Loric couldn't hold still. At long last, his daughter would be coming home. Loric knew he shouldn't be so excited, but he was. He couldn't help it. What was she like? How was her mother?

A knock at the door flung him out of his seat. He rushed forward before Bellos could answer the door, pulling it open. There she was. He drank in the sight of her. She was beautiful like her mother, although most of her was hidden beneath a cloak. The blue fur and pale flesh on her exposed legs contracted nicely, highlighting her kin and human heritage. His excitement died once he saw her face. Being a half-kin, her face was human except for the ears and eyes. Her eyes… This wasn't his daughter. This was the Azure Magebane. The person who slaughtered dozens of mages. That was when he noticed that the mana around his entire home was being drained away like water down a sink. He swallowed. He wondered for the first time if this was a good idea.

"Well," his daughter said. "Can I come in, or do you make kin go in some back door?" The tone was harsh and unforgiving.

"No, no, of course not. Come in," Loric said, stepping back. Azura stepped in, looking around with some interest before focusing on him.

"So, you're him? Loric?" She paused briefly. "My father?"

"Yes," Loric cleared his throat. "How's your mother?"

"Alive." Bellos chose that moment to come forward.

"May I take your cloak, madam?" Bellos asked politely. Loric tense as Azura sized up the other kin.

"Sure," Azura said. She pulled off her cloak to reveal a form-fitting armor made with high-quality scales he couldn't identify. In the center, above her breasts, was a circular indentation in the armor, as if a large pendant could lie there. Bellos took the cloak, giving her a slight bow.

Loric coughed, unsure what to say. He'd been so excited. Now, well, this was just awkward.

"Let's go to the parlor and talk," Loric said. Azura turned toward him. She had the same eyes as her mother, but her face was very similar to his own, but feminine.

"Lead on," Azura said. Loric turned and walked back the way he came. The parlor was a spacious room with a long table lined with snacks. Primarily strips of meat that would appeal to most types of kin. There were several fish dishes that Azura immediately zeroed in on. Then her gaze shifted to Elise, who was standing near the table, a nervous expression on her face.

"Well met, sister," Elise said with a bow. Azura flinched back at that, her surprise evident.

"Sister?" Azura asked.

"Half-sister, naturally," Elise clarified.

"Ah, of course," Azura said, slowly taking a seat. "Where's this council? I want to get this done."

"I will send word of your arrival. We'll meet with them tomorrow morning. Although a few interested parties might arrive earlier to speak with you," Loric said, then gestured to the food. "Please, eat all you want."

Azura frowned. "Why am I here now? It would've been easier to arrive tomorrow."

"Today is for family," Loric said. "I thought we could talk."

"You're not my family," Azura said coldly. Loric felt the pain of those words strike his heart. It was true. He hadn't been a father to Azura. He'd left her for fear of what his own father might do. Before he could go on, Azura continued.

"My mother was left alone to raise me. A mage nearly killed her. I had to pull her from the brink of death. The next day my best friend was brutally murdered trying to stop a mage from raping his sister. Then, one of the kin who helped raise me had his head blown off during your little capture-the-slave event. I've already lost plenty of my family. You're not part of it." Azura's speech grew harsher as she spoke. Elise blanched at her words.

"True as what you say is, we are still connected by blood," Tarwin said, coming into the room with Elise's mother, Maeve, right behind him. He sized up Azura for a long moment. Loric held his breath, hoping his father didn't make things worse. He wished Maeve wasn't here, but she insisted on joining.

"Amazing, you do absorb all the mana around you. I can only feel a little, and it's all being pulled directly into you," Tarwin said. "How do you do that?"

"Who are you?" Azura asked.

"Proper manners suggest that you answer a question before asking your own," Maeve said, taking a seat that was the farthest away from Azura. "I would assume even kin practice manners."

"My mother tried her best to teach me. It never worked," Azura said blandly. "So, who are you?"

"Persistent and tough," Tarwin said in approval. "You must get that from your mother." Loric winced at the insult. Azura frowned.

"To answer your question, I'm your Grandfather. You can call me Tarwin. Will you be so kind as to answer my question?" Tarwin took a seat.

"Trade secret," Azura said.

"Pity," Tarwin said. He didn't seem upset. Loric knew he expected such an answer. "Let's eat, then we can discuss family matters after." Loric took a seat, looking nervously at Azura. This wasn't going well. The tension was thick enough to bounce a coin off it. They all sat waiting for the kin to come and take their plates to serve them. Loric saw Azura look around confused, and then she shrugged. Unbelievably, a fish began floating over to her plate, where it spontaneously cut apart as if invisible knives were at work. His own shock was mirrored in the expressions of all the others. There was no flare of magic. No incantation was spoken. It happened naturally, like an apple falling from a tree.

"How are you doing that?" Tarwin asked. For the first time Loric could remember, he heard a note of awe from the man.

