Heeeeey, guess who's back. =v=

SORRY this update took so long, but this chap has a bunch of talking involving characters that I'm…not very good at writing just yet. So I have been stalling. Very much so XD

Also I got distracted by a BUNCH of other games that suddenly wanted my attention…like Tales of the Abyss. ….you'll probably see something for that in the near future ahaaaaaaaa.

(I think from now on I'm gonna put all my long ass author's notes at the BOTTOM of the chapters…)

Chapter 14: Learning the Basics

Sooo…today was…odd. Not really bad, just…kinda awkward and tiring. For a variety of reasons.

I think maybe I should clarify that statement…well, we finally made it back to Triet today. We had to take it a bit slow, because Colette still wasn't feeling too great. I didn't really mind, because Colette is a cutie and I feel bad for pushing her when she still wasn't feeling well. But it's still hot as fuck in that desert, and it's really hard going slow and steady in the heat like that when you just wanna get out of it.

Also, I don't know if you know this, but when you're in a desert which is comprised of nothing but sand and wind and sandstorms, you tend to become a living sandman. I swear to god, by the time we made it back to Triet, I had that shit everywhere on me. It was in my hair, my eyes, my ears, up my nose, down my shirt, and I have no fucking idea how it happened, but somehow I managed to get the stuff in my…'undergarments'.

…I'll leave it at that.

But, we finally made it here just a little before noon. Good thing, too – that's when it gets the hottest and brightest out there. And honestly, I did not want to become a Cassie lobster. Or at least, even more of a Cassie lobster. Sunburns, yaaaaaaaay.

My relief was…very short lived, however, because as soon as we stepped through the entrance Kratos grabbed both me and Lloyd and practically dragged us over to the marketplace (he had to mainly drag Lloyd, though). I wondered why for a few seconds, until I remembered that Lloyd needed new swords, since his old ones basically became firewood back at the Seal. And of course, I was still in need of some armor. More than likely Kratos noticed that…egh.

So instead of being able to relax at the inn for a while, I got to spend the hot afternoon of Triet running around the crowded marketplace with Lloyd and Kratty looking for equipment. We also ended up being in charge of shopping for supplies, since we were already there. Apparently, we're leaving first thing in the morning to head for the Ossa Trail. And after the experiences from the past few days, I am not looking forward to that.

The actual shopping trip went a lot…smoother than I was expecting. I don't even really know what I was expecting out of it, honestly, but it went a lot better than it could have. It took a little while to find a good pair of new swords for Lloyd (he kept ogling all the really expensive pairs in the shop), but we finally managed to haggle him a pair that wasn't too expensive. They actually look a lot like the swords he uses in his artwork, now that I think about it…

It took a bit more searching to find armor for me to wear, but Kratos eventually found me a very sturdy leather guard for my chest. I also insisted on getting myself a pair of armguards to wear, so there will be no repeats of what happened at the Fire Seal. Not letting myself be a chew toy again, no sir.

After that, we just did the menial stuff – get battle supplies (gels, potion bottles, etc), stock up on food, and then get some random bits and bobs. Kratos sent me off to get some sewing supplies at one point, I guess to repair our clothes when they get too banged up. Can't really afford to buy new clothes at every town…and knowing how Tales works, we won't ever get new clothes anyways.

We finally lugged all our wares back to the inn around three o'clock or so. By then Lloyd was about dead on his feet, and I couldn't walk one step without shooting pain going through each leg. It was aaaaaaall worth it, though. You know why?

I finally got to take my shower.

Granted, it wasn't a very long one, and I only had a bar of soap that the innkeeper gave me to wash with. But it was hot water and soap and it was glorious. So much sand came off of me. So much. And…also a bit of blood that I guess was left over from the Ktugach fight. That stuff seems to stick to you like glue…

Whatever, I'm nice and clean now, so I'm happy.

Now it's turned to evening in the desert town. Currently, we're all just sort of lounging around after having dinner – the innkeeper was nice enough to make us some food, since we were all kind of dead on our feet. It was some kind of meat stew thing, but I couldn't figure out what the meat part was. It definitely wasn't beef, though, I can tell you that. It was really lean, and it tasted kinda…sweet? I think that's how my dad described rabbit's meat, but I'm not sure I'm remembering that right.

