on his boots and hurrying to the door.

It wasn't Caila, but the man at the door was definitely familiar. Their neighbor, the one whose mule Caila had borrowed, pulled him outside towards the house, talking a mile a minute in a worried tone. Caiden actually had trouble figuring out what he was saying until he mentioned 'Caila'. Then his eyes widened, and he froze, causing the other man to stop as well.

"What happened?"

"It's Old Ben. He just showd up at the stable, wet and covered in scratches. He was also terrified out of his mind; my wife's been working on calming him down. But there's more trouble. Your sister's saddlebags are still on him, and all of her stuff is there. But she isn't."

Caiden immediately panicked, and he started walking again, moving quickly towards the stable. What if Caila was hurt, lost somewhere? The path was fairly straight to the city, and the mule had been back and forth on in countless times. But if she'd gotten turned around, and the scratches on the mule were from a wild animal...

He knew Old Ben. He was old and laid-back, and not much could have scared him this badly. If something had, something so serious and terrifying that he'd left his rider behind to face it alone, then Caila could be in some serious danger. Especially if the storm started up again, like the dark clouds that blocked the moon threatened.

He soon saw Old Ben, still scared but evidently more calm than before due to the weary but worried look on the woman who stood next to him's face. She spotted him hurrying towards her and pointed towards Old Ben. "Good news. The scratches on him are from brambles, not animals. But your sister is still missing. I don't think he would have bucked her off, but she could be anywhere. With the storm..."

She choked back a sob, and Caiden quickly made up his mind. "I'm going after her."

The man grabbed his arm. "You can't! It's dark, and the storm might come back at any second. You'd have no chance."

"I have to try! I can't just leave her out there, she's my sister!"

"Think about it for just a minute! If you go now, we'll be looking for both of you! Your sister is a smart girl, and there's nothing you can do for her now that won't make things worse. Nothing except stay at home and wait until morning. Then you can go look for her. I'd offer you another horse, but Old Ben's all we have with Molly keeping such a close watch on her foal. You'll have to go on him."

He wanted to argue, but knew that he was right. Caila could handle it, hopefully. And he needed time to prepare, to try and figure out where she'd gone. He'd get nothing done panicking, and what had she kept telling him? Panic kills, so keep a clear head.

Still, he didn't sleep well that night, his sleeping thoughts plagued with nightmares about Caila out in the cold.

[Snow]

~Squirrel
"T-T-The l-lend... i-is, u-um, r-r-r-real, a-alright. M-m-my b-brothers and I-I a-are the p-p-proof." Her question startled him, and he made an effort not to stutter so much and answer it clearer. "T-There's a w-way to b-break it, but, um, Z-Zelly d-doesn't like p-people... a-and what's a b-bit h-harder is that he d-doesn't l-like girls... t-the G-Great Goddesses knew t-this, t-that's w-why they c-chose the curse, I-I think. T-They knew i-it would be h-hard to b-break it." Squirrel smelled slightly of death but right now it was clouded by the scent of lavender and rosemary, the exact herbs used to mask that exact scent. He had to admit it was wearing off by now though, his time spent living underground and tending to the dead spirits having rubbed off into his scent.

As he spoke again, there was no stutter in his voice as he'd gotten used to her now. He considered her a friend and he believed that she would not hurt him. Not that he knew how to fight, but he did know how to escape. "The fifth brother is Shrike, he's asleep right now though so he's not here to greet you, though I'm pretty sure that's a good thing. I think he tired himself out from carrying Zelly." He laughed a bit at this, his voice slightly high-pitched but very low. "Since the spirits won't talk to me, I thought I'd come up to talk with someone living for a change. The curse has taken quite a toll on me as well, though the Goddesses were kind as I had tried to convince my brothers to let them inside." He sighed, as though this hurt his head. Which it did, it caused quite a headache. "I feel especially bad for Zelly, though. He's the master of the house, but he constantly hears this ticking, like a clock. Even after we removed every single clock in the house, his chronophobia only got worse."

Suddenly he smiled again, shifting into a position where he could stand up easily. "As well as the resident witch, I am the keeper of the library. Do you want to see the Great Library?" And so he led Caila to the library, his favorite place to be when he wasn't downstairs crafting dreamcatchers, collecting herbs, and speaking with the spirits. It held a vast variety of books, most of them chapter books(though Squirrel couldn't read the super-long ones yet, he was only 10 or 11 after all) or picture books. There were very few modern ones, but almost all of them were of old legends or fictitious tales about those legends.

