Bart, Jenny, Kevin and Marcy, with private lessons seemingly put on hold while the rest of
the pack recovering, had turned on the wii that morning and were playing several rounds
of Smash Brothers and trying to get through the gratuitously long final part of the Co-Op
mode. Martha found them, but decided for the moment to simple let them be, for the
moment.
No one questioned were Alice, Samantha and Abbey were.
Moja, Mbili, Tatuli, Nneli, the litter of Brian and Else enter the library following the half-
siblings Amy and Zelipe. Tano, Sita, Saba and Nane, Fox and Gary's litter, after saying hello
to their father that morning followed behind them. This left Mary, Brian and Felicity's
daughter and half sister to Elise's daughters bringing up the rear.
While relations with half siblings among Felmans and Humans could be strained, and for
Dragons up until two hundred years ago it had once resulted in duels to the death, for
Leomans and Lupmans, this was rarely if ever the case. While they didn't have the same
mother, Mary loved mature and controlled Moja, often silent but always curious Mbili, and
lover of stone art Tatuli, and lover of glass art Nneli.
As for Jay & Pence, Toni & Paula, Giselle & Gretchen, Laura & Zulema, the gem twins were
wandering about the estate, wondering if they could return to Big Bad Island any time
soon... or maybe not... events with Kurse had left them with mixed emotions of the place...
No one thought about or questioned were Casandra and Lilly were. Omega Whitney kept
herself present for them.
No one was quite sure who had decided to go the library, it seemed to be a natural
progression. Alice and her cousins were normally the ones always interested in books for
their own sake. Omega Abdul and Omega Ryan were following close behind. Omega Ryan
didn't question where his brother was.
Amy calmly read a simplified version of text relating to Sunny, Luna, and Kira, the alias' of
the Sun and Moon deities and the Monkey Prince, looking for the Lupman alias' to Uke-
Mochi and Ame-No-Uzume.
Zelipe tried to read Harry Potter.
Neither of them were the economic, law, or language prodigies that Alpha Jesen and Alpha
Kaylee's pups had. But Amy had a maturity beyond her years that was scary sometimes
more so than the collage level intelligence of Bart and Jenny.
+++++
1689
Pucca and Titana had carried away some of the nuts of the boxing trees earlier that
morning, and seeing the fire in the sky Pucca said, "Goodbye American-Boxing-Trees,
we'll be sure tell your saplings about you."
+++++
"Monica! Monia!" Rosa called out running into the house that served more or less as the
school running right past the two cherub statues that decorated the entrance.
A teenage woman looked up from herding a couple young girls in dresses too big for
them. "Who is-- who are-- Rosa? But you haven't, you aren't, of course but--"
"I know I Know! BUT WHAT ABOUT YOU?"
"... It seems my previous experience with magic, or something unknown, has left me going
backwards not as fast as the rest of the world."
"Not the world! Just Glendale! Monica! Listen! Help has arrived! But the witches had nearly
everyone in Glendale under their thrall! We need to make sure they don't harm that help!"
"How do I know you're not entranced by the witches and the 'help' isn't help for the
witches?"
"DO you think the witches NEED help with everything they've done so far?"
"The witches need OUR help!" Declared one of the little girls in the dress too big for her
next to Monica, followed by the cheers of the other 'teachers.'
Monica and Rosa looked at each other uneasily.
++++++
Mal'Akh meanwhile approached the Pack Manor, and found it neglected, smelling more like
wolf than normal, and seemingly a mad house with broken windows and half eaten kills
laying about.
And then there were the pups running about like they were kings of the world, many
looking downright dirty, other looks worse.
Mal'Akh shivered when one tried to bite her tail put pulled it out of the way in time and the
blond pup scurried off.
Mal'Akh hesitantly stepped inside the entry way that looked like a disaster area of a child's
play area, but so did every inch of the manor. "Hello?... Can someone help?... Please?"
"Who is that?" Came a duo of voices. Walking perfectly in sync, speaking perfectly in sync,
two silver lupman females walked into the living room and looked down at the leoman that
had entered their home. "Who are you?"
"My... my name is Mal'Akh, and, I--, I need help."
"So do we." They said again together perfectly shrugging like mirror images of each other
and gestured around the house and the pups running wild. A couple odd colored pups
bumping heads getting the smaller one from playing with sharp objects.
"I... I can see that..." Mal'Akh admitted.
++++++
The Northern American Boxing Trees (considering themselves far superior the Mexican
Fighting Tree) only had time to wonder what the fireball in the sky was until flames rained
down from the sky onto them, the Boxing Trees mimed screaming in pain waving their
branches madly, wondering why the witches had cursed them to be able to feel pain! Many
wished they could uproot themselves to run away from the flaming fire breathing lizard
monster, others in a desperate attempt to save themselves threw dirt on themselves only
for more fire to come down on them.
The Western Fighting Trees 'looked' confused at the strange pink and blue furred, clothed,
short, and scrawny Leoman who ran at them holding a jar full of water, which she threw,
and the water turned into flames as the jar broke and made contact with air and
themselves. "I'm sorry! But I must pass!"
The Eastern Fighting Trees knew at once they were doomed as the dragon flames ate
through their bark like it was nothing as the human with the useless gun came to them and
threw the jar of fire-water that broke on contact. So they did their duty the last,
determined to grab the human take him into flaming death with them or break his
branches and leave him to burn among them.
The Southern Fighting Trees 'heard' the agony of their fellows and dropped their playing
cards. Their saw immediately who would have won if they had called the other's clever
bluff before the fireballs in a jar hit them.
Marie meanwhile calculated the risk vs gain of running through the burning trees or letting
the fire do the work first.
+++++++
"Sisters." Gomorrah asked playing with her braids as they heard the pain of the American
Boxing Trees. "Have the towns folk reached the point yet where they are saturated enough
with our magic that we can make them into little defenders as well? I've always loved the
image of Satyrs. Or not?"