“You know him, Allie?” the knight, which Ares guessed was Enyo, asked.


    “Mhm, he’s one of the people we’re going on the mission with.”


    “Him? Ugh. Why on earth did Zhang recommend we let him tag along?”


    “I’m standing right here you know?” Ares was waving his hand.


    “Tsk, don’t tell me that silly little burglar cowering behind you is the other person coming along?”


    “He is. What of it? Also, are you Enyo then?”


    “I am. As for him, you best keep him on a tight leash. If he steals from Allie again, I’ll be sure to dole out the appropriate punishment.”


    “Wait, please, this is all just a misunderstanding,” Aejaz finally plucked up the courage to speak. “I was just trying to help, honestly.”


    “Like hell you were! How is stealing helping?” Enyo wasn’t buying it.


    Even Ares wasn’t truly convinced he was telling the truth, this was Aejaz after all.


    “No really, I was. I, err, just can’t explain to you why.”


    “Oh, well isn’t that convenient?” Allie wasn’t particularly happy with this shifty person. “Ares, can you promise to keep him away from my stuff?”


    “Sure, but that probably won’t be necessary. If he says he has a reason, then I’ll reserve judgement for his actions until I’ve at least heard his excuse.” Ares was really interested in what kind of reasoning Aejaz was going to come up with.


    “But it’s really awkward.” Aejaz was getting a little fidgety. Ares narrowed his eyes and gave Aejaz a death stare. The death stare was effectively an ultimatum that said ‘If you don’t tell me what happened and why, I’ll beat it out of you.’ “Fine, fine, fine. Just you though. Come here.” Aejaz brought Ares a little further away and spoke in a quiet voice despite not being in hearing range anymore, “Look... Allie is really damn cute, ok?”


    “What the fuck kind of explanation is that!?” Ares was baffled. This moron was clearly starting in the wrong place.


    “Wait, wait. I saw her wandering around and I was thinking, ‘man, I really wanna be Allie’s-oop’, if you know what I’m sayin’.”


    Ares rolled his eyes and resisted the urge to smack Aejaz across the entire fair and back.


    “So yeah, I’m thinking, ‘how do I start a conversation with her’, Right?”


    “Ok.”


    “And then I hear that she’s an alchemist.”


    “Ok.”


    “So, then I have a brilliant idea.”


    “Ok.”


    “So, I decided to steal a pill from her.”


    “You’ve lost me.”


    “Listen. I was going to increase the quality of the pill, you know, use it as an icebreaker and a gift kind of thing.”


    “So, do tell. What went wrong with this flawless plan of yours, Cassanova?”


    “The pill attacked me”


    “Ok… Wait… No. Not ok.”


    “Look!” Aejaz lowered the collar of shirt and revealed a bite mark. “The little piece of shit bit me!”


    Ares smirked. “Huh, would you look at that? You got your ass kicked by a pill.”


    “Not helpful, Ares.”


    “That doesn’t sound like the kind of tone you should be taking if you''re asking for my help, brother.”


    “Damn, you can be an ass sometimes. Fine, whatever, please help me out, o’ wise sagely brother of mine.”


    “It’s quite simple. Tell them the truth.”


    “Are you insane!? Yeah, sorry I stole from you; I just thought you were really cute is all! LIKE HELL THAT’LL WORK.”


    “Listen. I said to tell the truth, I didn’t say not to make some… ‘Omissions’. Tell them that I told you about them. Tell them that I told you we were travelling with a girl named ‘Allie’. Tell them you just happened to overhear her name, and that she was an alchemist, as you were walking around. Tell them you wanted to break the ice by using that trick of yours as a way of saying hello and giving them a gift. DO NOT TELL THEM YOU HAVE A THING FOR ALLIE. If you leave out that ‘tiny’ detail, they might forgive you. Capiche?”


    “Capiche. That’s actually really simple. Why didn’t I think of that?”


    “Because you’re a coward whose first instinct is to run away from conflict despite being having the capacity to resolve it yourself?”


    “...”


    “What are you waiting for? An invitation? Get your sorry ass over there and fix your mistake.” Ares booted Aejaz back over towards the two girls who were looking at him with narrowed eyes.


