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Well, it seemed to be a job well done. It was good to see that she had not completely lost her touch. Weither or not she had taken the optimal solution for this particular problem, she was not certain, and it was possible that she might never know. What was important, however, was that the process had started in truth and now Takeru and Riro would do as they needed to do.

That was the most important thing for the time being, even though they now had another problem to deal with. How exactly were they supposed to find Ayano and Taejhin quickly ? They could truly be anywhere. She had ventured her guesses, but those guesses weren't foolproof. She knew the Earth that Taylor had left years ago, not the Earth as it was now. It made finding them even more imperative, as they would know the things she did not know.

This was what she pondered as she walked outside the pantheon, heading toward the market. Being in motion helped her think. Takeru had refused an healer, saying that the pain kept him aware and ready to stop Riro should he try to do something... Stupid. Which was likely.

She had done what was asked of her – she had made sure neither dragon king or host would shatter. Technically this was not her problem. So why was she bothering ?

Maybe because you're not an heartless b***h ? Well, not completely I guess. There was a mental snort that accompanied the mental voice. Honestly. She was the one on the wheel, so to speak, but he was still here, the little extra ghost in the shell.

Not always a good thing, but I figure so.

Pretty sure you got that from me. He ignored the little mental swat he earned himself at that comment. It was really a strange feeling, in itself. Right now they were separate, mostly because their thoughts diverged. But at the same time, it was like if there was a part of him out there, moving, walking, steering the body, even though she was the one doing it. Or was she ? It was certainly hard to tell most times.

Through I doubt that's the only reason. They're more than you expected them to be. It was not a question. He knew that this was exactly what Nuhava was thinking, what she was feeling. At best, she was very curious, and at worst, so to speak, she was head over heels over him and refusing to admit it. Oddly that didn't bother him as much as it used to. He knew that his days as a separate entity were numbered, so what did it matter if she went on with something like this ? Beside, eventually her happiness would be his happiness, too.

...Maybe they are. This was a matter she was trying not to think about. There had been something about Takeru when they had met at the teahouse that had been very... different. It had not been a bad kind of different – that certainly would not have confused her so. It was very much the opposite – his demanor had been much more interesting than it usually was, with just enough fire hiding underneath to keep things interesting. Nuhava certainly was not used to something to simple as honesty from the general, and it had shaken her somewhat. She kept replaying the scene in her head, trying to figure out what the catch had been, looking for the one little detail that would unravel the illusion. And, try as she might, Strength found nothing at all, each little cue of his body that she had seen had matched correctly.

If he had not said exactly what he had said, then she might not have been so bothered.

So, do you think yourself in circles that often, or is that also something you picked up from me ? The body rolled it's eyes, though the motion was his, and not hers. Honestly. Nuhava was making such a damned deal out of it, though he knew firsthand that these kind of things were a lot easier to deal with when you weren't the one involved in them.

Im not thinking in circles ! Ugh. Strength only realized the foolishness of her statement after she had thought it. She was in his mind – or was it him that was in her mind, right now ? Either way, that had been more than a little futile, a fact that her host was quick to remind her of.

Lying to me is like lying to yourself~ He parroted a rather familiar statement and it was her turn to roll her eyes. They had reached the market proper now, and she was headed toward the sparring area. She could lose herself in training and not think about all this for a bit. Though you seem to be very good at that. Funny, im not allowed to avoid things, but you are ? Divine right, hmmm ?

Im not avoiding anything ! I just need a clearer mind to assess this, that's all. Certainly some focus would help. Certainly ? Ugh. What a damned mess. Why did he have to go and say what he had ???

Though the real question was, what was she supposed to do about it ? A part of her... wanted to try, if only to see what would come out of it. But it seemed so foolish to even feel this way. The last thing she needed was a weakness another could exploit.

I swear, whenever feelings enter the equation you more or less turn into a damned pumpkin. That'd be your weakness. Another mental snort. Well, figuratively of course.

....Touché. When did you start sounding like me, exactly ? The goddess grumped.

When you decided to train me rather than nomming on my soul like it's the tastiest thing you've even seen in your life ? Though I guess in some way you're still kind of doing that... At least that was how an outsider would see it.

Right now it's rather tempting. Strength made a mental grumble, and settled at the sparring ring. Before she could start, however, someone familiar made her stop. It was Cadance, with the message that her sister was looking for her. Well, well... Perhaps some explainations about the colossal mess Valor had made of things this time, and hopefully of it's solution, would be a good enough distraction.

Once she had learned from the young dragoon where her sister was, she went to seek her out, not knowing that Lan had a much different agenda in mind.