"Well how much have you improved since then? I get the feeling Kira does all the work while you just eat sweets and complain." Alison teased.
Kira crossed her arms and sat on a rock on the edge of the clearing, crossing her legs with a sigh. "That's pretty much how it is, yes."
Zoe blinked and glared over her shoulder. "Hey! I can make you do and say stupid things remember? Don't say things you'll regret."
"I can always block my soul from you." Kira shrugged. "Any rules she should be aware of?"
"Anything goes." Veronica answered. "As long as you don't kill each other."
"Can I fight Kira next?" Jack questioned.
"No." Kira answered. "She just said I can't kill you."
"Wait you were gonna kill me?"
"I have trouble holding back." The vampire admitted. "In my castle my mother created an arena that heals all wounds no matter how severe they are once you leave its center. So we were never really taught to hold back in fights. I don't trust myself to be able to."
"You could just not use your knives." Zoe added as Alison stretched.
"I suppose that would greatly reduce the risk of murder." Kira touched her chin in thought.
"I don't see knives on you." Drake questioned.
Kira held up her arm and turned it so she was showing off the bottom of her bracer revealing what was clearly the hilt of a dagger just under her wrist. The blade however was very much concealed.
"Dude! I don't think we have that kind of hidden blade technology!" Jack was amazed by the brace. "Can I see it."
"If you try, I will use it on you." Kira answered. "The blades are extremely important to me, and I have no intention of ever letting anyone wield them."
"She'd probably let Alison touch them." Jack muttered.
"Well... They have history together." Veronica explained. "So I wouldn't be surprised."
"Are you gonna fight me?" Zoe barked. "You've been stretching for like five minutes! If this was a real fight I would have killed you!"
"But it's not." Alison laughed before readying her stance.
"I won't use my magic if you don't shift. Deal?" Zoe asked.
"Deal." Alison reached forward and fist bumped Zoe, before they both took a few steps back and readied themselves once more.
Alison then dashed forwards, swinging her left arm, only for Zoe to side step and slam her shin into the wolf's stomach. Alison stumbled back clutching her stomach, as Zoe's metal boots were not pleasant to have stabbed into her.
Zoe lowered her leg back to the ground with a grin, her purple eyes filled with nothing but joy.
"You're enjoying this too much." Alison growled.
"Are you getting mad? That's not good! You'll make stupid decisions!" Zoe taunted.
"You need to shut your mouth Zoe."
"Oh come on! I know you're physically stronger than me! You can-" Zoe seemed to stiffen like someone had just ran a finger down her spine before she turned and looked over her shoulder at Kira who's eyes were red for a moment before returning to silver. The Shade rolled her own eyes and went to say something more, but Alison punched her in the jaw when she turned back.
Zoe stumbled, putting her hand over her jaw like she couldn't believe what just happened.
"You like to run your mouth don't you?" Alison smirked.
Zoe's eyes widened before she glared. "Don't pretend like that hit was all you! Kira distracted me!"
"I didn't see her do anything." Veronica noted.
"Yeah you just kinda looked at her in the middle of a fight." Drake added.
Zoe growled but Alison dashed forward again, swinging her fist again. This time when Zoe side stepped, Alison slammed her own shin into Zoe's knee, hard enough to cause her to buckle only to have Alison grab her by the front of her shirt and slam her back into the ground.
Zoe snarled and kicked Alison in the knee, making her fall forwards in pain, where Zoe slammed her wrist against Alison's neck making her whine and roll to the side, clutching her neck as Zoe rolled away and back onto her feet.
"You put too much hope in your strength, which isn't all that you have. You used to be able to sneak up on the best hunters, and almost keep pace with Kira. Now, I can hear you coming a mile away, and you're barely able to adjust yourself for your opponent."
"I don't see you giving anyone else a lesson!" Alison roared.
Zoe went to speak but stopped and looked back at Kira who was glaring at her. "You had a reputation." Zoe muttered.
"Well I don't anymore." Alison picked herself up and dusted herself off. "I've been in this world because that's where the two of you left me."
"We didn't have a choice!" Zoe retorted. "Without the pack and Luna to protect you, you wouldn't have been able to use the bathroom without worrying that Alice and her brother were standing over your shoulder ready to rip you apart. If we didn't hide you in a different world, you could have died!"
"You could have brought me to the castle! I could have stayed with Kira!"
"No you couldn't!"
"You don't get to say that!"
"No one else could know you were together!"
"That's not true!"
"It was." Kira admitted.