It actually tasted pretty good, but I felt kind of bad eating it. Y'know, because of Colette. When everyone was starting to chow down, she said that she still felt too sick to really eat anything, but I knew better. I know that there's really nothing I can do about what's happening to her, but…I still feel terrible about it.

I can't really say more, because I haven't really been paying attention to what's been going on since after dinner. I've been too busy reading the spell book that Genis gave me. Since, well…there really isn't anything better for me to do. Not really up to trying to talk with these people on my own, not just yet.

Going through the book is actually a lot harder than I thought it would be. So far I've just been reading through the basics in the front of the book, and they aren't TOO hard to grasp. Lot of big words, sure, and it's pretty long, but that's nothing I can't handle. What's throwing me off is that there's a bunch of words in here that make no sense to me. I guess they might be Elven, since this is a book about magic spells. Luckily for me, it appears that either Genis or Raine, or someone else, wrote the word translations in the sentence margarines. Maybe so Genis could understand it better? Does he even know Elven? Maybe Raine is teaching him or something…I mean, she would know the language, more than likely.

…Oh hey, I'm done reading the basics. Time for a break, then. Man, how long have I been reading…

Sighing, I place the book down on my bed, taking a minute to rub my eyes with one hand. I've been reading for so long that they're all sore. And I have a headache too, ugh…

Aaaaand, when I look up, I realize that it's now nighttime. Jesus Christ, it was still sunny out when I started reading this thing! I need to stop getting so caught up in books…

…Wait, where did Kratos go? I remember him being in here when I first started reading…but I'm guessing that was a few hours ago. Maybe he's out taking a walk…or maybe Lloyd's bugging him about something. Who knows.

…You know what, I should just be lucky that I don't have to talk to anyone right now. I'm all alone, might as well enjoy it.

Sighing, I flop backwards onto the bed, being mindful of the book near my legs when I fling them out. Oh, jeez, ow my knees. Had 'em bent for too long, now they're all stiff. That hurt. Now I gotta lay here staring at the ceiling until my knees recover…

…Y'know, when I'm just laying here like this, it's pretty easy to forget my current situation. This right now just reminds me of when I go on road trips with my family, and we stay at random hotels while we head to where we're going. I can almost picture it now…

And then I feel all the aches and pains hit me again, and then I remember where I really am.

I heave another sigh, this one sounding a lot more emotional than the first. I flop my head to the right, in the direction of the nightstand next to my bed. The faint moonlight coming from the window reflects onto my pistol, which is laying on its side on the stand's surface. I remember I placed it there earlier after I had to clean it. It was covered in leftover muck from the Fire Seal.

For a while, I just stare at the thing, watching the little bubbles and light wisps cascade around the mana cartridge like mini waves. It's kinda cool, actually, how it does that…

…God dammit, how in the world did I get in this situation? Staying at an inn in a desert, with a weapon that I stole from a member of a dangerous organization and traveling with a bunch of people who aren't even supposed to be real…all this shit that's happened, all of this happening right now, and it's still very hard for me to accept.

I scowl, turning my attention back towards the ceiling in an attempt to focus my thoughts, but I'm not that lucky. My mind's already on the damn topic, now it's going to dwell on it without my consent. I'm already thinking back on everything that's happened over the past few days…and honestly, a lot has happened in just that short amount of time.

I bring my hands up to hover above my face, fiddling with the edge of my Key Crest absently. The Exsphere on my hand glints slightly with the moonlight, and I end up eyeing it for a bit, making out patterns in the strange rolling blackness of its' surface.

…That's another thing to think about – my Exsphere. I still don't quite understand how this thing works. Those notes that I stole from that Desian along with the thing haven't exactly told me much, seeing as how they're near indecipherable. I can't even try to look them over right now anyways – when we had met up with the rest of the group, I had to explain to Raine and Kratos how the hell I was using magic, and as soon as I mentioned the notes the Professor immediately swiped them from me so she could study them herself.

I would have tried to argue with her about that, but she'd gotten this really manic glint in her eyes that screamed DANGER, so…I just left it alone.