    Aejaz explained himself to Allie and Enyo which also meant he had to explain his unique aspect. Allie was rather surprised to have found another person with a unique aspect and decided to forgive and forget this harmless little first encounter as his actions weren’t malicious. Enyo, though, was as stern and unrelenting in her steely piercing gaze as ever. Aejaz couldn’t see her face through the helmet but he knew she was staring daggers at him.


    “Right, well, not that this hasn''t been fun, but I need to go set up the fireworks for later.” Ares let Appa strap back onto him and was about to head off.


    “THERE ARE GONNA BE FIREWORKS!?” Allie was beyond excited.


    “Yep, I made a few after Rud ‘asked’ me to.”


    “YAY, I love fireworks! Can I come and see them? Can I? Can I? Can I?” Allie’s eyes were practically beaming.


    “I don’t mind, but it’s not going to be particularly interesting. For now, I’m just burying them in preparation for later.”


    “Burying them? Also, I don’t have you pegged as the pyrotechnic–type.” Enyo still wasn’t altogether too trusting of these two bandits.


    The author''s tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.


    “They aren’t traditional fireworks, so I’ll be using magic to set them off which requires burying them before-hand. Also, no, I’m not a pyrotechnic, but I do specialise in explosions. Allie, if you’d like, I can give you some small-scale fireworks that you can set off yourself. Like that, you’ll have something more interesting to do than just sit around and watch preparatory work. As for the fireworks later, you should be able to see them from pretty much anywhere in the sect.” Ares didn’t mind letting Allie tag along, but she would probably end up bored.


    “You have spare fireworks? And you’re letting me take them?”


    “Yeah, sure. It’s not like they’re all that hard to make, I’ve got plenty here.” Ares took out a sack of 50 of his smaller, leftover fireworks and tossed it to Allie.


    Enyo skidded in front of Allie and swiped the sack out of mid-air. There was no way in hell she was letting Allie catch it, regardless of whether it was actually fireworks or not. She inspected the sack and was lost for words when she was assaulted by a boundless, ancient, destructive aura. “What the hell are these things?”


    “Ah, I see you’ve still got those sticks in your ears. They’re fireworks. Put some mana into them, throw them at the sky, then detonate them.”


    “Didn’t you say something about burying them?”


    “That’s something only I need to concern myself with as I’ll be setting them off in bulk. Anyway, if you want any more fireworks later, you can come find me. I’ll be by my stall.”


    “Where is that?” Allie was definitely going to get more whenever she ran out.


    “Just ask literally anyone for directions, they’ll know.” Ares turned around, waved his hand nonchalantly, and walked away.


    “So, you have a unique aspect too?” Aejaz wasn’t too keen on conversing with Allie while ‘Sergeant Stuffy the Uptight Knight’ was around, but he figured now was as good a chance as any to start getting to know Allie.


    “She does,” Enyo replied on Allie’s behalf and gave Aejaz a glare that reminded him of Ares'' death stare. That was one mean looking helmet. Is this what Ares would be like if we didn’t know each other? Nah, Ares is a bit more light-hearted than that. Although, sometimes, when his bloodline kicks in, he’s worse than Enyo could ever be. Aejaz spent the rest of the afternoon strolling around with Allie, and traipsing around Enyo.


    Ares, on the other hand, spent his time readying the fireworks and playing ‘I-Spy’ with Appa. He tried to convince Appa to go do something more interesting, and tell it that he would come pick it up later, but Appa didn’t really want to go anywhere.


    Aejaz came by to get some more fireworks for Allie as she ran out of them quite quickly. He offered to go pick them up as it was a win-win for him. He got to do a favour for Allie, all the while being able to get a break from Enyo. “Man, you could’ve told me how beautiful Allie is. Or did you leave that part out because you were worried I’m better looking than you, and that you stood no chance?”


    “Oh haha, very funny. I see someone’s in a good mood hm? But no, I didn’t tell you because, A, I didn’t know. B, I didn’t care, and C, I didn’t think you would either. She was wearing a hood the first time I met her. I wouldn’t have mentioned it even if she wasn’t though as, to me, she’s not that special.”


    “Not that special!? Dear Lord, please bless my brother with a new, functioning pair of eyes!”


    “I’m not saying she’s not good looking, but she definitely is not my type.”


    “Aww come on, don’t lie. A beautiful white jade is everyone’s type.”


    “White jade?”


    “Yeah, it’s what everyone here in Red Sun calls a beautiful woman.”