~Zel
Zel slowly laid down in his room. He'd used one of the secret passages in the manor to get back to his room, and he'd just barely fit in the passageway to begin with. If he'd been in human form, he thought bitterly, he would have fit just fine. But his wings were much too big for his body, and just barely fit in the passageway. Even so, he had to tightly press them to his back to find his way. 

And the slow torture of moving through the tunnel! Being blind as he was now, blind as a bat thanks to the Goddesses, it'd taken him an hour to climb safely through the passage. The ticking very suddenly got louder, so loud he couldn't hear anything else. Panicking and not even noticing how the ticking was off as though it were a broken clock, Zel buried his head under the pillows of his bed, ears pinned against his head as he slowly and silently cried while the ticking faded away into its normal volume. 

Zel bit back a scream of frustration as the ticking kept up, torturing him. It had moved back to be on-key again, ticking away the seconds of his rose's lifetime. Reaching out, he clutched the container holding his enchanting rose close to his chest, rocking slowly back and forth on his bed, trying to block out the terrible ticking.

That terrible, terrible ticking.

[Midna]

Caila~
"I knew it. I can't believe that sort of thing can still happen; I thought it just happened in fairytales, but you guys are the proof. But being cursed, that must stink." She listens to the rest of Squirrel's answer, letting the words sink in. "So I'm guessing it's sort of a true love's kiss sort of thing, right? I hope you find a way to break it eventually." She sighs, pitying the brothers trapped in a curse with a nearly impossible way to break it. Maybe they'll find some way.

So Shrike's the fifth brother, like she'd guessed, though he probably didn't act much like a cheerful bird if it was a good thing she hadn't met him. So Squirrel wasn't exactly human either... Well, that made since though. Zel's part of the curse sounded truly horrible, being afraid of time and clocks and hearing the ticking in his mind. He'd probably gotten the worst of the curse because of his part in offending the Goddesses. Caila wondered if the fear of time had something to do with the curse itself, like if there was a time limit until it was permanent. That would be horrible.

Her eyes lit up, and she grinned at him. "A library? Oh, I'd love to! I bet you guys have some really interesting books. Do any of you ever get in there and read them? I can't wait!" Her enthusiasm clearly showing, she follows Squirrel to the library. When she gets there, she gasps. There are so many books, and the library is huge! "Whoa..." she breathes, heading to the nearest shelf. Her eyes scan over the titles on the spine, and she grins. They're all legends, at least the ones here. Some of them are ones she's never even heard of before. Squirrel and his brothers must be either rich, a very old family, or both to have this many old books...

Her eyes are gleaming with delight when she turns back to Squirrel and suddenly hugs him, squealing happily. "This is so cool! Thank you thank you thank you!" Then she pulls away, a sheepish look on her face. "Sorry Squirrel. I got a bit carried away. But really, this is cool. I can't wait to tell my brother about this. He probably won't be nearly this enthusiastic, but I bet he'll love some of the stories..."

Caiden~
He was up around dawn the next morning, dark circles under his eyes as he packed a small backpack with all the things he could possibly need. A blanket, matches, bandages... The list went on as his worry grew. Rope, just in case she'd fallen in a hole. A jacket, just in case she had hypothermia or something like that. Small packets of crackers; the only food he could carry without attracting wolves. A map, to find their way home.

He made his way to the stable at first light, packed and ready. When he opened the stable door, he staggered backward as something large and furry jumped on him, licking his face like he was an ice cream cone. When he had finally pushed the thing off and dared open his eyes, he saw that it was a large sheepdog, one that he recognized too. His neighbors had gotten this dog as a puppy when he was little, and it had grown up with him. The dog, Fluffy, was pretty old in dog years, but his nose was just as good as ever. An idea entered his mind; maybe his neighbors wouldn't mind lending their dog to him?

The man seemed to read his mind, and nodded even before he could get the words out of his mouth. "Of course you can bring him. He'll be able to find her in no time, even with the snow. But you bring him back Caiden, you hear?"

"Yes sir."

