Armin smiled faintly in return.

'Yeah, I'm going to be making sure you take it easy for the rest of today. Everything else can wait.'

Dianne: "Thanks, sweetie...I'd hug you, but... I think that would hurt too much...Hey, where'd Ryder go? Is he waiting for us outside?"

'Yeah, he's outside. I suppose he'll give us a lift home after this.'

Armin lightly rubbed her shoulder.

'I'd have hugged you by now if it weren't for the broken ribs. I was worried about you. I knew you could handle yourself, but there's always the little nagging feeling of 'what if'...'

Dianne: "I know. But, I had to fight him. Those boys were counting on me."

'I know, and I'm glad you got them out. You probably earned some respect from that old lizard, too. It's just my fear speaking.'

Dianne: "I understand that..."

{Just then, Pythia walks in, closing the door behind her.}

Pythia: "Hello, you two. Armin called me earlier, asked me to watch Esme. Something about you going and fighting Viridi. I take it it all worked out?"

'Seems like it did,' said Armin. 'Nobody died.'

Dianne: "Yeah...Just broken bones."

Pythia: "Here."

{Pythia lifts up Dianne's shirt, revealing a massive, purple bruise along her side. Clicking her tongue, Pythia gently places her hand on it. Dianne's ribs painfully realign and heal. Dianne hisses in pain, clenching her fists. After a minute, the bruise disappeared, and Dianne relaxed.}

Pythia: "All better."

'Very neat,' said Armin, after watching the healing process with interest. 'You're not injured anywhere else, are you?'

Dianne: "Nope. All better now."

{Standing up, she pulls Pythia into a brief hug, to Pythia's surprise
Dianne: "Thanks Pythia."

Pythia: "Oh...Your quite welcome."

Armin stood as well, smiling slightly at this, and looked around.

'You've got Esme somewhere, right?' he asked, only now noticing the absence of the dragon. He hoped she hadn't sneaked out a door or window while Pythia had been working.

Pythia: "Yeah, I left her watching tv in my bedroom. Let's go check on her."

{Pythia leads them out and up the stairs, to her bedroom.}

Armin glanced over his shoulder as they went up, wondering if the line of people outside were already getting impatient.

When they reached the bedroom, they would indeed find Esme watching TV, but she had also, at some point, chewed Pythia's bedpost so there were large tooth marks in the end. She glanced up with surprise when they entered.

Pythia: "Hello, Esme. Mum and Dad are here to take you home."

Dianne: "Hey, baby. Ready to go?"

{Walking up, Dianne scoops her up. Upon noticing the tooth marks, Dianne grimaces and whispers sorry to Pythia. Pythia just smiles and shrugs.}

Pythia: "Alright stay safe, ok? Armin, keep Dianne warm and comfortable. If it's at or below freezing when she falls asleep, she might enter hibernation, ok?"

'I know,' said Armin. 'It'll be fine, don't worry. We're staying over at her house, where it's warm enough.'

He stepped over to rub Esme's muzzle as she sat in Dianne's arms, looking completely unashamed of what she'd done.

Dianne: "Yes, I have central heating and a fireplace."

Pythia: "Good, good...Well, I need to get back to work. I'll talk to you all later."

{Patting Esme on the head, Pythia heads downstairs to call the next patient in.}

Dianne: "Hey, think Ryder would be willing to stop and let us pick up some food?"

'Probably. He's helpful like that.'

Armin led the way downstairs, exiting Pythia's house. Ryder was still there in his car, engine off as he waited for them to return.

{Dianne approaches Ryder's car, shivvering a little from the cold.}

Dianne: "Hey, Ryder, mind stopping somewhere so we can pick up some lunch to take home? I'll buy you a burger."

Just before they buckled in, Armin wordlessly pulled off his jacket and handed it to Dianne.

'Sure,' said Ryder cheerily. He started the engine and set off, heading back for Dianne's house while looking for a fast food place along the way.

Dianne: "Oh, thanks."

{Dianne puts on the jacket. As Ryder drove, Dianne began to sink into her seat, looking a bit drowsy.}

Armin settled back and gazed out the window, mulling over the day's events.

About two-thirds of the way back, Ryder targeted a fast food joint near the edge of the city, sliding into the drive-thru.

'What's everyone want?' he asked. 'Burgers and fries?'

