Ah, there he was.

"Ziana! I smell blood. What happened?" He shouted.

Neo's footsteps grew closer until I felt his shadow cast over me. I opened one eye weakly, waving my hand at him.

"Neo..." I sighed.

He didn't speak again, and I let my eye slip closed. Angry chittering met my ears as he grew closer to pick me up. The cat-bird was mad. A sharp gasp escaped me as my thigh pressed into his stomach, and he chattered again.

I swear, I got more conversation out of a chicken.

My body swung softly as he scaled the mountainside without hands, following the path up to the house. The vines swished as the darkness of the cave approached. Neo was still chittering, even as he cleared my bed and stripped my clothes from my body.

"Ziana? You still with me?" He murmured.

I mumbled what I believed to be a yes, and he sighed heavily.

"There are three fucking arrows in your body. What the fuck did you do?" He chastised. "I'm going to have to take them out."

Huh, Neo cursing. Rarely heard that happen. Even when we fucked, he didn't curse.

Ugh, my brain....

I groaned softly, but let him get to work. I kept my eyes shut, dancing between reality and unconsciousness. He had cut my skin with a small knife before pulling out the arrow. He was quiet as he then cleaned the wound and stitched me back up. The first two arrows were manageable, eliciting a mere hiss from me, but the third...

The moment he pulled it out, he cursed loudly at the sudden wetness that coated my skin. He lifted my limp hand, forcing me to hold some fabric against my stomach as he scrambled around the room.

"Goodness Ziana!" He hissed, coming back to push my hand away.

I let it slip to the side, thinking about how ruined my clothes and now my bed were going to be. He better have not put me on top of my new fur blanket. I only just made that, and it was lovely and warm.

My head swam as he cleaned my wound. The sharp, agonising pain felt like I was being stabbed over again. Someone had stabbed before me, but never in the stomach and never this deep.

I felt Neo stitch it up, mopping up the blood as he went along. He was chittering, a strange trilling coming from his throat as my mind started to shut down. All I could feel was Neo's wonderful touch on my skin, my mind happy with his warmth.

I was finally passing out! Thank you mind for allowing that after making me stay awake during the whole surgery thing.

Ten points to you.

"Stupid fae." I grunted before falling into slumber.

***

In the days that passed, Neo treated me like an infant instead of a badass warrior.

I outran a pack of wolves and a stupid fae! I mean, three was more than one, so it was definitely a pack, right?

It was day six, and it was the last day of the year. In those six days, not once did the big bad wolf come and find me. I was the champion, after all, and champions don't quit. Hence, my current situation.

"Please!" I begged. "I don't want to watch the fireworks from up here! Please let me go to the celebrations!"

"It is not safe, Ziana!" Neo huffed.

"I won't go near the main crowds! I promise! You can even come with me!"

He chittered. "Ziana... You are still improving. If someone was to hurt you again..."

"They won't." I shook my head.

"You cannot promise that, Ziana. The wolves are still around."

"They're probably in Salkyr by now for the celebrations!" I grasped his arm. "I won't go near anyone, and it will be dark. Your damn spit did most of the mending work!"

"Zee..." He frowned, cupping my cheeks. "You know how I feel about you. I hate seeing you in danger."

Feel about me? Neo had grown odd the past couple years, his concern for my safety as gyrating as my father's. Shaking off the thoughts, I clasped my hands together.

"Nee..." I mimicked, giving him my puppy dog eyes.

He sighed heavily, and I knew I had won. My lips curled into a grin before he even opened his mouth, and I was wrapping my arms around his waist and kissing his cheek.

"See, I knew you'd come around." I teased.

"I will wait for you up here." He muttered.

"Your ever-prevailing eagle eye." I grinned. "Why don't you just come down with me?"

"I am safer up here." He shook his head.

I pouted. "You never go to the markets or towns."

"Because they will know I am a griffon." He grunted.

"We have lived up here for over a decade. They would've found your scent by now!"

He sighed, and I stepped down, knowing he would not change his mind.

"I will watch from up here." He avoided my gaze.

"Okay." I murmured.

"You better get ready, then. You're still slow."

I gasped, faux slapping him. "You calling me slow?"

He smirked. "You gained three two-inch wounds. You are only six days healed. I bet if I poked you, you would cry."

"Oh, yeah?" I challenged. "Dare ya?"

His smirk broadened, hands darting out to poke me right in the stomach. I jumped out of the way just in time. He laughed, calling me a chicken as I ran toward my clothes. I busied myself in getting ready as Neo did... whatever Neo did when I wasn't looking. I made sure to layer up, grabbing my dagger and spare hooded cloak.

I didn't like this one much. The fabric was heavy and often slid down my shoulders.

I missed my old cloak already. I wonder what the wolf did with it. Did he tear it like a dog toy?

What if he peed on it?

My nose wrinkled; I really hope he didn't. That was my favourite stolen cloak.

Spinning around, I found Neo was nowhere in sight. Huffing, I pocketed some fruits for the journey and left the cave. The sun was setting, so I hoped I made it in time. They didn't do the fireworks until the moon was bright in the sky, but this was my first time actually going down the mountain to them. Neo was lucky that I didn't push going to Salkyr.

