Crossroads sat on the floor of the living room counting the coins she
had just acquired from Kyuubey, lining up neat little stacks of gold
and silver on the table. It looked like there was plenty to last them
a while, which came as a great relief. But she wanted to know exactly
how much was there.

A thump issued from the door leading to Crossroads’ room, as if
someone had just bumped into that door. Shortly after, it opened up
and a very tired looking Tyrranis stepped out, stretching widely and
giving of a rather massive yawn. It seemed sleeping on the bed had
made him slow to waking up.

Upon hearing the noise, Crossroads turned her attention towards her
door and smiled lightly as Tyrranis emerged. "You've been sleeping a
lot. How are your injuries healing? Can I get you anything?" She asked
with a worried expression, pulling herself from the floor to her feet.

Tyrranis smacked his lips a few times, noting that his mouth is rather
dry. Still, the giganto shook his head at Cross. "It is fine, my
wounds do well. I am going to get some water though, do you want
some?"

"No. Let me get it for you." Crossroads said quickly, as she took a
few steps backwards towards the kitchen. Even if he was healing well
she still wanted him to take it easy, "Just sit down and rest. I'll be
right back." Before he could respond or protest, she turned and darted
into the kitchen.

Tyrranis took a seat on his usual piece of furniture and looked at the
table somewhat blearily. "Crossroads, when did we get a table full of
money? Were we not in financially difficult times?"

It is a mere moments later before Crossroads emerged from the kitchen
with a glass of cold water in her hand. "Not at the moment we aren't.
I still haven't found a job so if we aren't careful with this we could
be again." She sat down on the couch next to Tyrranis and offered the
glass to him. "This was from Kyuubey--er no. Not just from Kyuubey.
This is from a whole bunch of wishborn who donated money to help us
out. Even Kyrk, Molly, and the Twins contributed! I have the whole
list in my pocket. From what he told me, you asked this of him."

Tyrranis looked at the money on the table for a few minutes before
shrugging and taking the glass of water. He held off on answering
until he drank deeply from the cup to get rid of his cottonmouth. "I
had talked to him about our financial worries, and stated that I was
worried it could lead us to potential corruption due to worsened
living conditions. I did not expect such an amount though."

Crossroads looked down at the money herself. She hadn't been expecting
it at all. "Its a relief." she admitted quietly, "It's one less thing
on my mind at the moment, which is a good thing considering everything
that has been happening lately. Thank you so much Tyr. Really, I would
have never thought to ask Kyuubey.".

Tyrranis nodded to Crossroads. "It is fine. I did not really think of
it myself, as I recall I mentioned it in passing, though I could be
wrong." Tyrranis spent a moment or so attempting to remember before
shrugging again. "The last few days have been a bit of a blur. I do
not remember much of them."

"With the amount you've been sleeping, I'm not surprised. I think I
would lose track of things too. But you really seemed to need your
rest. And while I was worried and wanted to talk to you I didn't want
to bother you." Crossroads paused then looks up for a moment,
wondering how she should bring some of these things about now that he
was awake. "I have a couple things for you."

Tyrranis cocked his head to the side. "Oh? What are they?" He seemed
rather interested, which could stem from the fact that the giganto
doesn't exactly receive many presents on a daily basis.

Crossroads stood up and walked over to one of the shelves woven into
the vines of the living room and pull down a small decorative
container. She withdrew a couple of items from it, then placed it back
where she got it. "Well, I guess first..." She held up the grief seed
she had acquired from the witch she fought.

Tyrranis watched her with interest, and as she held up the grief seed,
he raised a hairless eyebrow. "You encountered a corruption while I
was asleep? Did you fair well against it?"

"It had just hatched and was really weak. The fact that I could take
it down on my own indicates that much." Crossroads offered the grief
seed to him, a frown crossing her face, "The witch wasn't the problem
with this one though. Its how it came to be that bugs me. Apparently
people are trying to fight our battles themselves."