Dianne: "Yeah...Burgers and fries for me and Esme.... and a root beer and a lemonade..."

{She says, rubbing her eyes and sitting up.}

Dianne: "Order something for yourself too, Ryder."

'I'll have the same. No drink,' said Armin.

'Alright, you can pay me when we get back to your place,' said Ryder, rummaging in his pocket for a handful of banknotes. He confidently ordered everyone's food, getting himself the same thing, then continued on to the window.

Armin eyed Dianne momentarily. 'You really tired yourself out, huh?'

Dianne: "What can I say? Fighting jerks is exhausting work. That, and Pythia's magic always makes me tired."

'Yeah. I wonder if it tires Pythia out too? She spends all day healing people.'

Moving along to the window, Ryder collected a large paper bag with all their food, paid the server, and drove off. He put the bag in the passenger seat beside him.

Dianne: "I'm sure it does. For her, good sleep is very important, or she might run out of magical energy. Luckily, she seems to be very good at keeping herself well rested."

'I guess she's had a lot of practice at handling it. After being in the Order for so long, then coming out of it only to set up her own service. It's all she's really done for a long time.'

Dianne: "That's true. She must be used to it by now. Her abilities are a gift, but...she needs to do something for herself every now and then, you know? At least with her new setup, she gets weekends off."

'We planned to visit her this weekend, didn't we? So you could teach her some fighting skills? That's going to be entertaining,' he said with a hint of amusement. 'Might not be Pythia's idea of a perfect Saturday, but...'

Dianne: "But necessary. Poor girl needs to learn to defend herself. She's very powerful, but she doesn't have the temperament. She's too much of a pacifist."

'If she doesn't have the temperament, then just knowing skills isn't going to help her much,' Armin pointed out. 'You'll have to help her learn not just the skills, but how to not... /hesitate/ when somebody's attacking her.'

Dianne: "I know... you and I don't hesitate because we understand it's them or us. She will probably want to try to talk them out of it first. I need to find a way to explain to her that certain people can't be reasoned with."

'She might not like that. But yes, some people can't be reasoned with, and talking when you should be defending yourself is dangerous. We've probably all made that mistake a few times. I probably spent too long talking to Alicia before I killed her - that's how she managed to stab me.'

Dianne: "Come to think of it, the majority of injuries I've sustained happened while I was talking. Coincidence?"

{She says, chuckling."

'Not surprising. People take advantage of the talking to hit you. They take advantage of you distracting /yourself.'/

Dianne: "Makes sense. Monologues often get people killed.Next time, I'll just kill whoever I'm fighting, no chit chat."

By then, the city surroundings had changed to hills, barns, and pastures. Ryder drove down the country road to Dianne's house and parked up outside.

'Here, I'll carry the food inside, since you two have to carry the armour and Esme,' he offered, climbing out. 'You can pay me back inside.'

Dianne: "Of course, thanks, Ryder."

{Passing Esme off to Armin, Dianne grabs her armor and heads inside.}

Armin followed her with Esme, while Ryder brought up the rear.

'Nice place you've got out here,' said Ryder, sounding impressed. 'Very spacious.'

'There's too much expensive decor, but other than that it's pretty nice,' said Armin.

Dianne: "Oh, shush, Armin. You just don't appreciate my nice things."

{Walking into the foyer, Dianne puts her armor down.}

Dianne: "I'll get my purse and pay you now."

Armin let Esme down, and she immediately started trying to get into the bag of food Ryder was carrying.

'Alright,' he said lightly, holding it out of her reach. He was gazing around the foyer with interest.

{Dianne came back in with bank notes, handing them to Ryder.}

Dianne: "Here, Ryder. Thanks for everything."

'It was nothing,' said Ryder, taking the money and handing her the food in return. 'Take it easy, OK? You just beat the leader of the biggest and scariest wild tribe in the Northern Provinces.'

He grinned and started to head back to the front door.

{Dianne smiles, watching him go.}

Dianne: "Yeah, I'm just going to relax for the rest of today. Next time you see Fred, tell him I want to talk to him about our current arrangement."

'Will do!'

Ryder then let himself out. Esme chirped quietly as if in farewell.

'C'mon, let's go and eat this before it all goes cold,' said Armin.

Dianne: "Yeah, I'll rinse off after."

