Lana pulled from her brother's embrace and wiped away the tear that managed to escape her eye without her permission.
"We should go down and eat."
As the last word escaped her lips, she heard a displeased sound emanating from her twin's core. She chuckled, "as I was saying…"
She picked up Kent, ""Shall we?"
Dobin grinned, "Have I ever refused food?"
She grinned, "exactly…"
Moments later they were on the ground and sitting at the table. The plates had just been served so it was the perfect temperature. Lana leaned over and kissed Klye before digging in. Dobin gave his brother a fist-bump and a smile. The rest of the meal, they discussed their day. This was Tanisha's first day in this setting. She introduced herself to everyone. She was exhausted but she still wanted to make a good impression. These were the friends of the Family Head.
When they went to do their after-meal sparring, she observed first. She was shocked at their lack of fighting skills. This was a different world from the one she grew up in. She was suddenly glad she could hone her skills with her brother and her new sister.
An hour later, those who wanted to use Power Fighter left to do so. Kattie decided to train with Sven while Lana and Kyle went to their room in the tree. Tanisha, Sam and Rene went back to the dorms to study or sleep.
Kyle made sure just enough candles were lit to provide light and lend a little romance to the atmosphere. He put his arm around his wife and kissed her tenderly.
"Let's lay down for a bit. I want to talk to you about your ribbon."
Lana nodded at his sudden serious expression and got comfortable.
Kyle lay next to her propped on an elbow so he could see her face. "First, I don't know how old the ribbon is, but I do know its history." He brushed his fingers over her cheek to make sure she maintained eye contact. "It belonged to a fairy, an ancient matriarch of the family. She married a grandfather at some point, had some kids and left."
He held her gaze and continued, "none of us ever had any of her talents but one of her children one day had an ability where he could copy her talents. Abilities took a long time to become known to the public but in private, abilities have been around for thousands of years. They were the ruling class. My family tended to be high-level knights, lords, ladies and such. Advisors. We also documented the abilities of those we served. The original ability books, if you were."
Taking a deep breath, "we amassed wealth and stashed it away. In fact, when Kingdoms fell, often my family would flee with the best treasure items. We always maintained good relations with the fae folk, but they went missing about 500 years ago. They always hid from humans, but they were worried about our encroachment. That ribbon was a gift from them. The problem was, no one could use it. It takes mana from beasts, the equivalent of MC, and gives it to the wearer. Permanently."
Lana's eyes twitched curiously.
Kyle took a deep breath then continued slowly, "while the immediate descendants could copy her powers, we are very watered down now. I think, based on what you can do, that you are some form of fae but not fully awakened. Clearly you are not a centaur or a sprite, but you could be a general fairy, a dragon, a unicorn, or a pixie if our records are correct."
Kyle exhaled, paying close attention to her face, looking for any expression of doubt or worse.
After what felt like an eternity, "so, even though I'm not human, we can still have children?"
Kyle smiled broadly, "I see no reason why there would be a problem."
Lana bit her bottom lip in a way he just couldn't resist and quickly met hers with his. It didn't take long before the slow burning fire within them ignited into an inferno. The clothes had already come off so the candles weren't a threat to their safety. Kent covered his eyes and ears the minute the kissing started.
The couple heard the alarms going off on their watches and knew it meant they needed to return to their room. While intimately engaged, Kyle ran his arm under his wife's head and took Kent's paw between two fingers. With as much of his body touching his wife as possible, he enacted an ability.
First, a gust of wind blew the candles out and they were engulfed in darkness. Kent continued to sleep while Lana suddenly felt the soft sensation of her new silken sheets. She smiled into a kiss. Feverishly running her fingers through her husband's hair, she grazed her finger nails down his back.
Kyle gasped and the passionate expression intensified. Soon they were finished. Kyle got up to get a cloth to clean her up. Inwardly, Kyle was thanking whatever power may exist that his max MC went up so he could now teleport between the tree and the dorms without having to bounce somewhere in between. She went to cover herself and he stopped her hand just as it touched their blanket.
Shaking his head, "I want to admire you, please?"
She giggled and nodded. After he had them both cleaned up, he slowly approached the bed. He clearly liked what he saw. He sighed and covered her up then climbed in on his side of the bed. He wrapped his arms around her and cuddled.
Kyle whispered in her ear, "the marks on your neck are already fading. I must do a better job."
Lana laughed and he smiled into her shoulder giving it a kiss. "Sleep well, Beautiful Butterfly."
Lana smiled and sighed happily, "sweet dreams, My Love."
She gave the sleeping Kent a pet and was sound asleep within moments. They had very little sleep the night before and Tanisha didn't get any. Three people slept well that night.
Over the next few weeks, they settled into their routine. Lana had someone from the Beastiary Family give Kent a checkup. She was given a set of instructions to work with him to help him become more confident and willing to be in touch with the ground more. By the end of April, Kent was willing to walk at Lana's side, and the teams had been announced for the special portal outing. They had one week to prepare.
The team members had all been working hard, studying their books. When the teams were announced, Lana checked everyone's ability levels. From Blaine's team,
Karlen: 6 (speed)
Blaine: 7 (copy)
Chekof: 6 (transformation)
Rene: 7 (healing)
Tobias: 5 (wind, going to 7)
Tanisha: 7 (copy)
Tobias was still studying the books Blaine had purchased for him. He purchased the level 8 healing book for Rene and hoped she would learn it well.
From Lana's team,
Lana: 6 (plants)
Kattie: 7 (beast tamer)
Dobin: 5 (earth, going to 8)
Alto: 7 (water, topped out)
Almin: 7 (metal)
Duff: 5 (stat swap)
Kattie had gained another level while helping Lana teach Kent. It gave her ideas, things she could try with Sven. Alto felt himself top out even though he obtained the level. Thanks to wedding presents, Lana purchased the level 8 book for Almin and wished him luck. She also bought Duff a level 6 book to study. She had been given millions of credits as well as partial ownership of the field kitchens. This meant she would also receive a portion of the profits.
And Paul's team,
Paul: 10 (nanotech)
Jessy: 8 (strength)
Sean: 6 (ice)
Marie: 5 (phasing)
Sam: 8 (deflection/shield)
Paul purchased the level 9 books for Jessy and Sam even though Sam wasn't quite ready for it. Sam's ability didn't exactly have a lot of skills. His book opened up his MC but he needed to use it and gain experience. The next book would simply grant more MC and maybe a new idea on how to manipulate the shielding ability.
Paul had also invented a portable lab that could attach to the deluxe kitchen. He modified Lana's prototype to accept an attached dome. It would work with or without it. There was now a back door. There was a button at the door labeled attach which would seal the path between the two doors when both domes were in use together.
The lab itself, while also a dome, the walls were higher at 4 ½ feet to make better use of the square footage. The lab equipment provided was stainless steel. Everything else had to be carried in Lana's bracelet. The lab also had sleeping accommodation for the scientist and two lab assistants. This meant, in ideal conditions, Lana and Kyle could sleep in there with Tanisha and allow Kattie and Almin to use the other room. The commercial was cut and added to her weekly payments.
The teams collected all their gear from Bonol and Lana published 2 of her papers. She had also completed most of her finals so she could finish the last paper once they returned. The day before the final outing, the three teams were called to meet the general in an empty classroom.