"She wants to what???"

Janet sighed loudly at Jason. "Look, I've said it a million times already, how many more times do I have to say it until you actually hear me? She's going to stay!"

"Yea, right, I get it!" Jason was shaking his head. "But, I mean, what the hell? Okay, hasn't it already been clarified that there is no cure for this thing? I mean, actual doctors have tried to cure these kids and they still haven't come up with anything."

"Yea, well, if Lucy thinks she can do it, then I guess she knows something those doctors don't know, alright?" Janet crossed her arms and gave Jason a sharp stare. "So stop complaining about it already and deal with it!"

Jason simply went back to muttering under his breath and began to pace in a small circle around the room. The group, minus Lucy, was in the living room of Robert's house. His mother, Mrs. Anderson, had told them that she would offer them the living room to stay in while Lucy was trying to help Robert. Mrs. Anderson was currently in the kitchen cooking dinner for her guests while they were talking about Lucy's sudden commitment to healing of the sick Robert. Brandon, who was sitting on Mrs. Anderson's couch, glanced over to where Ray was leaning against the wall.

"I don't think it's a smart idea to stay here more then one night. We'll be wasting too much time."

Ray shrugged helplessly. "I don't think we could get Lucy to leave here until she's kept her word to Mrs. Anderson..." Ray sighed. "And we can't just leave her here."

This was true. If Lucy stayed, then Ray's group was as good as gone. Brandon would of course have to stay with Lucy, and Janet and Jason would probably just end up staying with the windian as well, seeing as how she was the reason those two had come along in the first place. Plus, it was rather pointless for Ray to go out on his own. He knew where to find the demon, yes, but taking a journey like that alone basically guaranteed that he wouldn't make it that far on his own. Plus, Lucy had been the whole reason for the start of this journey. To leave her behind would mean leaving behind one of the main reasons for the quest in the first place.

Though I suppose I would have ended up just having to run out and fight the thing myself sooner or later. Ray sighed quietly to himself. It was an odd thought, but a true one. He had been raised with the training that someday he'd have to go out and fight some demon, so better he go and get it over with now when he's got a small group with him then having to run off and fight it solo. Ray chuckled to himself for a moment. They say this is destiny, but it just feels like a test in History class. You know you'll have to do it sometime, it's a pain to go through, and you'd rather have the help of more people then just relying on yourself to get it right.

"Dinner's ready." Mrs. Anderson came walking into the room, brushing her hands off on her apron. "Where's Lucy?" She glanced around the small group, searching for the girl who had originally offered her services to curing her son.

Janet shrugged. "Out strategizing I bet. She shouldn't be gone too long though. Maybe one of us should go look for her?" Janet offered the question to the entire group but turned her gaze to Brandon, expecting he'd be the first to offer.

"I'll go." No one really had a chance to respond to Ray's offer before he was out the door. Janet looked over at Brandon who was still seated on the couch, watching the door that had just closed behind the dragon.

"Be careful." Janet smirked. "He just might take you're job if you're not quick enough." Brandon just gave her a 'yea, right' look and he, Jason, and Janet made their way into the kitchen.

"So I don't suppose you have any ideas on how to help the kid out yet, do you?" Ray and Lucy were standing just outside the Anderson's house. It was late in the day, and the sun had begun to set. It had taken Ray a few minutes to track down Lucy who had been wandering about the city, but he finally got a hold of her, telling her that Mrs. Anderson had made them dinner, and had brought Lucy back the their host's house.

Lucy shrugged. "I might, but I'm not too sure. I think I'll know by tonight."

Ray gave her an odd look. "You know something, don't you?" Lucy just shrugged again. Ray studied her face for a moment.

"What is it you know?"

"I really don't know if I know anything." Lucy sighed. "It's a hunch really, ever since I first saw that weird face in the tree I've been thinking..."

"About what?" Ray leaned up against the side of the house. Lucy shrugged again.

"Well, see, back in Windia, a few days before we left, I was sitting in the library reading this book. It had to do with mythical creatures and demons that have been told in Windian fairy tales and ghost stories for a long time now."

Ray nodded. "And?"

"Well... I was also thinking about what Jason had said when we first started out. About how usually when a demon rises, it affects the wild creatures and turns them into sort of mini demons... But, we would have known about those if that were the case. You said yourself that Jim would have warned us about that."

Ray nodded again. Lucy sighed and was silent for a moment as she collected her thoughts.

"Well, maybe the demon that awakened is doing something a bit different. Maybe it's creating it's own demons or something, things based off of fairy tales..."

Ray raised an eyebrow curiously. "That's an interesting theory. But, wouldn't that mean that the demon would have had to have known about these tales before it created the demons?"

"Well," Lucy paused again, thinking. "Well, Jim said something about the demon having existed before now. Remember he mentioned that it had been destroyed once before, but has reawakened now. Maybe it heard about this stuff back before it was destroyed the first time?"

Ray chuckled lightly. "A demon interested in Windian culture and stories... that's defiantly an interesting idea..."

"Yea well," Lucy sighed loudly, "it's just a theory. How else would you explain how that weird face was just like the creature I had read in that book?"

"Hey, I didn't say you were wrong." Ray offered an apologetic look. "I just think it's a bit odd though, a demon who knows enough about a race's culture to start making monsters and demons based off of things in fairy tales."

"Yea, I guess it is, huh?" Lucy offered a light smile. "Well, I suppose I'll find out tonight though if my theory is right."

Ray gave her a curious look. "Why? What's tonight?"

"Tonight's when I figure out if I can really help Robert or not." Lucy turned and glanced at the front door of the Anderson's house. Ray was about to ask her what she had meant by her last comment when Lucy spoke up again.

"Come on, Ray. Let's get inside. It's starting to get dark out, and I'm sure the others are wondering about us. Plus, I'm kind of hungry." Lucy made her way into the house, Ray following after her silently.