"Good. Old Ben's all saddled and waiting for you. I took your sister's saddlebags off of him; they're in the stable when you get back."

"Thank you. I'll be back as soon as I can."

A few minutes later, he rode out of town with Fluffy running ahead, barking happily. The dog had sniffed Caila's jacket, so maybe it had picked up a scent in the snow...

[Snow]

~Wolf
The pack of wolves around the older twin started barking viciously. Wolf himself pricked his ears up and sniffed the air. He could smell it now; a sheepdog, a mule, and another human. This human had a very similar scent to the one inside the house. Even so, Wolf hated any uninvited guests in his territory, and he was going to make that apparent.

Growling, he barked out sharp orders to the wolves and took off at a speed even Kitten couldn't match, and on all fours too. Like a true wolf, the cobalt-haired teenager was vicious and hostile. Wild, even. He crashed through the undergrowth silently, and eventually barreled into the sheepdog head-on. The sheepdog yelped in surprise as he headbutted it in the chest, flung backwards. Growling harsher, Wolf stalked in a circle around it as his pack appeared, surrounding the dog, the mule, and the male human in a wide circle. 

The mule snorted nervously at being so close to wolves as two slunk forward and nipped at its heels. Making sure the sheepdog wouldn't try to stop him, Wolf briskly trotted over, growling at his wolves. They whined and drew back, leaving the mule and the person to their alpha. Drawing himself to his full height on two feet, he towered over both. Glaring, he made sure to use his most intimidating growl, baring teeth that no human would ever have. 

"This," he snarled, "is my territory. Last time, I let the mule go out of pity and the girl found her way to my lair. I suggest you pray to the Goddesses that I don't throw you to my wolves. And be thankful that I'm at least partially human and can understand you." Switching his attention to his wolves, he barked out a sharp order to bite the mule's heels. Two wolves, Trash and Cheater, did so willingly. The mule started forward, startled by the sudden pain.

"Try anything, and those wolves will kill you even without my permission." With that, he swung his fist against the male's head, striking as hard as he could. When the male nearly fell into the snow, Wolf caught him. Grunting at his weight, he carried the male as best as he could, even with his inhuman strength. He seriously hoped that he hadn't killed the guy. As much as he disliked intruders, he would never kill one on purpose. Well, maybe as a warning, but this guy had obviously been no threat.

"Bring the sheepdog. I'll question it later." With that, Wolf and his pack of feral beasts began the trek home, walking through the snow as though it wasn't even there. When they got back, half of the wolves herded the sheepdog into their cave, apparently friends now, while the other half herded the mule into the stables where Shrike was and then joined the rest of the pack. Growling in distaste at his wolves who weren't meant to show affection to an outsider, Wolf lugged the male into the house.

Kitten turned from watching the fire that Shrike had set to keep his occupied to see what Wolf had. Nodding silently, the pink-haired twin pointed to the library. Wolf carried on there, entering without a second thought.

"Hey, I think your name is Caila, right? Do you know this guy? He has a similar scent to you. Found him out in the snow and knocked him out. Brought him here." Squirrel said nothing, instantly checking over the male. 

"He needs treatment. I think he's caught a slight fever and he might need thyme for the shock of being knocked out. It's not safe to move him to my underground cave right now, so we'll have to set him up here." Under Squirrel's instruction, Wolf set up the male on one of the couches in the library, being snapped at if he wasn't careful enough. Finally done, Wolf stood up, nodded to Caila a bit friendlier than he had when she'd first arrived, and disappeared to go question that sheepdog.

~Squirrel
"I can't do much for him, since he's out. He doesn't seem too bad, though, for what it's worth. There's no permanent damage to where Wolf hit him, just a lump that will be a bit painful for a few days." Squirrel sighed, standing up from where he was checking over his patient. "I can only guarantee one thing from just looking him over, though it's a good conclusion. He won't die."

[Midna]

Caiden~
They'd only been moving for a little bit when he was suddenly startled out of his thoughts. His gaze swept the forest around them; there'd been barking nearby. Fluffy's ears perked up, and he stopped, looking at where the noise had come from. Feeling nervous, he slipped off of Old Ben's back. Stupid him, he'd forgotten to grab his bow in the rush. All he had was a knife, and when he dug in the saddlebags for that, he couldn't find it. Defenseless against a pack of wolves...