"Trade secret," Azura answered again before the chopped-up fish flew into her mouth, making it impossible to answer further. She stuffed her mouth to a level that was… well, it was frankly obscene. Loric had a mental grimace. The girl lacked any table manners. He knew his daughter and father wouldn't make an issue of it, however… As if on cue, Maeve sniffed haughtily as the kin began arriving to serve them.

"Clearly, kin lack the proper manners of their betters," Maeve said with as much disdain as she could muster. Azura's eyes hardened as they locked onto the woman, her mouth still full.

"Maeve," Loric warned. "We shouldn't judge others like that. She is our guest, and you should treat her kindly."

"I am," Maeve said snidely. "I'm treating a kin, like a kin."

Azura swallowed. "How true. I guess I'm just a filthy kin with poor manners." Azura said. An entire pudding suddenly flew across from the table in the blink of an eye. Maeve was impacted by the projectile dessert covering her face and ruining her clothes. Everyone froze except for Azura, who blatantly pointed and laughed.

"HOW DARE YOU! YOU FILTHY…" Maeve began but was cut off as more pieces of food flew toward the woman. A constant barrage kept her from completing the sentence. Loric looked at the disaster in progress with stunned helplessness. He wasn't sure whether to cry or laugh. His father also appeared dumbfounded. Only Elise seemed to know what to do. She picked up a piece of food and threw it at Azura. It landed in her hair, and Azura turned toward her attacker. Elise just picked up a bread roll.

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"To arms!" She declared. Then, the most bizarre thing happened. Azura smiled at Elise as the two began an impromptu food fight. The two engaged in a battle for several seconds, which might have ended the tense situation but for Maeve's following action.

"MAJOR FORCEBOLT!" Maeve shouted.

"No!!" Loric shouted as the blast of death came for his daughter. Even as he started to cast a barrier, he knew it was too late.

Azura slapped the spell out of midair. The spell was redirected to the far wall, which exploded outwards. The mages froze, as did the kin who had wisely retreated when the food fight had begun. Maeve's eyes were wide and white, which was easy to see as her face was covered in dark pudding. Suddenly, Azura was standing next to the woman, her hand around Maeve's throat. Azura effortlessly held his wife off the ground as she struggled in her grip. The others shot to their feet. They hadn't even seen her move.

"The peace was broken," Azura said coldly. "Hmm, what should I do now?" Azura lifted her free hand to scoop some of the pudding off Maeve and tasted it. "Damn, that's good. What a waste."

"Drop her now!" Tarwin said.

"Oh? Do you have the power to make me mage?" Azura asked. "You can all attack me at once if you like."

"Please stop," Elise said, frightened tears in her eyes. "I know my mother can be mean to kin, but please let her go." Azura looked at Elise and then Loric. This is all going so wrong. He should have prevented this disaster.

"Fine," Azura said, dropping the woman who coughed.

"Loric, help me with your wife," Tarwin said. He turned toward the kin. "Please fetch some hot water and towels so we can clean ourselves after this mishap." Only Loric's long-time experience with his father told him how startled the man was. The man had never said 'please' in his entire life. Azura's power was unlike anything they've seen. They had heard of her feats, but seeing it in person was immensely intimidating.

The front door burst open, and Archmage Denayd came in looking a bit winded, his long green beard waving.

"Oh my. What did I miss?"

***

Elise watched the Archmage fawn over her sister. Elise was doing her best to hide her fear. Her sister was so powerful that it was terrifying. She slapped a high-level spell away like it was a wad of paper.

"My dear Azure Magebane! Hmm, that's a mouthful. Can I call you by your proper name, Azura?" The Archmage said in a rush.

"Sure," Azura said cautiously.

"Oh, please don't confuse me with those other mages. I'm a scholarly fellow, and I'm quite interested in meeting you. I've been trying to research you ever since I saw the recorded memory of your fights. Truly remarkable. Could you perhaps give me a demonstration?"

Elise blinked at the Archmage Denayd. The man acted like a fan girl when a famous bard came to town. Her sister shrugged, then walked to the wall, where she did a 90-degree turn and kept walking. Elise gaped as she did it again, and now she was on the ceiling, looking down at them. Elise couldn't detect a trace of magic.

The Archmage squealed with delight. The man actually squealed. He sounded like a 5-year-old girl who was presented with a kitten. He clapped vigorously at the display.

"What else can you do?!"

***

"Well, that was nearly disastrous," Tarwin said as Maeve washed her face. The woman was trembling. She had fled to her room, where the pair had found her in this state.

"What were you thinking?!" Loric shouted at her. It was rare that he and his father ever saw eye to eye on anything.

"She, she was just a kin…" Maeve said weakly.

Tarwin snorted in disgust. "Only a kin? Haven't you been paying attention to anything that has been going on this past year? She might be the most powerful being in the city." He shook his head before continuing. "No, she's most certainly the most powerful. I would say the most powerful in Asluin, and you had to antagonize her. I don't care if she was eating naked. You will show her the utmost respect, or I will cut off funding to your entire family!"

Maeve's eyes went wide. Loric knew this was no idle threat. Maeve's family was not well off, and the support of the Coldwell family was the only thing keeping them from financial ruin.