Tyrranis took the gem and examined it. "You mean other people tried to
fight this witch? That was ill advised. I suppose you stopped them
before they were injured then?"

"By the time I stepped in it looked as though a boy had been injured.
Somehow she managed to pull a bunch of people in with her." Crossroads
took a seat on the couch again, pulling her legs up and wrapping her
arms around them, "From what I heard afterwards this was from a fight
with a yoma they had. A robot not under contract with Kyuubey made off
with the grief seed. The cat and the robot had a fight, and then
Kyuubey left the grief seed behind." She sighed and shook her head
slowly. "That’s what I was told anyway. It seems weird for a grief
seed to go from being a yoma to a witch. I am not sure I have all the
facts."

Tyrranis nodded along with Crossroads. "It seems that if someone is
stupid enough to let a seed re-awaken, then the seed mutates. With any
luck they will learn that these battles are not theirs to fight, but
ours. Still, this seed is an unusual thing. If you gained any
corruption, we shall cleanse you with it, and then return it to the
wish granter as soon as possible."

Crossroads leaned back, pulled the chain holding her soul gem out from
under her shirt and held it out so that Tyrranis could see it "I
didn't get very much corruption. I should still be in good shape for a
while."

Tyrranis took the gem gently into his hand, and pressed the seed to it
regardless. "If we keep all of ourselves as low as possible for as
long as possible, then we have a greater chance of survival. That is
how I see it."

She let him take hold of it without any protest as she couldn't
exactly argue. While they had been low on money, it seemed that they
were rich in grief seeds lately. The sooner they were used up and
handed to kyuubey, the less chance they would have to come back.
"Speaking of survival Tyr..." Crossroads' hand reached for his, "I
yelled at the group that was at the fountain, but later one approached
me and mentioned something about cell phones. Do you know what they
are? From what she described I think they could be very useful to us."
After all, it would make things easier in contacting one another.
Crossroads probably wouldn't have to worry about Tyrranis fighting
alone and coming home injured again.

Tyrranis let go of her gem after cleansing it, and turns his hand to
grasp hers. "Not particularly, though I am not caught up on all of the
things that most people are."

"Apparently you can contact people at a long distance and talk to them
by using them. So if you're alone and you come across a witch or a
yoma maybe you could get a hold of me... Or even Lora!" Crossroads
squeezed his hand gently, lowering her gaze. "That way we can come
running to your side when you need us."

Tyrranis hummed, contemplating this thought. "Would it be possible to
get some now that we have extra money? The idea sounds like a good one
at the least, if not for you two helping me, then the other way
around."

Crossroads casted a glance at the stacks of coins on the coffee table.
The idea seemed tempting, but at the same time there was no guarantee
as to when she'd be able to get a job. And from the way that moogle
made it sound these cell phone things were expensive. Would it be wise
to make such a purchase knowing that? On the other hand, they could be
potentially life saving. What if Tyrranis ended up fighting another
battle on his own while she was out looking for a job? She couldn't
stand even thinking about it! "I...I don't know how much they cost but
I suppose this money could go towards them." She said, finally.

Tyrranis spoke once more. "Alternatively, we can ask the Wish Granter
if there are any witches he knows about in the area, since his sense
is stronger than that of our Gems. And, if there are none in the area,
we can focus on collecting more money for a short period of time,
until they return."

"Yeah, asking him first might be a good idea." Crossroads nodded as
she considered this plan, "Though if there are witches and yoma in the
area, that would be all the more reason to get them.”

Tyrranis shook his head. "If there are witches and yoma in the area,
then we kill them. Then we find some way to collect more money.
Witches and Yoma always take priority. Also: these cell phones might
not be all that expensive. The woman could just be wrong about it."

"True. It couldn't hurt to look." She glanced down at her other hand,
still clutching the other surprise she had for Tyrranis. She remained
silent for a moment, then said "Could you promise me that you'll not
fight them alone again?" Crossroads knew that he probably couldn't
make that kind of promise. But part of her wanted some sort of
assurance that the situation would never happen again.