It's cool that I can use magic with this thing equipped, even though I don't know how it works, but I never realized just how hard it would be. Something that I've learned – both from the Seal and from Genis's book – is that wielding spells takes a massive amount of concentration. And you really need to know what you're doing, otherwise you could injure yourself in…very interesting ways. I sort of skimmed over that part in the book, but I remember seeing something about 'spontaneous combustion'…eugh. Yeah no, definitely gonna need to work on that. Especially after my performance at the Seal. I did basically nothing to help out in that fight.

Welp, look at that, we're back on that topic line again. Yep, way to go Cassie, no way in hell are you ever allowed to think on something other than your complete and utter failure in protecting yourself.

…You know what – no. I'm not just gonna fucking brood here about how bad I did. If I don't like how helpless I was, I should do something about it, goddammit. Brooding is not gonna get me anywhere. And if I'm gonna keep my promise of being useful to this group, then I'd better get to it.

It's for that reason that I decide to leave the comfort of the inn to find somewhere to test my abilities, taking my weapon and the spell book with me. Luckily, nobody seems to be out and about right now, so I manage to make my way outside without anyone noticing.

Tucking the book under one arm, I make a left when I head out the door, making my way over to the path leading to the oasis. If I'm going to be practicing magic, then I'm gonna need to find someplace where nobody will be able to spot me – the oasis seems far enough away for that.

After several minutes of walking, I manage to spot a little secluded area, just off the path leading to the oasis and nearest to the wall. It's open, but not too far away from the town, which works perfectly for me.

Walking over, I notice a little shack up against the town wall, a few select tools leaning up against the side of it. From the look of it, I'll guess that it's a shed for grounds keeping equipment – I can see a shovel and some sort of net amongst the equipment. It looks kind of like a pool net…maybe it's for keeping the oasis clean? It does make some sense – it's the only drinking water available to the town. They'd need to keep it clean…though, that kind of stuff isn't something I'd need at the moment. I do manage to spot some things over there that could be of some use to me, though.

It takes a bit of muscle, but after a few minutes I manage to set up a little practice area for slinging spells. And by that, I mean a beat up old bucket placed on top of a rickety crate. Not much, but I have to work with something, don't I?

I hope whoever owns this shed doesn't mind me using their stuff as a practice target…

"H'okay…" I sigh to myself, staring down my little setup. After a few seconds, I wander back to the tool shed and grab Genis's spell book, which I had to put down while I moved the stuff around. I flip it open as I walk back towards the setup, scanning the pages to find the right spells that I want to work on.

Ah, here's one! Fireball, right in the beginning of the book. The information only covers about half of the page – not too surprising, since it's a beginner spell. After a few seconds, I manage to find the correct incantation to use. It's only one small line, pretty easy to remember. I didn't even know it had one – from what I remember, nobody said an incantation in the game.

Once I have it memorized in my head, I place the book down a small distance away, then turn back to face the target. I stare at it for a few seconds, take one deep breath, then close my eyes and hold out my left hand palm down in front of me, concentrating, and whisper the incantation under my breath.

"O wicked flame, come forth…"

Light dances behind my eyelids, and I open them to see a rune beneath my feet – a real rune, not one of my earlier pathetic attempts. I tear my gaze from it, trying not to lose my concentration, instead opting to focus on the bucket a few feet away. Nervously, I sweep my hand out so it's at my side, then-

"Fire Ball!"

This time, I can most definitely tell that I did it right. The rune flares brightly for a second, and then three flaming orbs materialize out of nothing, right above my head. They shoot forward, flying towards the bucket…and completely miss it.

All of them.

By like, three feet.

I stand there dumbstruck for a few moments, hand still hanging in the air uselessly while I watch the conjured fire fly a few more feet before dissipating completely, never actually hitting a target. Finally, I just groan in exasperation, plopping down into the sand and rubbing my forehead with one hand.

…Okay, so that wasn't a complete failure, I guess. I mean, I still managed to perform the spell, hadn't I? All I really need to work on is my accuracy!

...I need to work on my accuracy in general anyways, actually. Since I'm fighting with a long ranged weapon, after all. I can't help but think back about how much of a terrible shot I was back in the Fire Seal…how I never accidentally hit anyone in the group during that fight, I will never know.