    “Hm, never heard that before, but I’ll take your word for it. Again, no. A ‘white jade’ isn''t really my type at all. What’s the point of someone like Allie in the cultivation world, really? She’s just a pretty face you’re going to have to lug around everywhere and protect like some kind of pet. Is a relationship built on admiration of looks really even a relationship? I think someone like Enyo is more my type, honestly.”


    “ENYO!? That woman is insufferable. She’s, like, the definition of serious.”


    “I’m not saying her personality is perfect, but she’s a woman that has my respect at least.”


    “And Allie doesn’t?”


    “Not as a cultivator, no. Then again, neither do you.”


    “Gee, thanks.” Aejaz threw his hands in the air and rolled his eyes.


    “Actually, the more I think about it, the more parables I see between me and you, and Enyo and Allie,” Ares pondered aloud.


    “Oh, wow. I see what you mean. Still though, I think Enyo is far too stuck-up. Even you gave her flack for it.”


    “Yeah, she could really do with toning it down a notch. It would be one thing if she was at least a little more relaxed around familiar company, but I’m gonna take a wild guess and say that switch of hers is just flicked on 24/7. I suppose it’s unsurprising though. A woman like that will always have an undentable, unshakeable pride. I suppose that’s part of what I admire about her.”


    “I get it, but I still think you could look for someone who’s less obnoxious.”


    “A woman like that is also unfortunately quite rare. Besides, you never know, maybe there’s a reason for that attitude. Or maybe there isn’t. I never have believed in love at first sight, might as well get to know her first and see where things go.”


    “I don’t think you gave the best first impression what with that whole stick bit. It was funny though.” Aejaz gave Ares a thumbs up. “And to think, you gave me flak for stealing a pill. Maybe I should be helping you… Ow ow ow ow!”


    Ares pinched Aejaz’s cheek and twisted slightly. “No, I really don’t need your help. Besides, you’re just as hopeless and new to this as I am. NO…” Ares interrupted Aejaz before he could open his mouth. “... Flirting with Missy and reading those novels doesn’t count.”


    “Tsk, well I’m certainly making more progress than you. You’re just sitting here playing around with Appa who, I’m sorry to say, is not as cute as Allie. It’s very close though, don’t get me wrong.”


    Ares put his hands over Appa’s non-existent ears. “How DARE you.” Ares wasn’t mad, he was just pretending to be which got a laugh out of Appa. This idiot was blindly in love, of course Allie was the cutest thing in the whole world to him. Ares wasn’t going to rib him about it like he did with Missy though because he seemed far more serious about this. Actually, this was the most serious he had ever seen Aejaz be about anything really.


    “Oooh, do you think they’re talking about us?”


    “If they aren’t, you’d be disappointed. If they are, you’d probably be disappointed if you could hear what they’re saying.”


    “Ah, don’t be so pessimistic. I feel I’ve schmoozed quite well. You though? Yeah, they probably don’t like you very much.” Aejaz had a smug look on his face.


    “Oh really?” Ares was not going to tolerate this level of ego from Aejaz and felt the need to put him in his place a bit. “I’ll have you know, I’ve already petted Allie, and she really quite liked it.”


    Aejaz froze on the spot. His brain shut down and he almost instinctively leapt at Ares to try and throttle the damn bastard!


    “Hahaha. One day you’ll learn not to mess with me, you silly little brother of mine. Hahaha,” Ares and Appa were both laughing at Aejaz and had tears in their eyes. “Relax, I only pet her because she was being cute. Think of it like patting your younger sister''s head. It’s not something really worth getting worked up over.” Ares let out another quick laugh and stabilised himself so he could deliver the final blow without bursting out into laughter again midway. “If it makes you feel any better, I give you full permission to go and try to pet Enyo. Hahahaha.” Appa was rolling around on the floor and cackling madly and Ares was holding his stomach and wiping tears from his eyes.


    Aejaz grumbled and mumbled curses under his breath as he took the fireworks and left before Ares could catch his breath and speak again.


    Eventually, both Ares and Appa calmed down and Ares got back to work burying the fireworks. “Didn’t Aejaz used to say I was the cutest?” Appa started a conversation.


    “Yeah, but then he fell in love. That’s just kinda how it goes. Don’t worry about it, you’re still the cutest thing I’ve ever seen.”


    “So, if you were to fall in love with someone, like maybe Enyo, would she be cuter than me?”