"What?!" Alison snapped around to glare at Kira who had pulled her legs up to her chest and looked like she was ready to cry.
"Luna made a promise to Rose to prevent a prophecy from coming to pass." Kira explained. "A Pureblood Vampire and Pureblood Werewolf have a child that has the potential to bring Exodious to it's knees."
"But you're both girls, so how could you have a kid?" Drake questioned.
"The same way Kira and Alison didn't have a father. They could use magic." Veronica explained.
"Luna and Rose were aware of us. But no one else was. And if Agora and Zia knew we were together, they would tell the Wizard's Tower, and go to war with the Nightshade clan trying to make sure that it never came to pass." Kira explained.
"Why aren't our parents trying to stop it? Why do they let us be together if we're supposed to do something horrible like that?"
"My mother has a saying. That one often meets their fate on the path to avoid it." Kira explained. "She knew that the longer we tried to prevent that from happening, the more likely it would happen without our control. So they chose to allow it to happen and to just keep an eye on it and intervene if something went wrong."
"If your mom knew then why couldn't I go into the castle?!"
"Because Zia still has ties with us and comes into the castle often. If she picked up your scent inside she would lose it completely. It was far safer to keep you in the forest with other werewolves and Luna. Where your scent could be mistaken for her's."
"Wouldn't Zia make the same mistake?"
"A Pureblood werewolf with my scent all over it? No. It would draw great concern." Kira shook her head. "I had to be at the castle when she came around to make sure that my sister never thought I was with Luna, as she already thought that was what I had left to do."
"Aren't Rose and Luna siblings?" Veronica questioned.
"They were born the same way through Venus. But no. They have no relation to each other at all." Kira explained. "Alison and I aren't related."
"So I couldn't go to the castle, because Zia would try and kill me?" Alison questioned.
"Castle Nightshade got it's name from us. But just outside the castle walls, is a village filled with innocent humans that would be slaughtered by a war with Zia and her Stargazer clan. It wasn't just about your life or mine. It was the hundreds of people who Zia would kill just to make sure that the prophecy wouldn't come true."
"Wait... You have a kid together?" Jack questioned.
Kira rolled her eyes. "Not yet."
"But we will?"
"The prophecy didn't have a date. Nor did it specifically say us. It could be thousands of years into the future, or a completely different couple." Kira explained. "But there's a chance yes, that we'll have a child at some point."
"So you guys are together?" Jack questioned.
Alison cringed as Kira turned her head away from the others while Zoe just groaned.
"Kira! You can't just act so depressed and whiny! You sent Alison away without explaining anything to her! From her point of view you left her!" Zoe called.
"I know I'm not the only one hurt by what happened. I'm not pretending like it only effected me. But I still hurt! You didn't go through Rejection like I did!" Kira retorted.
"Because you just dropped me off in the middle of a world I'd never known!" Alison yelled. "And you tried to erase my memories! You made it so I wouldn't even know any better! From my point of view, what happened was a dream, and never happened, but just seeing you tells me it did. It's hard to apologize for something I barely remember happening!"
"Look. You two clearly had a huge issue in your past. But Kira, you wouldn't be here if you didn't care, and Alison you wouldn't be trying so hard if you didn't regret what happened. So I think you two need to put the past in the past and start over from scratch. You're expecting everything to go back to the way it was before, but that was fifty years ago. Your both very different people and you're going to have to re-learn each other." Veronica interjected. "Fighting like this is just going to push you away. Your both here now, and Alice is for the most part out of the way, so just... be yourselves. Stop hiding behind what was, and move towards now."
Kira blinked before sighing deeply. "I think I like Veronica the most out of your friends." Kira noted.
"I mean, she is pretty awesome." Jack shrugged.
"You I like the least." Kira glared.
"Hurtful."
"How come you listen to a complete stranger but not your best friend?" Zoe questioned.
"Because she's a stranger." Kira hopped off the rock and walked over to Zoe. "I'm going to go. I been given a few things to think about."
"I guess that means I have to come too." Zoe groaned, fading into a purple mist and being absorbed into Kira's body.
"I'll see you at home?" Kira questioned, looking to Alison.
"Uh... yeah... see you at home." Alison blinked and watched Kira walk back into the forest with an expression filled with sadness.
"She lives with you?" Drake questioned.
"Well where else can she go?" Alison shrugged.
"I mean she was just sleeping in a tree." Veronica motioned to the tree behind them.
"She's trying guys. She really is. I know I don't make it easy for her, but she is." Alison sighed. "The least I can do is let her sleep on my couch."
"True."