…Hey, wait a minute. I snap my eyes open when a memory hits me, glancing downward at the pistol hanging from my hip.

I just remembered! Back in the Seal, I used a tech, didn't I? I didn't have enough time to really think on it then, seeing as we were fighting for our lives at the moment, but now…now I just have to wonder at how the hell I managed to do that. It had just happened, without me really thinking about it!

If that's the case…maybe I could try using it again?

After a few moments, I stand back up, this time pulling the pistol out instead of going to pick up the spellbook. I look it over for a second, balancing the weapon's weight in my light grip, before looking towards my target set up. I think back on that moment in the Fire Seal, trying to remember exactly what I was doing. I'm pretty sure that I was thinking of using Aqua Edge when it happened…I was already channeling the mana into my hands, wasn't I?

…Wait, maybe…maybe I was channeling it into the gun instead? I wasn't really paying attention at that moment, so that could be possible.

Frowning, I raise my arms and aim my weapon, gripping the handle lightly with both hands to test my theory. I try to concentrate, closing my eyes and imagining the energy I need flowing into my hands, then to the weapon itself. After a few moments, I open them again and take a deep breath, before slowly squeezing the trigger.

Once again, a flash of light appears at the muzzle of the gun as it fires, the recoil causing my arms to jerk painfully. A barrage of white needles spray outward from the muzzle, spearing into the crate ahead and sending the bucket flying off the box a few feet.

I almost drop my weapon in complete and utter shock. Holy shit, it actually worked!

Just like last time, the needles stay where they've landed for a few moments, shimmering with a strange yellow light, before dissipating into motes of dust, leaving no evidence they were there except for the holes they leave behind in the crate. I walk over, kneeling down and carefully running a palm over the box's hole peppered surface. Those needles pieced it pretty deeply…each hole is as big around as my thumb. And to think that I'm the one that did that.

I look back down at my gun in my grip, slightly awed. I don't know how, exactly, but somehow I can actually use techs here. The most obvious answer that I can think of is that it's because of my Exsphere, but I can't help but be excited by that simple fact. Maybe now I could actually help in battles! It certainly wouldn't hurt to be able to use powerful attacks like that.

…Hang on, before I get ahead of myself, maybe I should name my new tech. Techs have names, mine needs one too.

I tap my chin, thinking hard. Should I just go for the obvious and name it something involving needles? That'd certainly help me remember it better…and since it's a gun move, I should involve something involving bullets in the name too. Yep.

Smiling to myself now, I hold my pistol up above my head. "I hereby dub thee…Needle Shot! Short and sweet." And also fairly obvious, but you know what, I don't really care. Techs, hooray!

I turn my attention back down after a few moments, eyeing the bucket laying in the sand a few feet behind the crate. "Okay, now to get back to the hard stuff…"

The next few minutes are a collection of me attempting to perform the meager Fire Ball spell correctly without setting anything around the oasis on fire, all the while trying to perfect my accuracy by attempting to direct the fire to hit the small bucket target. Honestly, this whole magic thing is a lot harder than I thought it would be. The book was right – you really need to concentrate if you're to have any hope of performing the spells correctly.

I can't help but whoop slightly when one of my Fire Balls finally hits the precariously balanced bucket, sending it flying in an explosion of flame. That elation, however, is short lived when I realize that I just set my target on fire. The next few moments of my time are spent with me desperately trying to put out the mini bonfire I'd just started.

"Aw, dammit…" I groan, staring at the pile of cinders that had once been a bucket. Great, now I have nothing to practice on…and also I just destroyed someone else's property. That too. I run a hand down my face, frowning at the thought. "I hope nobody needed that…"

"Perhaps you should have considered that before you took it."

" EYAGH-!" I jump about four feet and flail my arms up at the sudden voice from behind me, almost whacking myself in the face in my sudden panic. Gasping, I spin around and – oh fuck, it's Kratos. Ooooooh fuck, why is Kratos here. Whyyyyyy.