Tarwin began pacing back and forth. "We need to get her into the family. Her power could make us the most powerful mages in the world. Loric, I want you and Elise to spend as much time with her as possible. Win her over. In time, she will be willing to share her power with the rest of us."

Loric was conflicted. Not on the actions but the motivations. He wanted to spend time with Azura because, deep down, he wanted her to become his daughter in more ways than just being a seed donor. He didn't care about the secrets of her power. How did the old saying go? 'Don't question a free gift.' The reasons didn't matter. He would take it.

Loric walked back downstairs with his father after ensuring Maeve would stay away for the night.

"We need to be careful not to insult Azura further. This is too great a …" Tarwin said, then stopped as they entered the sitting room near the parlor. Azura stood on the ceiling with multiple objects orbiting her as Archmage Denayd bounced up and down in excitement.

"My dear Azura," Denayd said, his eyes wide. "Please, you must show me the secrets to this power! I can't sense anything. All my detection spells are useless!"

Azura laughed heartily before responding.

"I can't do that, Archmage Denayd. No matter how sweet you are."

"Aww, come on, dear, I told you to call me Grandpa. All beautiful young women should have someone they call Grandpa."

A vein appeared in Tarwin's forehead as his left eye twitched.

***

The evening was much more pleasant after that, Elise had to admit. It was exceptionally amusing as her Grandfather tried all the polite ways he had to expel the Archmage from their home. The old man refused to budge. He kept trying to pry secrets out of her sister. It wasn't until her father gave her an imploring look that she got involved.

"I'm so sorry, Archmage, but I have a lot of lost time to make up with my sister," she said, seizing Azura's hand before pulling her away. "I hope you'll excuse us. You can speak with her at the meeting tomorrow." The Archmage looked like a child who had their puppy taken away.

"That man was certainly excitable," Azura said once they were in the foyer.

"That he was," Elise chuckled, letting Azura's hand go.

"Your family is mostly nice," Azura said as Elise led her outside.

"They're your family too," Elise said as she opened the door to the garden.

"Perhaps," Azura answered non-committedly.

The night air was crisp, with a full moon illuminating the garden. Night birds chirped or hooted as the pair walked. Strangely, Azura raised her left hand briefly before letting it drop.

"Tell me about yourself?" Elise said.

"Not much to tell. I work to free the kin."

"Oh," Elise said. Before she could continue, a shadowy form was in front of them. Startled, she took a step back, and Azura took one forward.

"Several mages are watching the house, but nothing unexpected. There is no suggestion of an attack at this time." The hooded figure said.

Azura nodded. "They want me to stay the night and meet with this council in the morning."

"The big rat won't like that." The hooded figure replied.

"I'm not a fan of it either. Just keep an eye out. Unless they march an army here, it won't be a problem."

"Take care, Magebane," the figure said as he slunk back into the shadows.

"Who was that?" Elise asked, trying and failing to track the figure.

"A friend," Azura said. "Just to be clear, if you all are planning to kill me in my sleep, it won't work."

"We wouldn't do that!"

"Good. If you tried, I would slaughter everyone here."

Elise shivered at her sister's cold tone.

"Perhaps we should go back inside and retire for the evening…" Elise said. Azura nodded as they went back. What kind of life did her sister live that left her so jaded?

***

Azura looked at the room the kin servant led her to. It was incredibly spacious.

"Here is your room, madam," the deer-kin said. He started to turn away.

"What's your name?" Azura asked.

"Bellos and I know who you are, savior of kin."

"So, what are they like?" Azura asked, gesturing back down to the others.

Bellos paused. "They're good… for mages. I helped raise the young mistress and have been mostly happy. Her mother is a handful, but your father has always treated the kin kindly. Even when he was forced to do less than desirable activities." The kin rubbed his shoulder.

"Do you want to leave?" Azura asked. "I can free you from those runes. I can take you out of here along with any family or friends. They can't stop me."

"I'm grateful for the offer. But this has been my home most of my life. And it has been mostly pleasant."

"I understand. Please extend this offer to the rest of the kin. I can keep them safe."

"I will spread your message," Bellos paused again before answering. "Thank you for all you've done, Azure Magebane. From the evening spectacle, I see that your legend does not do you justice."

Azura smiled at the deer-kin. "You should see me when I'm serious."

"I'd rather not," Bellos said as he walked away.

Azura inspected the room before moving a large wardrobe before the door. A little extra security never hurt. Next, she tested the bed. It was soft. Softer than any bed she'd ever touched before. Azura sat down on it, holding her head in her hands. That'd been hard. She'd almost ruined everything with how she behaved. It's just that… well, she'd been so angry. She wasn't even sure why. Perhaps in the future, that had been denied her? The sight of her father and… sister. It had been much more complicated than she'd imagined. She'd have to do better tomorrow.

The bed was even more comfortable when she was lying in it. It was like a cloud. As Azura fell asleep, other, more distant forces began moving.

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