Tyrranis looked over Crossroads, and then sighed. "I can try, but if
there is a danger and I can stop it, then I have to. It is the thing
that the Wish Granter gave me my wish for."

Crossroads frowned and looked up at him, "Kyuubey is not going to
fault you for picking and choosing your battles Tyr." She paused. What
had that damn cat say again when she last talked to it? " 'Better a
delayed destruction of a witch than an early warriors grave'. He said
that himself. He said you could always seek help."

Tyrranis considered these words slowly, before nodding to Crossroads.
"I suppose if the witches are not an immediate source of threat, I can
come find someone else to help me. This sounds like a reasonable
idea."

Crossroads pulled his hand closer to her, pressing her cheek to it.
Considering his injuries she was afraid hugging him would only cause
him pain. "I'm sorry. Its just... I don't want to lose you to a witch
or yoma. Especially if I could have been there to help you."

Tyrranis is feeling better enough that his wounds aren't a huge issue
to him, so he scooted closer to Crossroads and wrapped her in a hug on
his own. "I will not fall that easily. I still have many years of life
left in me."

Crossroads carefully placed an arm around Tyrranis, still wanting to
be cautious even if his wounds are doing better. "Then I'll try not to
worry so much." She smiled lightly as she rested her head against him.
She had missed his embrace. "But keep in mind I will still worry about
you." she added with a small laugh.

Tyrranis gave off a soft sigh. "I am sorry Crossroads, I know you
worry about me. I had not meant to come home in that condition, but it
was something that felt urgent. So I took care of it."
Crossroads gave a sigh of her own and pulls herself out of the
embrace, shifting on the couch so she is facing him, "I know." She
said softly, shoulders sagging.

Tyrranis shifted as well, so that he was facing her. He then set his
hand on the top of her head and rubbed it playfully. "Are you okay?"
The giganto didn't want to bring Crossroads down and make her
depressed, so he tried giving her a smile.

"Yeah. I'm okay." She nodd and gaves him a small smile thinking
perhaps it would be best to keep her worrying about him to herself.
Crossroads looked around for a moment, trying to think of something to
change the topic. "You know, I said I had a couple things for you. I
haven't gotten to the second thing yet."

Tyrranis again seemed interested, while the first thing had brought
about sadness, perhaps this next thing could lighten their mood. "What
is the second thing you have for me?"

" Well..." With Tyr's hand on her head, Crossroads simply reached up
and carefully tied a bracelet around his wrist. Once it is securely in
place she smiled at him. "It’s made with the shells I picked up on the
beach."

Tyrranis looked at the bracelet before giving a soft smile at it. "It
looks very nice, thank you Crossroads." Tyrranis pulled her into a hug
again, because there wasn’t really anything else to do at that point.

Crossroads was relieved that Tyrranis seemed to like it and was more
than happy to be pulled back into a hug. "I'm glad you think so. If
you are uncomfortable wearing I tied the knot so it can easily be
removed if you wanted to. Or even loosened up a little if I made it
too tight."

Tyrranis said ' It fits well Crossroads. I will wear them for a long
period of time, until circumstance takes them away from me. And when I
see them, I can think of you, and it will do my heart good.'

Crossroads blushed at his response, "Then I am happy I made it. It was
amazing that they survived the trip home all things considered. Maybe
they are lucky too." She giggled, then leaned up to kiss him gently.

Tyrranis let Crossroads kiss him, even reciprocating it a bit before
he pulled back, smiling lightly. "This is a good thing. I, however,
feel the need to return to bed. I will soon be fully healed, and I
want to hasten that goal."

Crossroads nodded, understanding his need for rest. "I'll let you get
back to bed then." despite her words, she seemed a little hesitant as
she let go of him at first. "Have a good sleep, okay? And if you need
anything just call me"

Tyrranis stood and smiled at her. "I will, thank you Crossroads." He
gave her a small wave before returning to the bedroom he had been
using.