I hurriedly straighten myself out, facing the older man fully with a massive amount of anxiety. He's standing a few feet away, near the fence along the path to the oasis - I didn't even hear him approach. It's just light enough out here that I can see him giving me an indifferent look, arms crossed over his chest.

"U-uh…" I stammer, crossing my own arms to mirror the mercenary – though I'm doing it out of intense discomfort. After a few seconds, I manage to find my voice, but it comes out rather shaky. "…Wh-what're you doing out here?"

Kratos simply continues to stare, and it's then that I notice that he's not wearing his usual outfit – instead wearing a black, long-sleeved shirt and dark pants. It looks a little odd on him – makes him seem…normal, almost. "It's getting late. I would suggest that you get back to the inn – we're leaving first thing in the morning."

Oh shit, is it really that late now? Fucking hell, I should have been paying attention. "O-oh, yeah, uh…I forgot." After a few moments, I manage to uncross my arms, waving a hand behind me in the direction of my little set-up. "I'll…go back, lemme just…put this stuff back."

He doesn't comment on that, but I don't bother to wait and see if the mercenary will – I've already turned and hurried back to the crate still left in the open. I manage to pick it up fairly easily, but I wince when I remember all the holes I left in its side – I should really leave some Gald for whoever owns this stuff, good lord.

Aaaand because I distracted myself, I manage to end up dropping the crate onto my toes about halfway back to the shack, causing me to yelp sharply.

"Agh – Dangit!" I hop around in pain for a few seconds, moving a couple of feet back from the dropped crate before stopping and bending forward a little, placing my hands on my knees and staring down at my feet. "Ow…"

"You don't seem very coordinated."

I jump a little, face flushing when I remember that Kratos is still standing a few feet away. Great, he saw all of that, that's exactly what I needed to happen. I glance in his direction – the mercenary is in the exact same position he was before, except now I can see that he has one eyebrow raised.

"Uh…y-yeah." I manage to reply, turning away from him and moving to pick up the box once again. This time I make it to the shack, so I plop it down back where I found it, and after a few moments hesitation, I also place a majority of what remains of my Gald onto its surface. Hopefully that'll make up for destroying this stuff…

I'm about to run back over to where I was practicing to grab my book, but I slow when I see that the mercenary is still standing there. Honestly, I would have expected him to have headed back to the inn by now…why is he still here? Does he want something?

Feeling anxious, I turn to face him again, wringing my wrists in front of me. "…U-uhm…is there something else?" My voice is quiet, with a hint of apprehension mixed in.

"…It's good of you to decide to try and hone your skills." Kratos begins, surprising me. That small feeling is squashed when the older man gives me a rather hard look. "However, in the future, I would advise that you do this farther away from the general populace. Magic is not something to be taken lightly, and I don't believe the townsfolk will appreciate any more of their property being destroyed. Understood?"

I gawk for a few seconds, honestly feeling like I was just reprimanded by a teacher in school. After a few moments, I manage to find my voice again, nodding slightly. "Uh…u-understood. I'll…try to be more careful."

The mercenary gives a nod of his own in response, before he finally moves, turning around and walking back towards the path leading back into town. I watch his back until he disappears behind the corner of the wall, leaving me alone once again.

As soon as Kratos is out of sight, I let out a shaky sigh, moving my hands up to drag them down my cheeks. God, man, I have got to stop getting so worked up around him. I can barely feel my legs right now…

But even through my nerves, the mercenary's words are still ringing in my head. Honestly, I never thought that Kratos would be giving me advice on something…if you can really call that advice. It was more like a reprimand, actually. But still, what he said really is something that I should keep in mind. It really was kind of dumb of me to just take someone's stuff to practice attacks on…I can't do that again.

And…also practicing magic this close to town. Considering that the race that people hate here is able to use it, it probably wouldn't go well if someone happened to see me slinging around Fire Balls left and right. I really should be more careful…

After a moment, I simply huff, turning back around to pick up the forgotten spellbook before making my way back to the inn, Kratos's words still spinning in my head.

Ask her.

…Aaaask her.

For the love of god man, just go over there and ask her! It shouldn't be that hard! Just fuckin do it!

…Nope, not working. I sigh under my breath, berating myself for my nervousness and glancing at the source of it out of the corner of my eye for the tenth time in a row. Luckily, Raine is currently engrossed in a book, so she doesn't notice my constant staring.

