Ice-Eyed Monster

Pena leaped off the bed. "A Royal Ranger? There is a Royal Ranger here? We have to get out of here."

"Now now calm down Pena. It isn't that big a deal. He says he is just here to help catch the monster attacking students." Larian made hand gestures as if to calm the panicked monster girl.

"Um, have you forgotten I'm the one attacking students? Or that YOU are helping me?" Pena started pacing, running through her escape plan.

"Of course not. But that is obviously not why he is here. He is obviously here for me. I mean really why else would a Royal Ranger be here? They could care less about a few attacks on students. He sought me out right away, by name, and knew all about me. Obviously, I'm who he is after." Larian sighed as if having to explain to the girl the obvious fact was tiresome.

"Besides, if he is, we will just use our escape plan. I, you, and D will head back to your country." Larian added when the girl didn't seem to calm down.

Jane who had finished her meal feeling content suddenly jumped up panicked. "You can't take D away!"

When the three other occupants in the room looked at her she tilted her head out of habit to hide her scarred face. "I mean if you did then who would feed me. I'm not letting you take him away. He isn't involved in your schemes so you two can just leave together."

Pena was too worried about the Royal Ranger to even tease the girl over her poor excuse and instead turned back to Larian. "So what is the plan then?" Jane was left being ignored by everyone and managed to only stomp her foot in frustration once.

"Well for now we play along. I need to know what his goal is. If my father is trying to marry me off to one of those perfumed sows again I might just have to march back and… well never mind that for now." Turning to D who had gone back to his personal project Larian added. "I may have found us a Salamander finally. Now to figure out how to get it here without that stupid Ranger finding out. Or worse, the headmaster. I can't be fired right when things are getting interesting."

Pena looked between the mad mage and the anti-social monster before wondering if she shouldn't escape while she had the chance. Meanwhile, Jane was just happy it seemed her D wasn't leaving. Before anyone else could add anything the door opened and D's roommate Dean entered, stopping short when he found their small room crowded. As the boy froze feeling like an intruder in his own room the rest took his arrival as the sign to break for the evening.

**********

Pena entered her room and pulled out a sheet of very thin paper from her desk. Carefully she folded and creased the paper with practiced moves until she had a paper bird. Cupping the bird in her hands she whispered to it fervently before opening her window to let it fly away. 'That Larian is a mad man but Master seems to think highly of him. That and he thinks D could be of use when the war starts. It might be best to drag them away now before this ranger causes us any trouble. Still, I'll leave it up to him to decide.'

Closing the window Pena flopped on her bed feeling drained. Curling up to hug her pillow she cursed this ranger and his poor timing. For the first time in her life, she'd been having fun. Now all of that was threatened by a single man. With a curse, she hoped D did end up eating this ranger, yet just as quickly she hoped nothing major happened. 'Why does everything always go wrong.'

**********

"No no no. You are doing it all wrong. Have you all been paying any attention to my lessons?" Larian was getting frustrated as yet another student stuttered their chant causing their spell to go haywire. The boy who had fumbled his line tried his hardest not to look in the direction of the Royal Ranger watching over their exercise. Which meant he glanced at him every few seconds. Larian though had continued class as if the hulking man standing nearby with his arms crossed wasn't there.

"I'm sorry professor…'' The boy practically wailed out his apology as his mind couldn't keep from recalling every bad deed he'd ever committed while praying the Ranger didn't know of them. He wasn't alone as there wasn't anyone in the class who wasn't on the verge of a nervous breakdown in the Royal Ranger's presence. Except for Larian who was certain the Ranger was there for him so found no point in stressing over it. Well, D didn't seem stressed either but mostly because he was too busy controlling his hunger.

The class was currently practicing a restraining spell on a spider monkey. The small creature was only about two feet tall, with eight limbs and two tails. Currently, the target of their spells was crawling up the smooth stone wall that had been conjured in. It reached the barrier at the top and turned to the left scurrying along the wall much like a spider. Though other than its number of limbs it had no other spider-like traits. Still, the name had stuck at some point and so spider monkey it was. D wasn't sure if his control was getting better or if the small monster had so little to offer that the hunger pangs weren't very strong but he felt pretty confident that he was in control.

"Calm down. What's the matter with you boy?" Larian sounded exasperated. It never even dawned on him that the others could think the Ranger was there for them, after all since he was there it had to be about him.

Whispering the boy stuttered out. "T-that's a mage slayer. A royal executioner… " Unable to help himself the boy looked in the Ranger's direction and froze under the piercing gaze of those icy blue eyes.

"Oh him. Nothing to worry about. Really, that's all? Why would he care about you?" Larian's tone was incredulous. With a sigh, he sent the panicking boy to the back of the line and called the next student.

Dean continued to watch the mage studying him and finding his complete lack of fear annoying. 'I know you are hiding something. When I find it… You are mine mage! I know you are involved with this monster…You will lead me to it.'

Dean had to work to keep the hungry smile off his face while not ten feet away from him D's stomach growled loudly, though no one seemed to notice.

**********

"Sire! Sire! I have the most dire news. Most dire news!" Lemin burst into the king's study his skinny arms flailing around wildly. He was still just as scrawny as before, looking like a bundle of twigs wrapped in a set of fancy robes. King Melian put down his quill both annoyed at the interruption and overjoyed for an excuse to stop sighing paper.

"What is it now Lemin?" It seemed that the old seer was bursting into his study with alarming frequency. Yesterday he'd come by to warn the King his ride through the country would be spoiled by rain and begged him to take an umbrella. Of Course the day before that he warned him his afternoon tea would be poisoned by his own food taster of all people. It had saved his life yet again so he dared not complain.

"Let me guess. We are going to be invaded by… tree frogs?" The king chuckled, finding his own little joke funnier than he should have. 'Damn, I must really need some sleep.'

"No my liege, nothing so trivial as an invasion of tree frogs!" Lemin exclaimed, sounding completely serious. "No much MUCH worse. I've had a vision. A Destroyer marches on our kingdom. From the west, it comes! We must act fast or the kingdom is doomed. DOOMED I say!" Lemin moved closer as he exclaimed his wild hair seeming even messier than normal and the King could smell the wine on his breath.

"A Destroyer?" His proclamation of one of the ancient legends threatening his kingdom reminded him of his similar warning not too long ago. He'd sent his very best man to investigate and had yet to receive a report of any note. Still, the king couldn't dismiss the seer's claim.

"Yes my lord. Mighty it is! But never fear I have seen the solution to our troubles. You must but send your ice-eyed monster to deal with it. The ancient evil will be slain and the kingdom saved." Nodding rapidly the old man looked like his head might roll off his shoulders.

Frowning the King pondered the seer's odd words wondering who his ice-eyed monster was before a set of piercing blue eyes popped into his mind. Shaking his head he picked up his quill and pulled out a fresh piece of parchment to write a new order for his best Royal Ranger.

**********

Jane cursed the head of the cleaning staff as she did every time she was forced to lug water into the laundry room. She again wished there was an easier way to do this or at the very least the jealous old hag would pick someone bigger than her to lug the buckets of water. 'Maybe D can do some magic to help me. Make the water carry itself or something.' She was again reminded of the previous night's events and most importantly the fact that that untrustworthy mage had plans to take her D away. She alternated cursing the mage and her boss while trudging along. She was so distracted she never noticed someone approaching her until the heavy bucket was plucked from her hands. Towering over her a man smiled handsomely at her as he held the heavy bucket easily. His icy blue eyes pierced her making her suddenly self-conscious of her scars.

"Here let me give you a hand with that." A shiver ran down Jane's spine as the man smiled at her.