{Food in hand, she walks over to the kitchen and starts pulling the burgers out. Unwrapping them, she passes one to Esme.}

Unlike the last time she'd had a burger, Esme actually held it in both hands, like a human would, and took bites.

Armin took his own burger and fries and started eating them absently.

{Dianne began eating her meal, watching Esme with a faintly surprised expression.}

Dianne: "How about that? She learns fast."

'Maybe it's because of her species. Shifter Dragons kind of evolved to be able to live among humans. So I guess they pick up on human behaviours from a young age.'

Armin then pulled a face, opened his burger and removed the pickles from inside.

'Should have gotten Ryder to ask for no pickles...'

Dianne: "Makes sense. At her age, I was an incredibly messy eater."

{Laughing, Dianne reaches over and takes his pickles.}

Dianne: "Oh, you and your pickles. Here, I will eat them."

'Pickles are evil,' Armin said, sounding like a child turning his nose up at food. 'You're welcome to them, though I don't know why you'd want them.'

He examined his burger suspiciously to make sure there were none left, then put it back together.

Dianne: "Hey, compared to sulphur snails, they're divine in flavor."

{Patting his shoulder, she continues to eat.}

Armin grumbled good-naturedly and then fell silent, focusing on his food. Esme ate quickly, though not as ravenously as she did at dinnertime, and seemed to enjoy her lemonade especially.

{Dianne finished, leaning back and crumpling up the wrapper.}

Dianne: "Alrighty, I'm going to go rinse off."

Armin took everyone's empty wrappers and cups away to dispose of them.

'Yes, get rid of that blood smell. It's very distracting. Then, whatever you want to do afterwards, we'll do.'

Dianne: "Will do. See you in a minute."

{{Getting up, she walks for the bath}

Armin stretched and yawned. With nothing to do, he killed the time by playing with Esme. He shifted to wolf form and they chased each other around the house, narrowly avoiding knocking over the decor.

{About twenty minutes later, Dianne appears at the top of the stairs, in a loose t shirt and soft pants.}

Dianne: "What's going on in here?"

Esme skidded around a corner at the foot of the stairs, then stopped and looked up at Dianne. Armin appeared a moment later.

//Oh, hi. Don't worry, nothing's broken.//

He then gave Esme a small rock, which she scooped up proudly and ran off with. Armin shifted to human form and began to climb the stairs towards Diahne.

Dianne: "Glad to hear it. Looks like you two had fun."

{Stretching, she looks about the room.}

Dianne: "When Esme comes back around, I should take her to the rec room. There's a tv in there."

Armin glanced down the stairs, but Esme had thoroughly disappeared with her new rock.

'So, how many rooms are /in/ this place?' he asked. 'I'll bet there are several other bedrooms that go unused.'

Dianne: "I don't remember how many there are. Most of them are empty. Why, looking to ask Rex to move here or something?"

'No, not unless he wants to. I was just curious. I've been around the house several times, but I didn't look in every room, especially if the door was shut. For all I know, my Christmas present could be in here somewhere.'

{ Dianne chuckles at the notion.}

Dianne: "Don't worry, your present are well hidden. You won't accidentally stumble across them."

Armin eyed her. He still had no idea what she might have bought him; he didn't even know what he wanted. //But I suppose that makes the surprise more exciting...//

'Alright. So, what do you want to do now?'

Dianne: "Come with me."

{Walking downstairs, Dianne leads him to a room. Inside was a bookshelf with some mystery and fantasy novels in it, a television, and a massive bean bag chair, large enough to lie upon.}

Dianne: "I know I promised you intimacy, but...I'm not really feeling up to it...so, maybe take a rain check on that? For now, I'd just like to take a nap in here, have the tv on for Esme...hope that's not too boring for you."

Armin gazed around the room with interest, eyes roving the small array of books.

'Yeah. That's fine. I don't think I'll be napping, but I'll stay here, maybe read a book while you sleep.'

While he was talking, Esme peered around the doorway, wondering what was going on in here.

Dianne: "Alright, great. Come in, Esme."

{Lying down on the bean bag, Dianne picks up the remote and turns on the tv.}

Dianne: "Rub my back?"

Esme chirped and sat down in front of the TV.