The sheepdog didn't seem to notice anything else, and started walking again. Caiden followed, leading the mule and keeping an eye out for any movement. They weren't on the path to the city anymore; Fluffy had veered off course about a half mile ago and they had followed, hoping that he wasn't just chasing a rabbit. Or wolves. What kind of dog would willingly go looking for wolves? Fluffy was amiable, but he wasn't that naive.

He heard rustling ahead of them, and his eyes widened. Fluffy barked once, then something huge ran out of the bushes and right into the poor dog, sending him flying. The dog climbed to his feet, whimpering, and Caiden gave him a quick look over for broken bones before his gaze snapped to the creature that had hit him.

What in Din's name was that thing? It was a wolf-human mix, which couldn't be possible, could it? Still, if his fur and paws were skin, hands, and feet, he might've looked almost human. Well, and the teeth. The definitely not human-like fangs were a dead giveaway. ...That was a horrible choice of words for this situation. He took a step back, suddenly scared for himself and Caila. If they'd hurt her... He and Caila were both helpless against these wolves. She at least had something sharp with her, considering that she always carried that scalpel around with her.

...Oh. It could stand. He suddenly felt cold, and took another step back. Then his back hit Old Ben's side, and he was trapped. There was clearly fear in his eyes as he looked up at the wolf-human towering over him. Wait a second, was it talking?

So Caila had been found; that was the good news. But a wolf's lair was definitely not good. He prayed that she was okay, that she hadn't been eaten or killed or even hurt. As long as she got home safe, the Goddesses could do whatever they wanted with him. It was his own fault for not bringing anything to defend himself with.

Old Ben suddenly moved behind him, and he had to shift so he wouldn't fall over. He didn't even notice the wolf-human's fist until it collided with his skull, sending an explosion of pain through him which soon faded into nothingness.

Caila~
She was over by the shelves again when Wolf walked in, and didn't turn around at first. Assuming that he was there to talk to Squirrel, she was kind of surprised when he spoke to her, and her face showed it as she started to turn to look at him. Someone out in the woods who smelled like her? No, it couldn't be... her eyes widened in shock as she saw the limp form in his arms, and she hurried forward. "Caiden! Why in Din's name did you knock out my brother?"

She waited until Wolf set him on one of the couches, then knelt by his side, the doctor in her taking over. "Slight fever, maybe a concussion. No bleeding, but he'll have a bruise. You didn't hit him in a spot that would have caused any lasting brain damage, and his skull is okay, maybe bruised but not broken. I still wouldn't move him though, not until we're sure. If I had my bags, I might be able to do something, but I doubt he left them on."

Squirrel confirmed her diagnosis, and she sighed in relief at his last comment, holding Caiden's hand. Worried, she muttered "Caiden you idiot, why did you have to come after me?"

Caiden~
The first thing he noticed was the pain, a massive headache in the back of his skull that made him not want to do anything except pass out again. But when his body wouldn't let him, he hesitantly opened his eyes in a squint. The light only made his head hurt even worse, and he winced and closed them, letting out a small groan of pain. Where was he? It wasn't this bright in the forest, and he was lying on something soft... A sofa?

"Caiden? Are you awake?" came a familiar voice from next to him, and he opened one of his eyes, trying to ignore the headache long enough to see the source. Then his eye shut again.

"Caila, you're okay... Ow..."

"Yes, I'm just peachy, but you're not. How much does it hurt?"

"Like I fell headfirst off a roof onto rock. Where are we?"

"This mansion out in the woods; it's really old. There are these five brothers who live here. They're not exactly human, but they seem nice. Oh, Squirrel's here. He's the youngest, and nice and adorable."

Nice wasn't the word he would use, but maybe this one was nicer. Hesitantly, he said "Hi Squirrel." and tried to open his eyes again so he could see this Squirrel, but it was clearly too soon for his brain to handle that. Wincing again, he decided not to open his eyes again for a while.

[Snow]

~Squirrel
Squirrel instantly shrank back a little bit, timidity evident on his face.

"O-Oh.. u-um... h-hi..." Turning his attention to Caila, he mumbled, "I might be able to brew a potion to help with his concussion. I'm going to go to that now. Be warned, I might look terrible when I come back up depending on how much magic this takes from me."