I glance back down at my own book, a little cold from my place away from the fire. We set up camp for the night not too long ago, the sun having set about a half hour ago. Right now everyone's just relaxing after our long day of walking, which is all we've been doing for the past three days now. I didn't realize that the Ossa Trail would be so far away from Triet, but I'm really hating that it is.

Well, I guess there's one good thing that comes out of all that traveling. Since the desert area is still riddled with monsters, I've been able to get better at battles. It wasn't so much for practice as it was more for necessity. If I didn't participate in battles, then I really wouldn't be doing anything for the group, now would I? Also, I didn't really want to wait around for a random monster to attack me out of nowhere, so I just said 'fuck it' and charged in, gun blazing.

I'd like to think I can say that I've improved some over the past few days, but I'm not really sure of myself. I've definitely gotten better at my accuracy – most of my pistol shots are actually hitting enemies now, as well as any Fire Balls I manage to bang out. Oh, and I finally managed to use Aqua Edge correctly! Well, sorta – I gotta practice with it a little more, 'cause I almost ended up decapitating Lloyd with it when I finally cast the spell the right way. That spell is a little harder to aim than Fire Ball. I have no idea why.

But speaking of spells, that's…kind of the reason why I wanted to talk to Raine. I've been wanting to ask her about healing spells, seeing as she's the group healer, but I just haven't been able to work up the nerve yet. Raine's just a little bit intimidating – she's really smart and observant, more so than Lloyd and Genis were, so I'm afraid of slipping up and saying something that I shouldn't around her.

Then again, my only other option is to ask Kratos, and that's just. Not happening. Nope.

I glance back up again at the Professor, fiddling with the corner of the open page of my book when I see she's now talking with Colette about something. I'm going to assume it's something about the lesson that Raine taught to the childhood trio not too long ago – I wasn't a part of it, thankfully, but I know that the Professor gave out homework for them to do. One, because I saw her hand it out. Two, because I can hear Lloyd somewhere to my left pestering Genis to help him with it. He's been doing that for the past half hour, I don't know how Genis hasn't smacked him yet.

"Ow! Genis!"

Oop, spoke too soon. I turn my attention to my left, feeling a smile quirk the corners of my lips at the sight of Lloyd rubbing his arm and pouting at the very irate looking half-elf sitting to his left.

Shaking my head slightly at their antics, I turn my attention back to my book for a moment before glancing once again towards the Professor – only to see that she's looking at me now.

I honest to god give a little squeak at being discovered, almost flipping the book right out of my hands. Said book is then shoved into my face as I try to hide how flushed it is now. Oh god, please don't say anything, Raine, I totally wasn't just staring at you, nope, not at all.

I hear a little sigh from my right. "Miss Crockett, don't think I haven't noticed you staring at me for the past half hour. If you have something to ask me, I'd rather you just go ahead and do it."

FUCK.

I lower the book from my face slowly, now blatantly looking in the direction of the older woman. Raine's just staring at me with a slightly amused expression. Well…I guess that's better than her being angry or…annoyed, or something. I let loose a shaky sigh, placing the book down on the ground carefully and standing up to make my way over to her.

"S-sorry, I didn't…mean to stare at you." I shakily explain once I'm close, carefully sitting myself down next to the silver-haired Professor. She doesn't say anything at that, only looks at me with a bemused expression – which does nothing to calm my nerves. I look down at my lap, crossing my legs and drumming my fingers anxiously on the sides of my boots for a few moments as I try to find the right words to say.

"I just…I had a question for you." I finally manage to blurt out, and even though my heart's practically pounding its way out of my chest, I manage to look the Professor in the eye after a moment. "A question about, um…healing spells?"

Raine raises an eyebrow at that, and I can tell that I have her full attention now. She closes her book, setting it in her lap before turning to face me fully. "I see. What exactly did you want to ask?"

Okay, here's the hard part. I desperately try to steel myself, managing to not break eye contact with her before I speak up once again. "Do you think…I mean, is it possible that y-you could…teach me how to use one?"