"Neo?" I called, looking around.

He wasn't on any of the pathways...

There was a scraping noise, followed by a few falling pebbles that bounced off my shoulders. My eyebrows furrowed, looking up to see where they had come from.

Above me stood a proud cat-bird. It was peering down at me, its golden beak long and sharp. Its head was enormous, with bright yellow eyes gazing down at me as it cocked its head. I eyed the white feathers before the huge front talons caught my eye. They were massive, as long as my hand, as they curled around the edge of the rock and sent more debris tumbling.

The cat end was less impressive, with strong back legs and a lion tail. It was his fluffy cute side, and Neo hated it when I made fun of his cute butt.

Neo trilled, making me lift my gaze back to his strange yellow eyes. He raised his head, puffing his feathers before spreading his wings. I eyed the huge wingspan, the magnificent white feathers clean and unused. A frown covered my face, and I crossed my arms, unimpressed.

I wasn't a child anymore; no magical creature fazed me now.

"You are trying to show off the two things you don't even use." I scoffed.

He squawked, those yellow eyes narrowing down at me. A sly grin lifted my lips, and I reached up to smack his claws. He huffed a protest, lifting his paw out of my reach.

"If only you could fly, I could be there within ten breaths." I sighed dramatically.

He growled at me, but I just laughed it off and began my descent. The first few slants were easy on my joints, but when it got to where I had to use my body more, pain spread like fire in my muscles. I heard Neo making strange bird noises above before he graced me with his wonderful presence.

"Oh, how lovely to see you, cat-bird." I teased.

He growled and lowered his head.

"You're actually going to carry me down? This is a day for the record books." I teased. "What happened to making me learn on the job?"

Neo bristled, and I wasted no further time sliding onto his back. He wasn't very broad, so I sat rather nicely on his front shoulders. His body was warm, and I rarely got to ride his back. One time I did, and his weird electric magic made me feel things down below that I should not feel.

My hands dug into his feathers, and, with a sharp, mocking kick, I cried out for victory.

"To the trees, cat-bird!"

He hissed, bending his long bird neck to nip my knee. I complained, smacking his beak, but he merely moved it to nibble on my boots. I huffed, shoving his face away and telling him to get going. Thankfully, he did; not having the appetite for human flesh today.

It took a quarter of the time to make it down the mountains. Neo's griffon form meant he had a good grip, and he could jump a lot better before floating down with his wings. This is what he called 'flying' whenever I would tease his inability to soar. His muscles bunched and talons clicked with every leap before we finally settled on the ground.

I was grinning when I climbed from his back.

I loved riding his cat-bird form, but he rarely let me. Neo believed that I had to earn my way and learn as I went. I suppose being injured made his heart swell an inch with sympathy.

"Thanks, cat-bird!" I quipped.

He chirped, jostling me with his stupid head. His griffon form was fairly large, and his head just above mine. I reckon he was the size of a lion, coming to my chest, but his long ass giraffe neck made up for it.

Patting the side of his head, I agreed with his complaints. "Yeah, yeah, I will be careful."

He nervously squawked, and I rolled my eyes, bending down to kiss his bird face.

"There, I just took away your worries." I grinned.

His yellow eyes narrowed as his large beak, the size of my forearm, nibbled at the ends of my hood. I had tied my hair into a hat again, as usual, which was often a popular target.

"Go on, cat-bird, watch over me, guardian angel." I pushed him away by the beak.

Those yellow eyes narrowed on me again before he raised his wings and flapped them once, hard. The gust of wind it brought had me stagger back onto my ass and a sharp hiss to escape me as it forced me to catch myself. My arm burned and when Neo gave me an I-told-you-so look, I knew he did it to remind me of my current state.

No further sounds were exchanged as the catbird scaled the mountain again. I remained sat on the floor, watching him as he elegantly jumped over the rough terrain. It always impressed me how easily he could climb, but I suppose being part cat helped.

Standing from the ground, I brushed the dirt from my backside and pulled my hood back over my head. Making sure I was all good, I checked my pockets for the berries I stored. Thankfully, I did not fall on them, and they were still ready to eat.

Popping a few into my mouth, I knew Somerval was only on the other side of the forest now and it would take me an hour to arrive if I was lucky. The twigs and leaves crunched beneath my feet, the cold frost of winter chilling my bones as the night grew. I could see the moon through the treetops, not needing to look where I was going since I knew the dark forest too well by now.

When I finally set foot on Somerval's grounds, I saw the market in the far distance. The smell of hot food and drinks wafted along the cool breeze as the firelight glowed in the setting sun. People of all kinds were chatting, filling the air with a dull murmur. The only markets on tonight were food and drink, but it didn't stop the back-street vendors from roaming the crowds with various things stuffed in their large coats.

I couldn't help but smile as I walked closer, wrapping my hands around my cloak tighter.

That was another thing about my old cloak; it had deeper pockets.

I would avenge you, dear cloak. It will not be the end.