Then he slipped from the library, flashing a glance down the hall to where Zel was. Did Zel care? Would he show up? Could he show up? Apparently so, because the blind eldest brother wandered into the library, using his hands to help himself not crash into things. Before Squirrel could get too far away, he heard Zel mutter, "The ticking gets fainter when I'm closer to the guy..."

Then Squirrel was down in his underground cavern, and he immediately pulled things he'd need from the stone shelves. He gathered what he needed and began to boil water in his cauldron. With that, he began to sing.

"I'll cook up a solution with the knowledge I've accrued.
They say a kitch-en's time saves nine
But I'm just saving two.
I've gathered the ingredients to make a time sorbet,
There's hardly room for seconds when the seconds melt away!"

He paused for a few moments, catching his breath from the fast pace at which he'd sung. But now he had to sing like that again, with no break. With a deep breath, he began again.

"I'll cook up a solution with the knowledge I've accrued.

They say a kitch-en's time saves nine

But I'm just saving two.

I've gathered the ingredients to make a time sorbet,

There's hardly room for seconds when the seconds melt away!"

"Watch as I work my gypsy magic,
Eye of a newt and cinnamon.
Watch as the matter turns to batter,
Open the portal, jump in!"

"Watch as I work my gypsy magic,

Eye of a newt and cinnamon.

Watch as the matter turns to batter,

Open the portal, jump in!"

As he sang, he threw in the eye of a newt and cinnamon, just making his words true. Using an affectionate nickname for those whom he had no name to call, he sang his next verses.

"Crude stew,
Do you fear it Apple Bloom?
Sometimes Life is not a cake walk served upon a silver spoon."

"Toss a fig and
Save the date and
Bread and butter,
Chant and mutter,
Marination,
Incantation."

"Chocolate icing,
Timeline splicing,
Yeast is rising,
Rectifying."

He paused for another breath, his arms trembling as he threw in the chocolate icing, the cake, the silver spoon, the fig, bread and butter. He muttered incantations and chanted words in Latin.

Then the spirits spoke to him, as was customary for this ritual of potionmaking. They used the old nickname of Pinkie to address him, under the thought that the color pink represented fear.

"Pinkie, if you're hearing this, it means we're dead and gone.
Please don't bake a portal,
Just accept it and move on."

Squirrel spoke fast, with conviction, and the only the slightest hint of tension and strain as his magic drained away quicker than he could replace it. He spoke quicker than ever.

"My cauldron is preheated and
I've got you in my thrall.
Let's beat these yolks and save my folks
By baking the fourth wall!"

Slowly, his muscles relaxed as he shook from magic withdrawal. Never before had so much been taken from him in one spell... but he wasn't done yet. With all the courage he could muster, he continued to sing.

"Watch as I work my gypsy magic,
Sea pony tears and provolone.
God help the outcast with his witchcraft,
Someday I'm gonna go home."

He threw in the last ingredients and let them sink. Finally, the brew was almost done.

"Watch as I work my gypsy magic,

Sea pony tears and provolone.

God help the outcast with his witchcraft,

Someday I'm gonna go home."

In slower words, filled with tiredness as he stumbled to grab a glass potion bottle, he mumbled on last verse.

"Someday... I'm gonna go..... home..."

Finally done, Squirrel filled the potion bottle to its brim, put a cork in it to hold it in the glass bottle, and returned to the library. He stumbled in, tired and with blood slowly leaking form his mouth because of all of the magic taken from him.

"D-Did it..." he panted, weakly smiling. Zel immediately scowled and moved out of the room, shouting for Wolf. Squirrel crouched by the male and held the potion up for Caila to see.

"It won't taste too good, but do you think you can make him take it? It'll numb the pain and make any damage heal much faster than it will on its own."

When Zel returned to the room, Wolf slunk in after him, looking like a kicked puppy. One of his wolves trailed behind him, its tail tucked between its legs. Wolf's own tail was tucked between his own legs, only adding to the kicked puppy look. When he saw Squirrel's state, he looked immensely guilty.

