The Land of Chaos: Part III

Batsu approached Boreas. "You don't have a choice but to go," he said with a frown. "We don't know if she's infected with Madness," he growled. He didn't like this one bit. He slowly approached Boreas, but didn't want to touch him in case the guy started melting like last time. Batsu still felt horrible about that. The formerly madness consumed male stepped in front of Boreas, blocking his view from the woman made of ice. "Snap out of it," he demanded. "We need to leave, now. Don't make me drag you out of here Boreas because we both know I will do just that."

Boreas turned his gaze to the woman, though it snapped back to Batsu at the suggestion she was infected by Madness. "She's not," he said quickly, swallowing. If she was, Boreas knew what would happen to her. Every creature that they'd encountered so far with Madness in them had fought back, and he couldn't bear the thought of hurting her. He almost took a step back when Batsu started towards him, wondering if the red haired male maybe thought that he was the one infected and not the phantom of a woman.

The moment Batsu blocked Boreas's view of the woman, Boreas tensed a bit, as if he were about to push Batsu to the side just so he could continue looking at her. Instead, he just looked at the red haired male as he spoke. However, a moment after Batsu finished speaking, Boreas felt that wonderful chill he'd had while looking at the ice woman disappear. Eyes widening lightly, he stepped to the side to look past Batsu only to see that she was gone. His shoulders fell and for a second he looked like a child who had just had a very precious item taken from him. His eyes saddened, but in the next moment he seemed to return to his old self, looking off to the side with a small sigh. "Fine. Let's go then," he spoke, seeming a little embarrassed when he realized his actions. He hadn't even known what had possessed him to follow her so far away from the house. Though...that didn't mean he didn't want to see her again.

Batsu was trying to be patient, but he didn't like this and so he was urging Boreas to come back to the surface. As his friend finally snapped out of it. He sighed with relief. Batsu shook his head and guided the ice chakra towards the exit. He glanced over his shoulder, his eyes narrowed. What the hall had that been anyway? As the made it to the exit he fluffed his wings. "What was that," he asked.

Boreas followed Batsu, glancing around the cave as they went. The ice remained, even though the woman was gone. He didn't really remember looking around the cave as he'd chased behind her. He'd been too focused on her alone. So now the beauty of it was really hitting him. The cave was cold, and glowed slightly blue as if the ice had a life of its own. He tried to remember the path they were walking, in case they ever needed to enter this cave again. Or in case he simply wanted to. When Batsu asked him about the phantom woman, the orange chakra gave a light shrug. "I'm not sure. But she smelled like ice, like...like clean mountain snow," he said quietly, glancing back into the cave almost longingly. "Do you believe in things like elemental spirits?" he asked curiously. "Jasper told me about them before, but everything he knew was just myths and stuff."

Batsu didn't look amused as Boreas explained the woman's scent. As if he hadn't picked it up himself. He preferred fire over ice, even if Boreas was his best friend. He didn't know much about what it took to be human or normal, but he was making an effort, considering he was holding onto friends. Batsu tilted his head at the mention of elemental spirits. "I haven't been alive for very long, I don't know all the concepts of this world, but seeing is believing I suppose." Batsu shrugged nonchalantly. He didn't want to outright say he didn't care. That would be mean. Ha, Batsu used to be the exact meaning of evil. Pure evil. It didn't phase him to think about it, but still.

"Yeah, maybe," Boreas said, giving a small sigh. Seeing is believing. He wondered if the woman really was an elemental spirit. He could find out another time, maybe. "We should probably head back to the house," he said, trying to be nonchalant about all that had happened. "I'm kinda hungry," he said with a frown. "Wonder if DK's done with those deer yet," he snickered, stretching lightly.

Hungry didn't explain how Batsu was feeling. He was famished. The thought of deer made him bitter that his wings were damaged. He felt almost useless. "Food would be nice right about now." He smirked. "You're so competitive with him. He looks up to you." He wondered if Boreas had noticed.

"Yeah, tell me about it," Boreas grinned lightly when Batsu said food would be nice. Seemed he was getting back to his old self pretty quick. The brown haired male raised an eyebrow when Batsu said DK looked up to him. He couldn't help but give a small snicker, remembering what had happened just before he'd left the house. "Yeah right," he chuckled. "I annoy the crap outta him. I think you're seein' things." Right. DK looked up to him, that was funny. The kid had gotten rather pissed off at him earlier for a simple nickname. Despite his time with Jasper, Boreas clearly still didn't know how most human-like individuals thought. Adjusting his gloves tighter on his hands, Boreas took a quick look around before his gaze rested on Batsu's wings. Huh. They were growing back pretty quickly.

Batsu was admittedly wanting to get back to the house so that he could make sure Saionna wasn't getting into any trouble. That and she was a very interesting being. Prettier than Serenity and being around her made him feel at peace. Batsu shook his head and looked to Boreas. "I'm serious, he wants respect, but he likes you. Maybe because he's a Dragon. I don't know." He looked at his friend and then started towards the house. No, his home.