Armin nodded slightly, collecting a book from the shelf before walking over to join her. Setting the book down to read later, he began to soothingly rub her back, focusing on working out any tension left from the earlier brawl.

'That better?'

{As he rubbed, Armin would find her shoulders and upper back feeling tight.}

Dianne: "Mmmm...much better."

'Dam.n. Your muscles feel like steel cables up here...'

Armin concentrated on the tense areas, working to slowly relax them. Esme paid no attention to them, focused entirely on an adventure movie.

Dianne: "Yeah, fighting always leaves me tense...Just keep going, you're doing great..."

{Slowly but surely, her muscles relax, and she begins to drift off.}

Armin continued for some time, until he was sure that she was comfortably asleep. Then, moving as quietly and lightly as possible, he retrieved his book and settled down. After the stress of earlier, he was quite content to just read or watch TV for the next while.

{Dianne was comfortably asleep on her bean bag, a slight smile on her face. The book Armin had selected was a mystery novel. It followed the adventures of one Detective Jamison Grayson as he uncovered a major mystery regarding illegal artifact and antiquity trafficking.}

Armin settled down comfortably to read. He didn't normally go for this genre - when he read at all - but it looked interesting. And what was wrong with trying something new. //I'll just read a few chapters, and if it doesn't hold my attention, I'll pick something else.//

(Should we skip to something here?)

(Yes, but I'm not sure to what.)

(Dinner or bed time maybe? I think there's been enough excitement for today, so nothing else major will happen, unless you want to do something.)

(Dinner, I suppose. I'll start, then go sleep. XDD)

{A few hours later, Dianne was still asleep on her bean bag. Stirring, she looked over at Armin while lying down.}

Dianne: "Armin....I'm hungry again..."

'Hmmm?' Armin looked up. He had spent the last few hours reading, watching TV, and occasionally walking around the house to stretch his legs. He'd been getting bored, but didn't want to disturb her.

'Well, we could make some dinner. Though I suppose we don't have any ingredients here.'

Dianne: "Mmmmmnooooo....I don' feel like cooking..."

{Turning onto her side, Dianne faces the wall.}

Dianne: "Just order a pizza or something...and wake me when it gets here..."

Armin clicked his tongue in mock disapproval. 'We got burgers for lunch, and you want fast food for dinner as well?'

With a quiet chuckle, he patted her shoulder and stood up.

'Alright. I'm gonna go outside and find some blood real quick, OK? I'll order the pizza on the way back. Won't be long.'

Dianne: "Mmmm....ok..."

{Turning, she looks to see what Esme's doing.}

Esme was in front of the TV, lying in a cat-like position. She was dozing, partly from tiredness and partly from boredom.

Armin left the room, putting on his shoes and jacket and heading outside. The night was cold as usual, and as he walked down the front yard, he felt damp flecks of something falling on him. //Not rain... there's no sound.// He stuck out a hand and caught one. //Heh... snow. Very light, though. Probably won't settle...//

Dianne: "...Next time we come here...remind me to bring your constructor blocks..."

{With that, Dianne lies back down to sleep.}

Shifting, Armin took off over the woods. A few rabbits congregated near a creek below. Diving with lightning speed, he caught one in his talons, scattering the others. He quickly shifted back and broke the neck of the animal he'd caught.

As he drank, he remembered the time the Aspect had appeared to him by Bloodwater Lake. That had been at night, too, and during a hunt. With a shiver, he tossed the carcass aside and began to hurry back to Dianne's house.

//That thing hasn't shown up for a while... And I hope it doesn't again...//

He decided to walk back, using the opportunity to pull out his phone and order the dinner.

{As he walked, if he were to look at the area where the Aspect appeared last, she would see a mass of flowers. All the species Janet ever tried to cultivate, some wilting, some thriving.}

Done with ordering, he glanced around to make sure the Aspect wasn't there. That was when he noticed the patch of colour among the trees. Frowning, he walked over. //That's a lot of flowers in one spot...//

As he got closer, he recognised some of the species. Geraniums. Wisteria. Tulips. Orchids... There was something oddly nostalgic about them. It triggered a memory of Janet in the back yard, surrounded by plant pots and tools. Then he realised; this was where the Aspect had tried to bring back Janet to talk to him.

