The day passed slowly as I sulked for hours along the palace walls. I'd purposely been avoiding seeing anyone in the palace, especially a certain Magi. By the time the sun had set on the horizon, the townspeople could be heard setting up for the second day of festivities.

Despite my foul mood, I'd grown tired of pitying myself and decided to head into the town. I weaved through the crowd, clumsily stumbling into a number of people after downing a few choice drinks. I figured if anything was going to lift my spirits, it'd be alcohol.

Just as the buzz from the liquor had settled into my core, I tripped and fell, catching myself on the shoulders of a child.

"Dammit, I'm sorry," I slurred until my gaze met the child's. He stared at me with wide, deep blue eyes that shimmered under the festival lights.

"Mei?" Aladdin asked, catching my wrists to stabilize me as I straightened up. "What's the matter?" he asked, his gaze full of worry.

His earnest concern was enough to warm my heart and I smiled a little. "Nothing, really," I replied shortly.

Aladdin didn't seem convinced in the slightest. He cocked an eyebrow at me and I let out a hefty sigh.

(I don't suppose he'd go off and tell anyone, right? And he's too kind to turn me away. What the hell, let's give it a shot.)

With the buzz from the liquor still prominent in my head, I began to rattle off a familiar scenario to Aladdin. "So let's say... Hypothetically... that if Person 'A' were to harbor feelings for Person 'B'... and Person 'B' was using that fact to manipulate Person 'A' into doing things for them... I mean..." I stammered, trying a little too hard to focus on the words escaping my mouth.

Aladdin's expression seemed completely lost as he contemplated what I was saying. After a brief moment, however, he smiled up at me, his expression clear as day. "Does Person 'B' not feel the same way Person 'A' does?" he asked.

I shook my head and I could feel my lips twisting into a frown as I stared down at the ground.

Aladdin only chuckled. "Well, I think you're wrong about that," he said confidently. My eyes shot up to meet his cheerful smile. "Whatever he said or did to make you think that, I think it's wrong. Person 'B' seems like he doesn't care but I've seen first hand how much he actually does," he said brightly.

Something inside me stirred at his words but it wasn't enough for me to believe it. I smiled kindly at Aladdin and nodded gratefully for his help.

"I'm going to meet up with Alibaba and Morg soon. You should come join us, Mei!" Aladdin insisted cheerfully.

As happy as I was to receive the offer, I declined. I still wasn't in the mood to goof off with them. Aladdin seemed a bit down at my answer but insisted that if I change my mind, to come and find them. I nodded happily and set off through the crowd again.

A few moments passed and I couldn't help but feel like something was out of place. I stopped in the middle of one of the aisles and glanced around at the passing crowd. Nothing was particularly out of the ordinary... aside from two men lurking behind a dark corner. My brow furrowed as I pulled the scarf the maid had given me up over my nose to conceal the lower half of my face. I continued briskly through the festival, taking note of how the same two men seemed to be behind every corner. I'd become fed up with the whole ordeal, sliding through a less populated alleyway, and then another, and another after that. I kept going until I'd reached a completely vacant area. I turned around and saw the men at the end of the alley.

(I don't know who the hell these guys are but I'm taking care of this right now.)

I reached up under the skirts of my festival gown and pulled out my little sword, readying myself for a fight. The men drew closer, pulling out weapons of their own.

"Heh, I wonder what a little thing like her could possibly do," one of the men snorted.

"Who cares, let's just bag her up and go. The old pigs back in Kou don't seem fond of waiting," the second man said.

(From Kou?)

Both men had come dangerously close to me, wielding odd weapons that I'd never seen before. I launched myself forwards before giving them the chance to attack first. Aleia's blade slit through the first man's arm easily and I spun around ready for another attack. Both men were startled by my attack but readied themselves for a real fight.

"That's how you want it then, little girl? Fine by us," the second man said, pointing the tip of his blade towards me. Little black bird-like creatures fluttered from the weapon and swarmed around me.

(What the-- These look like--)

An image of the same creatures came to mind, once when Judar had been healing my leg with the flow of Rukh; another time was when I was practicing my magoi usage and Judar had a swarm of Rukh mix with my attacks.

(These must be black Rukh-)

Just as I'd thought it, the swarm pelted into the skin of my left arm. Pain sweltered through my arm and I tried shooing the Rukh away. Within seconds, I'd lost all feeling in my arm.

(No, not this again! I haven't even used any magoi!)

