(A/N):
Drop a meme here that you find funny. Or reflects your mood.
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A few hours later...
The flames had finally cooled.
What remained in the small cabin was the faint smell of embers,
The low crackle of the mountain's natural heat,
And two warriors who had burned themselves out in a very different kind of fight.
Ben fastened the clasp of his cloak, stretching his arms with a weary sigh.
Sigh~
"____"
His body still hummed with energy,
Though not the kind born from mana or alien transformation.
He glanced at Mereoleona,
Who was adjusting her armor with her usual brusque efficiency—
Except her cheeks still carried the faintest, stubborn flush.
For once, the Crimson Lioness wasn't barking or boasting.
She was quiet, focused, as if speaking might betray something she wasn't ready to say out loud.
"____"
Ben smirked knowingly.
Smirk~
"You're really going to just walk away like nothing happened?"
Her eyes snapped up, fierce and flustered all at once.
"Tch. Don't push your luck, brat,"
She shot back, tying her gauntlet straps with a little more force than necessary.
"What happened here stays here. Got it?"
"Sure,"
Ben replied, voice laced with amusement as he slung his cloak over one shoulder.
"But your face says otherwise."
Mereoleona froze for a second—
"____"
Then growled low in her throat, grabbing her cloak and throwing it around herself with a huff.
"Hmph. Believe whatever you want. I'm heading back home. Got business to deal with."
Ben chuckled, shaking his head as he walked toward the cabin's door.
Chuckle~
"And I've got a kingdom waiting. Guess this is goodbye for now."
She didn't answer at first, just stood there watching him,
Her fiery hair catching the glow of the mountain's mana like a lion's mane lit by dawn.
Then, softer than he expected, she muttered,
"Don't you dare to anyone... while I'm gone."
Ben paused at the door, glancing back with a grin.
Grin~
"Same to you, Lioness."
With that, he clicked the Omnitrix,
Click~
Green light engulfing him before his form stretched into Jetray once more.
Mereoleona mounted her broom, flames trailing faintly from its tip as if echoing her own restless spirit.
They didn't fly together this time.
Swish~
Their paths split—
His toward the royal castle, hers toward the Vermillion estate.
But both carried the same thought, unspoken yet burning bright.
After Few Hours...
Vermillion Castle...
The heavy doors of the Vermillion castle swung shut behind Mereoleona as she strode through the halls,
Her boots echoing against the polished stone floor.
She walked as she always did—
Shoulders square, chin high, fire in her eyes.
To any outsider, she was the same fearsome Crimson Lioness who left day ago.
But the castle wasn't an outsider.
Leopold, bounding down the corridor with the usual eagerness of a younger brother,
Skidded to a halt the moment he saw her.
"____"
"Sis! You're—"
His greeting caught in his throat.
His eyes flicked over her face, her posture… and then lingered just a second too long,
As if searching for something he didn't want to find.
A complicated look crossed his features—
"____"
Half disbelief, half something closer to horror.
Mereoleona raised an eyebrow.
"What? Cat got your tongue, cub?"
Leopold stiffened, forcing a crooked smile.
"N-no, it's nothing! Welcome back, Sis!"
His voice cracked as he darted past her, muttering something about training.
Her eyes narrowed, but she didn't stop him.
Frown~
"____"
Instead, she continued toward her chambers.
That was when Mimosa appeared at the far end of the hall,
Carrying a basket of flowers from the greenhouse.
The younger cousin brightened instinctively at seeing her elder,
Bowing her head with a polite,
"Cousin Mereoleona—welcome back."
But the words came out brittle,
Her voice trembling ever so slightly.
When she raised her gaze to meet Mereoleona's, her cheeks flushed pink—
Then quickly drained as if she'd touched hot coals.
Mimosa let out a nervous chuckle, clutching the basket tighter.
Chuckle~
"I-I just remembered… I need to deliver these to Brother Fuego!"
She blurted, sidestepping before Mereoleona could reply.
"____"
The girl practically fled,
Her braid whipping behind her as she disappeared down another corridor.
Mereoleona stopped dead in the hall, golden eyes narrowing to slits.
First Leopold.
Now Mimosa.
She folded her arms, her fiery mane shifting with her movement.
'What the hell is wrong with them?'
Her instincts screamed that something was amiss—
Something the rest of her family seemed to know, and she didn't.
And if there was one thing Mereoleona Vermillion hated…
It was being kept in the dark.
After a short, heavy nap, Mereoleona stirred awake.
The sunlight filtering through the curtains painted her scarlet hair in fiery streaks,
And she let out a low growl as if she'd just woken from battle rather than rest.