Her expression suddenly turns serious, and I try my hardest not to quail at the pensive look Raine's now giving me. "…May I ask what brought this on?"

Now here's where I could mess this up. "O-oh, um…" I fidget uncomfortably under her gaze, and before I can stop myself I'm looking back down at my lap again. "…I was just thinking, I don't know…it could be useful? To know one?"

Silence from my right, and I hesitate slightly, thinking on my words before I continue. "I mean…somehow, I can use magic now, and I think I'm getting better at offensive spells – I just…I'd like to know one, like, just in case something happens. Like, what if I run out of gels during a fight? Or…someone gets hurt and they can't stop long enough to heal themselves?" Finally, I manage to look back up towards the older woman. "I just...figured it'd be useful to have a skill like that handy…"

I decide to take it as a good thing that Raine's now looking at me with a surprised expression. "You certainly sound like you've thought hard on this."

I can't help but blush a little at that, breaking eye contact once again. "Y-yeah, well…I just – I want to be prepared." I give a little shrug, placing my right hand over the Exsphere sitting on my left before glancing up again. "If I have this ability of mine, I want to be able to use it to my full extent."

"That's true." The Professor looks thoughtful for a few moments, but then, finally, she gives a little nod. "…Very well. If you are interested, I can't see a reason why I can't teach you a thing or two about healing artes."

"Wh-really?" Forgetting my anxiety, I end up gawking at the silver haired woman, slightly shocked. I was expecting her to put up a little more resistance! It was that easy?! "Th…thank you so much! I-I really appreciate it-!"

"In exchange, though, " My elation is short lived, and I feel some of that anxiety come back when I notice a rather…disturbing glint in her eye. "I expect you to start participating in my classes from now on."

"Uh…" Shit.

Oh thank god, we're finally here.

I have to suppress a very loud groan of relief at the sight of the entrance of the trail, popping out from the hillside a few yards ahead of us. We finally made our way out of the desert area not too long ago, the ground shifting subtly from loose sand to gravel and soil, along with a noticeably drop in the temperature the closer we got to the area, but it actually took us a bit longer to find the entrance to the trail. I remember it being fairly obvious in the game, but I guess this is actually a little more realistic…

You know what, whatever – we're HERE, and that's all that really matters to me. One more day of being in the desert and I'm pretty sure I really would have become one with a sand dune. Either from just plain collapsing into one, or from the truly ungodly amount of the stuff sticking to every inch of me. I've gotten used to it over the course of the last few days, unfortunately, but I still kind of feel like peeling my damn skin off.

I can tell that the others are in the same boat as I am, as we all basically give a group sigh of relief as we enter the entrance of the trail. I'm finally able to take off these stupid goggles, happily ripping them off my head even as I dig through my bag for my glasses. I can hear the other's doing the same thing as I do this, sans the whole bag digging.

"Man, I thought I was gonna keel over if we stayed in that desert any longer." Lloyd groans, and I hear him patting himself down from somewhere ahead of me, probably trying to dislodge some of the sand more than likely still clinging to him. I can hear the others doing the same thing as we walk, and once I finally manage to put my glasses back on, I do the same.

"Same here." I agree, my voice sounding very toad-like at the moment. I begin patting down my hair, closing my eyes when a cloud of sand flies into my face. "Honestly, as long as we stay out of that damn desert, I will be forever happy."

…And then, of course, my happy mood is ruined when the plot happens to kick back into gear.

"Stop!"

YEAH SO I MEANT TO UPLOAD THIS BEFORE MY BIRTHDAY THIS YEAR but obviously that didn't happen. I swear to god, I need to break this record of me uploading chapters every time I get older, its getting kind of annoying =o=

AND YEAH, if you didn't notice, I changed OC Cass's last name. Before I was using a fake last name, but a few months back I just decided to go FUCK IT and use my real one for her, cause I really don't give a damn anymore. (and yes, that IS actually my last name. laugh it up.)

HOPEFULLY I CAN GET THE NEXT CHAPTER UP SOON, I've been feeling more write-y as of late. Honestly tho, knowing me, I wouldn't get my hopes up.

NEXT TIME: The Clumsy Assassin appears! Also, FUCK THESE BEARS.