    “Hm? No. I’m rather objective about these things and, on that note, Enyo isn’t really the cute type, as far as I can tell… Well, she might be under that helmet, but I highly doubt it.”


    “Ok, but would you care about her more than me?”


    Ares stopped fiddling with the last few fireworks as this conversation was going to require his full attention. “Honestly? Maybe? I can’t really give you a definitive answer because it hasn’t happened but, like I said earlier, it’s just kind of what happens. When you fall in love and get married etcetera etcetera, that person becomes family. It’s hard to justify liking someone who isn’t family more than someone who is. It’s not impossible though. To tell you the truth, Aejaz is still the most important person to me right now. Even though I give him trouble from time to time, he’s still my little brother… Actually, that’s probably why I do it. Plus, I’ve known him the longest of anyone I’ve ever met. There really are a lot of factors that come into deciding who is or is not important. You’re definitely important to me, I just don’t think it’s fair to say you''re the most important, or really ever can be. For most people, the list is family / spouse first, then close friends, then everyone else.”


    “That’s fine. I was just curious.” Appa really didn’t look bothered, as if it had expected the answer.


    “That’s a good, mature, mentality to have. I, for instance, will not be the slightest bit bothered if you find yourself a damned shade partner and they mean more to you than me. If anything, I’ll be happy for you and actively encourage it. This is just how life goes.”


    “Hmm, maybe. Can we be family?”


    “You mean like how I’m not related by blood to Aejaz, but I still call him my brother?”


    “Yes!”


    “Haha, that’s not something most people would ever agree to for someone they’ve only really known for a week, but sure. I really don’t see us falling out, and if I’m going to know you for who knows how many years to come, then there’s no reason to say no now only to say yes later. So, I guess from now on… You’re my little sister? Or are you my older sister? Now that I think about it, I don’t actually know how old you are.”


    “Age is irrelevant to shades. We usually don’t even keep track as we don’t age, we just get wiser apparently.”


    “So, would you rather be called older sister or little sister? I don’t mind either way.”


    “Neither.”


    “Uhh, just sister then?”


    “Nope.”


    “I’m not going to call you mother, as I’m pretty sure I already have one, and I certainly don’t think you expect me to. So... “


    “Can you be my dad?”


    Ares blinked a few times and pinched himself. This was the strangest thing that had ever happened to him bar-none. Becoming a father at his age was certainly unexpected, but to be a father to something he didn’t even take part in giving birth to just made it even stranger. Still, he wasn’t going to say no. He would rather agree to it, and whatever it entails, than deny Appa and make it sad. In a way, he felt that made it pretty clear he would’ve done it regardless. It was still strange to him though. “You know what? It’s weird, but yes. I’ll apologise in advance ‘cos I have no idea how to be a father, but I’ll try my best.”


    “That’s great! Now I’ll always be one of your favourite people and you can always be mine!”


    “You would have always been one of my favourites regardless, you know that right?”


    “I know but I’ve never had parents before. If anyone is going to be my dad, I want it to be you! This works out perfectly. Now I just need a mother, and I can have a happy family!” Appa was bobbing around and clearly in a good mood.


    “Well, you’ve also got Aejaz. Technically, he would be… Your uncle? It’s unusual, but who cares. I’m already a father at 18, it’s not like we’re following any standard conventions here to begin with. As for adopting you properly, what with all the paperwork and the ensuing legality, you’ll have to wait for me to come back before I can sort all that out.”


    “Meh, who cares about paperwork… Dad.” Appa gleefully wagged its head from side to side as it kept floating around in circles.


    Ares smiled warmly and was already confident this was a good decision. It might take some getting used to, but he certainly wasn’t going to regret adopting such a sweet little thing. If he could give Appa what it wanted in the form of a family and make it content, then this was a small, or rather non-existent, price to pay. He got up and walked over to Appa and gave it a big hug. Ares patted it on the back and then gave it a light kiss on the top of Appa’s head. “I love you, Appa.”


    Appa burrowed further into Ares arms and spontaneously cried essence out of joy. Not having a family seemingly really had been weighing on its mind all along.


    Ares just continued to hug Appa and stroke its head until it calmed down. He swore in his mind to make sure that Appa would always be safe. If anyone else had been around, they probably would have noticed a tear or two in Ares’ eyes as well.