"Dragons are weird beings," Boreas snickered. "I met one a long time ago. A friend of Serenity's. It was this blue dragon wandering about in the Unknown. He was blind, I think. He didn't much appreciate my company," the chakra said with a small chuckle. More like they'd ended up fighting because Boreas had been bored to death when Jasper had let him roam about. He'd only ever wanted a chance to live when he'd been with Jasper, but the guy had never liked the way he'd operated. Didn't like the way Boreas used his body. But now he had a body of his own to do whatever with, even if it was a bit lonely inside his head. "Well...I mean, if the kid respects me, then that's all fine and dandy, but I'm not exactly the best role model," Boreas joked with a light grin.

Once Saionna had finished opening the windows, she went back to Hunter as he'd said. She wanted to learn how to cook, and then maybe Hunter could tell everyone she was helping, and everyone would stop being mad at her for whatever they were all mad at her for. They'd all looked at her like she'd been doing something wrong when they'd first found her and she still didn't understand why.

Batsu wasn't smiling. That dragon that Boreas spoke of was a jerk. His grey eyes were narrow as he walked. When the house came into view he pointed. "The windows are all open. Guess someone didn't like the dust," he chuckled. Batsu chuckled and then lightly hit Boreas on the back. "You're an idiot, so I wouldn't be surprised if DK refuses to follow in your footsteps." He grinned and started towards the house at a jog like pace.

Hunter was boiling a pot of water. He'd do soup and then fried meat sticks. As the orange haired girl came up, he waved to her. "Want to help me cook vegetables and meat? It's easy. I hear Batsu looked fried meat."

"Well, who does. Dust makes me sneeze," Boreas snickered. The ice chakra blinked when Batsu pat him on the back and called him an idiot. "Wait, what? I am not an idiot!" he called, though he couldn't help but grin as he started after Batsu. "You're the idiot, not me," he chuckled. He decided to have a bit of fun with Batsu and sport an ice trail in front of the other male to send him sliding along. Just to have a bit of fun for himself, he did the same thing, gliding along casually with a grin as he glanced to the red haired male. Maybe he could make a rink for them one of these times and they could all just skate around. That would be fun.

Saionna nodded happily when Hunter asked if she wanted to help, looking even more excited when the purple eyed man said that Batsu liked fried meat. She looked around the kitchen before becoming a bit confused. She didn't have any idea what to do, so instead she just looked back to Hunter for instructions.

Hunter grinned. He had a feeling those two were going to be spending a lot of time together. Neither was human and yet they were already bonding. "Here. I've cut the meat, just dip it in flour and toss it into the pan," he said with a quick demonstration. "For the vegetables, just wash them off, cut them up and place them in the pot."

Batsu blinked when he fell into ice and went sliding. It was cold. It was fun. It was...human? Batsu grinned at Boreas. "You're still an idiot."

Saionna watched Hunter's movements intently, nodding when he instructed her. She wanted to cut up the vegetables, but since Hunter had said that Batsu liked fried meat, she wanted to make that more. When she heard Batsu and Boreas outside, she couldn't help but smile. They wouldn't be mad at her after this. Not that she cared if that brown haired guy was. He was dumb, so his thoughts didn't matter. Turning to the meat, she did what Hunter had, apparently concentrating fairly hard on it.

Boreas laughed when Batsu fell into the ice, before skating backwards on it, the trail of ice following his feet. "Yeah, but I'm not the idiot who slipped and fell," he taunted with a grin, snickering as he skated around casually.

(Sai is adorable)

Hunter left Saionna to do whatever she pleased as he added spices and things of the sort. The sound of Batsu and Boreas outside made him curious as to what they were doing, but he had dinner to cook. He wondered if they would enjoy the meal. Maybe DK, Alice, and Fara would enjoy setting the table. He almost laughed. He was basically playing mommy. It felt good to be able to do these things again.

Batsu kept sliding down the ice. "Whatever." He spread his wings and allowed the monument to lift him a bit off the ice. Weightless. He loved that feeling. To be able to fly and be free. He missed that feeling. Whenever his wings were completely filled in he would take Saionna flying. He'd let her see the world like he did. He was glad he'd saved her. Now everyone had someone.

(^_^)

Saionna continued flipping the meat pieces and covering them in the flour, blinking when, after putting a piece on the pan, she realized her hands were all white. She went to dust them off, tilting her head when white powder flew into the air. She paused for a second before clapping her hands together, laughing a bit when a whole bunch of flour floated into the air. Putting her hand into the flour, she took it out and did the same thing, giggling at the sight. That was fun. But she had to finish making the meat. Glancing over to Hunter, she looked at the flour before smiling mischievously. Her gloves had turned white from the flour, and that gave her an idea. Taking a bit of flour in the palm of her hand, Sai snuck over to Hunter and clapped her hands above his head, effectively sending flour cascading down onto the purple eyed male, and sending the flame haired girl into a small fit of giggles.

Boreas kept sliding around, his mind slowly leaving the image of the woman of ice behind. He was having fun with Batsu right now. This guy wasn't half bad. When they'd first met it had been downright unfriendly, but he'd been adamant on getting Batsu to help him unfreeze the little fairy. He was glad Fara was with them. She was lively, and kept him smiling. "I wonder where everyone is. Think they're all in the house?" Boreas asked with a grin.