//...I hope you're at peace out there, chasing whatever takes your interest. I'll forever cherish our life together, wild girl.//

He touched one of the flowers, then turned, shifted to wolf form and began to trot home.

{As Armin approached the house, the delivery boy was already there, knocking on the door.}

Delivery boy: "Hello? Anyone home? Jerez, what a creepy house..."

Armin spotted the delivery boy and shifted back before he got within sight. //Huh, he got over here fast.//

'Here. Sorry, I was out,' he said as he approached.

{The kid whips around, startled.}

Delivery Boy: "Huh? Oh, yeah, here.."
{He moves to hand over the pizza.}

Delivery Boy: "Can we make this quick? This place gives me the creeps... No offense..."

'Yeah, yeah...'

Armin took the pizza and dug some money out of his jacket to pay the boy, adding about five squalls as a tip.

'I guess it does look creepy from here, especially at night.'

Delivery Boy: "Yeah, thanks.."

{As the boy walked back to his car, he screamed, falling over. Barnabas appeared, barking and running at the boy from around the corner.}

'Oh, for gods' sake...'

Clutching the pizza, Armin turned to shout at Barnabas.

'Barnabas, leave the damn pizza boy alone, or nobody will ever deliver food here again!'

Barnabas: "Fiiiiinnnneee.....You're no fun..."

{Barnabas phases out of existence, but the pizza boy still looks terrified.}

Delivery Boy: "WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT?!"

'Just the... er, guard dog!' said Armin, attempting to play it off as nothing. 'Sorry about that.'

{The kid just sat there, sputtering for a minute, looking wide eyed at Armin.}

Delivery Boy: "G-g-guard dog?! Dogs don't look like that!"

'They do if they're ghostly, spectral dogs,' said Armin innocently. 'You said yourself this is a creepy house. Why shouldn't there be a ghost dog?'

Delivery Boy: "No! No, no, no, that thing walked in two legs and spoke! That wasn't a dog!"

'OK, fine, ghostly werewolf. It's pretty much the same thing,' said Armin. //I wish this kid would stop shouting and go home, the pizza's getting cold.//

Delivery Boy: "F-fine! J-just keep it on a leash!"

{Shakily getting into his car, the boy leaves.}

Armin turned back and went inside the house. 'Barnabas, you're an ass,' he muttered to himself, returning to the room where he presumed Dianne was still sleeping.

Barnabas: "And you're a man-baby."

{He retorts, not appearing. Dianne was indeed, still asleep when he walked in.}

Esme pricked up her ears when Armin came in, and her head lifted moments later.

'Hey, Esme, I got pizza,' he said, opening the box and offering her a slice. Sitting down on the giant beanbag, he gently shook Dianne.

{Dianne stirs, sitting up.}

Dianne: "Hmmmm?....Pizza time?"

{Groggily rubbing her eyes, she reaches for a slice.}

Armin took a single thin slice. 'Try to stay awake long enough to eat,' he said quietly with amusement.

Dianne: "Yeah, yeah..."

{Sitting with her back against the wall, She starts to eat.}

Dianne: "Thanks for getting this. I really didn't want to cook."

'Yeah, I could see that. You obviously needed the sleep.'

Armin took a moment to recall the scene outside.

'Also, Barnabas was terrorising the pizza delivery boy, so... I hope they don't refuse to deliver here next time.'

{Dianne sighs and rubs her eyes.}

Dianne: "Jeeze. I'll talk to him tomorrow. Right now, I'm just going to eat."

Armin finished his small slice, then settled back comfortably, looking at the TV.

'You and Esme can finish the rest of that. I don't like eating much after getting blood.'

Dianne: "Yeah, sure. I am pretty hungry."

{Dianne shifts to be in contact with Armin.}

Dianne: "Tomorrow is the trial. I need to be there."

'You're going to be there?' Armin relaxed a little more as she shifted closer. 'We'd better be careful, in case those other hunter guys decide to try something. If the king is going to order Sam's execution, they might show up. To save him, if they even care.'

Dianne: "Exactly. If the Tussock Brothers show up, I need to stop them."

'We will. They were lucky to escape the other day. They'd be insane to come back, but they just might.'

Dianne: "They're crafty. We cannot let our guard down."

{Getting another slice of pizza, she continues.}

Dianne: "And they do nothing but kill non humans. Expect severe resistance."

(New room)