Through the cloud of dark Rukh, a large hand reached towards me, grabbing my wrist and pulling me down to the ground. I landed hard, having the breath knocked out of me. I gasped for air but my lungs weren't working properly. Before I knew it, one of the men had his weapon stuck into my side. Blood trickled from the wound as I lie on the cold ground. A warm numbness began to overtake my body from where the weapon had made contact with my skin.

"Tch, this was too easy. Especially with these weapons they gave us," the first man said, inspecting the weapon in his hands thoroughly. "Hey, think the old guys in Al Tharmen would throw a fit if we played with her for a bit before bringing her back?" he laughed grimly.

The second man hovered over me, his face dangerously close to mine. "Nah, they won't have to know," he flashed his crooked teeth at me in a wolfish grin. I tried to pull away from his grasp but my body wasn't moving. Against my screams and cursing, both men went to work, slashing and ripping through my gown until my bare legs were exposed.

"Ay, shut her up before someone hears her," the first man instructed, tossing him what looked like a small metal pipe from off the ground.

The second man caught the pipe, sliding it longways into my mouth. It rolled between my jaws as I tried to spit it out. The man hovering over me held it in place, using it as a gag to keep me quiet as they continued tearing into my gown.

I groaned and gurgled, twitching helplessly as my body felt more and more like it was filled with lead.

I squeezed my eyes shut as one of the men grabbed at my bare stomach with his rough hands. My eyes bolted open as I remembered the ring on my finger.

(Kenna, Please!)

With that, fire exploded from my left hand and both men panicked, patting themselves out wherever the fire had caught them. "Little bitch!" one man screamed, furiously jabbing his dark weapon into the palm of my hand.

I squealed in pain as I lost access to my only remaining limb. There was nothing left for me to do but lie there on the pavement as Al Tharmen's henchmen had their way with my deadened body.

"Now this looks like a fun time," a familiar voice echoed through the night air.

My eyes snapped open and I twisted my head around, looking up into the sky. His jet black braid swayed in the breeze as he hovered over us. His bright red eyes beamed in the darkness, a spark igniting in them when he caught sight of me on the ground.

I whined from where I was, hoping he'd hear me despite the metal pipe between my teeth.

"I'd been told Al Tharmen had sent some goons to tail us and bring us back to Kou but I didn't expect them to be equipped with dark metal vessels," Judar said as his feet met the ground. His entire demeanor had shifted from teasing to deadly serious as he crossed over towards us. "And to think both of you would try violating her before bringing her back. Disgusting, really," he growled.

I'd never seen Judar angry before but this didn't quite seem to match my definition of angry. The way his body moved in the darkness was terrifying, accompanied by a steely gaze.

My whole body trembled as I watched him catch one of the men by the mouth with one hand. He muttered something under his breath to the man before an icicle erupted from Judar's palm and plunged through the man's neck. Judar dropped the corpse to the ground before directed his gaze towards the other man.

The man began to scream and run, ducking into an alleyway and rounding the corner.

"Run as much as you like, you fat bastard," Judar said in a low tone, placing his hand against one of the buildings. The structure began to shake violently and the man's voice could be heard in an earsplitting scream from a few alleys down.

I wasn't sure I even wanted to know how Judar had Killed him.

At last, Judar's eyes met mine and I shivered under his heavy gaze. I half believed I was next when he made his way over, crouching beside me.

"They've gone and made a mess of you," he said quietly, almost sounding distraught about it. He pulled the pipe out of my mouth and tossed it aside.

"I don't need any help now," I squeaked, my insides churned at his closeness.

His brow furrowed as he pulled my dress back together. "Don't be stupid. You can't even walk and you're all bloodied up," he said. He scooped his arms underneath me but I rolled aside to escape his hold.

"I said I don't need your help!" I refuted angrily, choking back the sobs that had clustered in my throat.

Judar hesitated for a moment, watching me as he pondered over what my problem was. He sighed and knelt down in front of me with his back turned towards me. "Stop being stubborn and get on," he said.

I only stared at his back until he glanced back at me. "I don't know what your deal is this time but we can sort it out later. For now, I'm taking you back to King Moron's palace and getting you cleaned up," he said in a tone that made it clear I wasn't going to win.

I stifled my feelings for the moment and crawled up onto his back, allowing him to carry me piggy-back all the way back to the palace. I burrowed my face into his hair, not bothering to fight back the pools of tears that had spilled over my eyelids. I sobbed quietly into him, my whole body quaked with the feelings I'd kept bottled up all day.

Judar took notice of my current state and took a few back alley ways rather than traveling through the crowded festival, sparing me any further embarrassment until we reached the palace.