Batsu shrugged. "Maybe. I'm just hoping the food is done, I'm ready to eat." He chuckled lightly before he got to his feet and stretched. Batsu looked up at the sun. It was nice and bright. Maybe after dinner they could all sit out on the front porch or something. He didn't know. He vaguely remembered things before Madness. When he heard Hunter, he raised a brow. "Wonder what they're up to."

Hunter looked over his shoulder at Saionna as she played in the flour. She was cute in a kiddie kind of way. He watched her actions for a moment before he went back to work, not thinking too much on what the girl was about to do. In fact, when it happened, he turned and shook his head with a laugh. "Having fun," he asked her. His purple eyes shinned gently. Admittedly, he'd thought she'd be a problem considering that she was pumped with Madness before now, but he was seeing differently. "I think Batsu and Boreas are back, care to go greet them," he asked. "I can handle the rest from here."

Saionna couldn't help but give a small laugh when Hunter shook his head out. She wondered what that white stuff was called. She thought Hunter had said that it was called 'flour'. It was fun to play with. When he asked if she was having fun, she nodded happily. Her gaze turned to the outside when Hunter asked if she wanted to go greet Batsu and Boreas. She wanted to, but...she wanted them to be proud of her for helping make dinner too! So she shook her head and quickly went back to dipping the meat instead of goofing off. After that was done, since there had only been a few pieces left, she wiped her hands off and went over to cut the vegetables.

"Yeah, me too," Boreas nodded. Turning towards the house, he inhaled lightly through his nose. "Hmhm. Smells like dinner is at least cooking." He paused. "Wait, so if Hunter is cooking, then where's Saionna? Do you think she's with him?" he asked suddenly, tilting his head with a light frown. He then gave another light grin. "Maybe she's what Hunter's laughing at," he snickered.

Batsu shrugged. He didn't know but he was going to find out. He opened the door for Boreas and then slipped in after him and started for the kitchen. His grey eyes looked amused as he stood in the doorway watching Saionna help Hunter cook. It seemed those two were getting along quite well. He looked at the flour on the floor. And they seemed to be having fun. "Hey you two," he greeted. "Where's everyone else?"

Hunter waved a hand. "Glad you guys are back. The little one ran off to Cross's house looking for scissors or something and Cross went out back." He looked to the two of them. "What have you been up to?"

Boreas didn't exactly like Hunter, but for once, seeing the guy wasn't ruining his mood. He blinked when Hunter said that Cross had went out back. That guy was so freaking weird. The only thing he understood about Cross was that the guy was way overprotective of Alice. Which begged the question of why he was out in the wheat fields when Alice was...well, who knew how far away. And with creatures of Madness roaming about, no less. When Hunter asked what they'd been up to, Boreas cleared his throat and turned a little red, hoping Batsu wouldn't say anything about his running off. "We were just goofing around," he said stubbornly, with only about half his usual hostility. Really, that had been all they'd been doing.

Saionna turned her head when Batsu and Boreas walked in, giving Batsu a smile and a happy wave, while ignoring Boreas completely.

Batsu tilted his head and then looked to Boreas. Just goofing off, yeah right. The red haired male didn't say anything about it though. Instead he walked over to Saionna. "Hi," he greeted as he moved past her to look out the window. Those wheat fields seemed endless. He wondered where and why Cross had gone into them. Not that he was concerned, but...he wanted a chance to have a normal talk with the guy. Batsu still didn't understand much about the world and why him and Cross had ended up in the same body or any of it really. He knew Cross probably didn't know the answers, but he felt obligated to get his apology across. Cross had told him not to apologize, but he'd taken quite a few years away from the guardian of Alice and...well, he didn't know what else to do. Batsu moved away from the window. What a headache.

Hunter was glad Boreas wasn't shooting daggers at him today. Instead of being wary, he turned away and then commented on how the food would be done soon. He also took note of how Saionna happily greeted Batsu, but not Boreas.

Once she received a greeting from Batsu, Saionna happily went back to cutting the vegetables, probably with more skill than she should have had. She hadn't really thought about using the dagger at her side, because that one she only liked to use for fighting. So she was using a normal knife to cut everything up, and once she was done, she smiled proudly and tapped Hunter on the shoulder to let him know.

Boreas noticed Saionna's complete disregard of his presence, and decided to disregard hers as well. Two could play at this game. He wondered how long he could ignore her before she started becoming flustered. "Mm, good," he grinned, when Hunter said dinner would be done soon. "I'm gonna go chill until then," he said, giving a light wave as he left for the porch. Once out there, he took a seat on the steps and leaned lightly against the railing.

Batsu looked to Boreas as he turned away and left. "I'll be going too. You two look fairly busy." He then walked away and headed towards the back of the house where the wheat fields were. He didn't know why he was going that way, but maybe Cross would show up. He stopped on the steps, long enough to hear Hunter tell Saionna to drop the vegetables into the water. He was glad she was fitting in. He smiled and stared at the wheat fields.