Shaking off the drowsiness,
Splash~
She splashed her face with cold water,
Pulled on her usual battle garb,
And tightened her gloves with sharp tugs.
Her reflection in the polished steel plate on the wall stared back—
Wild, unyielding, yet carrying a faint shadow of something softer she quickly shook away.
"Tch… what nonsense,"
She muttered, brushing her thoughts aside.
"I need to burn this out of my head. A fight—something worth my time."
With that,
Mereoleona threw open her chamber door and strode into the halls of Vermillion Castle.
Her steps were firm, resonant, every stride carrying the authority of a lioness on the prowl.
Servants and knights alike quickly moved out of her way,
Bowing nervously as her fiery aura pulsed with restless energy.
She didn't slow until she reached the doors of her younger brother's office.
Without even bothering to knock,
She shoved them open.
Bang!
Inside, Fuegoleon was at his desk, quill poised over a stack of reports.
His sharp eyes flicked up at her,
But he remained composed despite her dramatic entrance.
"Mereoleona,"
He greeted calmly, setting his quill down.
"You seem… restless."
She crossed her arms, leaning forward on his desk, eyes burning with impatience.
"You could say that. So, tell me, little brother—"
She smirked at him knowingly
Smirk~
"—do you have any missions for me? Bandits to burn? Enemies to tear apart? Anything that'll get me out of this castle before I go mad?"
Her tone was half-joking, half-serious,
But the intensity in her gaze told Fuegoleon she wasn't exaggerating.
Fuegoleon sat with his hands folded over the parchment, his eyes fixed on Mereoleona's fiery grin.
Grin~
"____"
Outwardly, he was calm as ever,
But inside, his thoughts churned like a storm.
'She's the same as always—loud, fearless, reckless. And yet…'
His mind flickered back to the family tree in his study.
That pink line, faint yet undeniable, connecting her name to another's.
He had stared at it until his eyes stung, convincing himself it must be some mistake,
Some quirk of the ancient Vermillion magic.
But no—
It was real.
And now here she was, demanding battle,
Her aura flaring so brightly it almost masked the subtle shift he had seen in her.
A shift that unsettled him more than he wanted to admit.
'Has she really…? No. Impossible. Mereoleona doesn't bend for anyone. She doesn't soften, doesn't yield. She's fire itself—uncontrollable. And yet… what if that flame has already been claimed by someone? How could the family tree lie?'
Fuegoleon tightened his jaw,
Forcing the thought aside before she could notice.
"You want a mission,"
He said finally, his voice measured,
"and there are indeed matters that need attending. A rogue magic beast near the western ridges. Some unrest brewing in the border villages. Either would suit you."
He studied her carefully, As though the way she reacted might confirm or deny the gnawing suspicion in his chest.
Mereoleona's eyes gleamed with excitement,
Oblivious—
Or perhaps deliberately ignoring—
The subtle edge in his tone.
"Good. That's more like it. I'll take both."
Fuegoleon sighed inwardly.
Sigh~
'That's just like her… but if that pink line means what I fear, then even my sister, the Crimson Lioness, has found someone who can stand in her flames. And that… may be the most dangerous thing of all.'
Mereoleona frowned, her confusion growing.
Frown~
"____"
Fuegoleon's tone wasn't sharp, wasn't irritating like it usually was.
He spoke to her as though she were fragile—
Sick, even.
That alone unsettled her more than she would admit.
"What the hell's gotten into you?"
She muttered under her breath, snatching the parchment from his hand.
But before she could scan the mission details, her gaze drifted past his shoulder.
The great Vermillion family tree hung proudly on the wall, glowing faintly with ancestral magic.
And there—
Etched in soft, undeniable light—
A pink line curved from her portrait.
Her body locked.
The parchment crumpled in her hand.
"____"
'What the hell is this…? Shit... I forget it exists...'
Her eyes widened, sharp and blazing as the realization struck.
The pink line—
Bond, tether, whatever damned trick of fate it was—
Linked her to another.
Someone had been branded as hers.
The air around her trembled.
Heat pulsed outward, warping the edges of the reports on Fuegoleon's desk.
"____"
Fuegoleon, who had been skimming one of the papers, felt the temperature spike.
His instincts screamed.
Slowly, he looked up—
Only to freeze, his breath catching.
"____"
Mereoleona stood like a predator who had just scented prey,
Her aura flaring so violently the very air seemed to burn.
The murderous intent in her eyes could have leveled a battalion.
The family tree glowed behind him, and in that instant, he knew—
She must have just seen it and realized.
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(Author's POV)
(A/N)Thanks for reading the chapter!
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