"I had no idea that he'd brew a potion and nearly kill himself in the process," Wolf muttered, just loud enough for the humans to hear. Zel responded to that with an angry glare directed at Wolf, who flinched and crouched on all fours. Even if Zel didn't command the wolf packs, he would always be Wolf's alpha. His angry gaze traveled to Squirrel, at which point his gaze softened and he looked a bit sorrowful.

"I'm going to put Wolf in the snow for a while. Try not to kill yourself while I enjoy his being cold, will you, Squirrel?" Squirrel's only response was a nod, a weak one at that, but Zel took it and dragged Wolf out of the room by what seemed to be a leash. The little witch would have laughed at the humility of that for Wolf had he been barely able to stay conscious, let alone laugh. When he spoke to Caila, his words were slow and pain-filled, but nonetheless confident in his potion's abilities.

"Now... about the potion..."

[Midna]

Caiden~
Wow, Squirrel sounded a lot younger than the other guy he'd met out in the forest. He sounded nicer too, so maybe they weren't all cut from the same cloth. First impressions were all he was going off of at the moment, and while Squirrel had seemed nice, that other guy had knocked him unconscious for who knew how long. No wonder he was still a bit nervous.

...Magic and potions? Like in the fairytales about the witches and monsters and other things? He'd do his best not to be rude about it, but there was no way in the dark world that he was drinking whatever it was that Squirrel made. Potions from the stories were usually made from fingernails and animal feet and the like, and that just sounded way too gross to drink. However, if his headache got any worse, he might drink the thing out of desperation. It would be nice to actually be able to see where he was...

Caila slipped a reassuring hand into his, and he smiled. Then they both froze as more footsteps entered the room, someone walking more carefully and slower than Squirrel had. Caila sucked in a breath, and Caiden wondered if he should be worried or even scared about the stranger. But after he spoke, all Caiden felt was confusion. Ticking? He didn't hear any ticking. What was he talking about? Caila didn't seem to have heard anything, and she relaxed after a second, so he figured everything was okay.

He tried to go back to sleep, but his head wouldn't let him, throbbing with a steady pain that almost made him want to knock himself out just so he wouldn't feel it anymore. Caila stayed by his side the whole time, murmuring words of comfort. "It'll be okay bro, Squirrel will make you something to help." He was almost looking forward to drinking the probably foul-tasting stuff and having the ache go away.

It didn't take too long for Squirrel to return, and he heard Caila gasp quietly as the small footsteps reentered the room, her hand suddenly squeezing his a little tighter. Dear Din, what on earth had made even her nervous? She was the doctor for goodness sakes, nothing was supposed to make her squeamish. Had it been whatever he was supposed to drink? Squirrel's voice sounded weaker, and the other stranger left the room, yelling for some wolf. Not another wolf, he'd already had issues with enough of those that day.

And now for the moment of truth; he was supposed to actually drink this thing. "Okay..." he said, unsure, then "If this will stop my headache, or make it less painful, I'll drink in." He sat up, ignoring the pain, and chugged the potion as fast as he could without throwing up. When he handed the bottle back to Caila, he felt like throwing up anyway. It had been slimy, warm, and horrible tasting. Shuddering, he curled up into a ball and drowned out the sounds of everyone else as he waited for his head and stomach to start spinning. He barely heard Caila's sympathetic, "Squirrel honey, thank you, but you didn't need to hurt yourself like that."

Both calmed down eventually, and he raised his head up to look in Caila's direction, squinting because of the light. Then his eyes widened as he saw the tall shelves filled with books, and he stared over his sister's shoulder at them. "Wow, I've never seen so many books..." "They're amazing, aren't they? Squirrel showed me this place. They have tons of legends I've never even heard of."

He turned to Squirrel with a grateful smile, but worry crept into his eyes when he saw just how weak and pathetic the kid looked. Was that just from the potion? "Thank you Squirrel, I feel a lot better. It's nice to meet you; I'm Caiden, her older brother. So the guy who found me in the woods was Wolf, right? Who was the other guy who was in here, the one who said something about ticking?"

[Snow]

~Squirrel
Startled by the male's sudden interest in him, he ducked behind Caila to peek at Caiden over her shoulder. He barely had the strength to move or even speak, but it was worth the effort if this guy was Caila's older brother. 

"U-Um... W-Wolf i-is the o-one w-who f-f-found you, y-yes... U-um.. T-That w-was Z-Z-Zel, m-my older b-brother... h-he's, u-um, chronoph-phobic..." He chose to say nothing about Zel's blindness, simply for fear that Zel might want Caiden to not know for as long as possible. The one light turquoise eye that was visible expressed his timidity very clearly, and suddenly Squirrel realized that his other eye, which was a deep purple with a red pupil, was not covered at the moment which was making him exude magic needlessly which was causing his slight headache.

So he quickly covered, flicking the black hair back over it, which quickly shut off half of his sight but also shut off his magic output. This instantly made the resident witch feel a little better, hiding behind his hair again. He smiled slightly, though it was half-fear and half-apologetic.

"I-I'm s-sorry my p-potion d-didn't t-t-taste good. T-They, u-um, n-never s-seem to... m-my b-brothers c-c-can v-vouch for t-that."

"We can." The voice can from Zel, who had re-entered the room, still careful not to crash into things. 50 years of being blind had not helped him learn his way around at all. Zel smiled slightly, which was actually a really good improvement from the normally fearful look he had from all the ticking. Maybe the ticking really was quieter in here. There had never been a clock in this room anyway.

"I remember the time when I had a fever. Squirrel made this terrible tasting thing that almost made me sicker."

"That was your own fault. You refused to drink it for three days which only made it taste worse." There was a hint of an emotion Squirrel couldn't name in his own voice, it was like sarcasm and teasing combined but with a positive connotation. Zel only did his best to roll his eyes and carefully settled down beside them. His wings were tucked really close to his back, Squirrel noticed. Maybe he didn't want Caiden to see them?

"How are you feeling? Any better from Squirrel's horrible potion? I heard him chanting from his underground cave, where all of his supplies stay fresh. I'll wait a few hours before I tell you what he put in."

[Midna]

His smile turned into a guilty look as Squirrel ducked behind Caila, apparently to hide from him. He wasn't that scary, was he? He liked to think that he was a nice person. Maybe Squirrel was just timid by nature, or nervous around him since he was a stranger. He seemed to trust Caila at least.

So the guy's name was Zel, huh. He'd kind of expected him to have an animal name too, but Zel was a nice name. Well, the chronophobia explained his talking about the ticking. He was pretty sure that meant fear of time, which probably stunk. Time was something you couldn't really escape, so he knew that Zel must have to face his fear every second, not getting any escape from him. He actually felt bad for Squirrel's older brother who he'd never actually seen.

Lost in thought, he didn't really notice anything different about Squirrel's eyes, and wasn't really paying attention when the kid covered one of his eyes with his dark hair. He did notice the smile, and smiled slightly back. Well, that was a good sign. Maybe Squirrel wasn't as scared of him anymore. He still looked kind of afraid though.

Well, the potion had tasted really horrible, and just remembering the taste made him feel a little sick. It had definitely helped though. His headache was completely gone. He did feel bad for the others who lived here though; they probably had to drink Squirrel's potions whenever they got sick. Maybe the potions were what made them sick... No, Squirrel probably knew what he was doing hopefully.

He was about to reply that it was okay, and he was feeling much better, but something distracted him. Hearing the slightly familiar voice at the door, he turned to look at the speaker. So this was Zel... or at least, this guy sounded like Zel. He was pretty sure it was the same person. The boy, younger than him, was walking just as slowly as he had before. His hair was silver, like his eyes. Caiden had never seen anyone with silver hair or eyes before, and it looked nice.

...And Zel might think he was staring. Chuckling at the story, he looked away. "I'm pretty sure drinking three day old anything is a safety hazard." Then he looked back up, and smiled as Zel sat down on the end of the sofa. His cheeks turned slightly pink in a blush when Zel asked him how he was feeling, and though he didn't know it, Caila definitely noticed. She saved any comments for later, maybe future blackmail material on her brother.

"I'm much better, thanks. My head doesn't hurt anymore... Dear Din, should I be worried? Thanks for not telling me just yet if it's that horrifying. Maybe you shouldn't tell me. I might refuse to drink any of Squirrel's potions ever again. Not that it didn't help..." He let out a sligtly embarrassed chuckle, and looked away. Strange, he didn't get nearly this flustered around most strangers. Most strangers weren't this nice to him though, maybe that was it.