Netori: Stealing The Hero's Party!

"It's been a while since I saw another dark elf," standing with her fingers twirling inside her gauntlet, Aria stared at the shop owner as she came back from the backside of the establishment. Their eyes met, and a tension took over. Both knew not to test their own kind, and not simply because of some racial sympathy. "Last time I killed them all, and then there's a priestess that keeps following us everywhere."

Silence took over as Aria went quiet for a minute. Anxiety had taken hold in Dandelion's heart, and her fingers reached for her whip once more.

"Ah-uh, don't do that." Before she could even touch it, an undead tentacle reached from under Dandy's body and pulled it away into the ground. Coming out on the other end in Aria's hand, the elves were once again left in a compromised situation. "No matter where we go, it seems like trouble follows."

"Where's the rest of your group?" Dandy blurted out, watching as the elf began moving closer.

"I told them that I would regroup at an inn. Meanwhile, I wanna know more about you." Stopping in front of the counter, Aria took a chair and gestured for Dandy to sit down on the other side. For a moment, her eyes flitted between the chair and the elf, unsure whether to do as she says or try to attack her.

'What the hell am I thinking? I can't fight a god's chosen!' Beating some sense into her mind, she slowly moved close to the desk and sat quietly.

"Now tell me something," placing her hands on the counter, Aria began taking off her dragonic gauntlets. Dandy squinted at the gesture as she was disarming herself during what seemed to be an interrogation.

"I just can just disappear like mist, you know, I don't think threatening me would work out too well."

Letting out a light chuckle, Aria moved her gauntlets towards Dandy. Confusing her even more, she thought back to her oldest memory of Helga spearing a horror made of pure mist.

"You can kill mist, too, you just need to know how."

"You're bluffing."

"Am I?" Placing the whip on the desk as well, Aria added. "Either way, I need to know about your clan. Where are they? Are they alive? Do they do what our kind usually does?"

Finally, Dandy knew where Aria was coming from. It wasn't that she was trying to intimidate her; instead, she wanted to know the exact whereabouts of a dark elf clan around her.

Leaning forward with a look of concern, Dandy placed a hand on top of Aria's and asked.

"You have nobody left to kill–they died in a winter long ago, I was one of the few who managed to get to this city. Even the rest of the survivors…well, they didn't make it due to pneumonia and other sickness–nobody wants to help a monster after all."

As Dandy pulled away from her, Aria read her expression for a whole minute. The lines of tension on her temples and the hollow look that seemed to peer into the past said more than enough to move her to the next thought.

"I noticed you blushing while looking at Raven." Dandy's eyes widened at her words, and her mouth gaped open. She tried to speak, but the shock from the abrupt situation didn't let her speak a word. Contrasting with her, Aria's lips broke into a smile. "Nobody else noticed since our skin is darker, but I did. That's why you were hiding your head with your hat, weren't you?"

Getting more and more heated, Dandy crossed her arms and looked away from the elf in front of her. Staring at one of her shelves, she tried not to let Aria's words get to her.

"You called me a sister, didn't you?" Tilting her head sideways, the barbarian reached forward and touched Dandy's crossed arms. "I wouldn't mind having another sister in our group. Sisters of skin, maybe you wanna join us, and I'm sure Raven would be glad to have you with us in his bed."

"What are you even saying?!" Grunting with visible frustration, Dandy tried to hide her embarrassment. Looking at Aria again, she tried to shoo her with her hands. "Just go away, I'll get your materials delivered."

While waving her hand, her eyes fell on the ring again, and so did Aria's. Glancing quickly up at each other, the two instantly knew what that was about.

"You're engaged, is that why you're hesitating?"

"We've just met!"

"Of course I'm not telling you to join us now, but in a week, maybe a month? I have a feeling we're gonna be here for a while, so take your time, there's no need to rush."

Rolling her eyes, Dandy turned to the front and slammed a hand on the desk in a moment of exhaustion. Staring at Aria up close, her head shaking in disbelief, she took a long and deep breath before pointing at the door.

"Sister…" With a mock smile, she jerked her head towards the exit. "It's time to leave!"

Even though she had heard her loud and clear, Aria sat on the chair for a few more seconds. Getting up eventually, however, she got her gauntlet back, but even as she was leaving, her eyes remained glued to the girl.

"I'll be back in a week, think about it." To that, Dandy lifted her left hand and pinched her ring finger to remind Aria of the ring.

'What in the hells is that girl thinking?!' Dandy couldn't understand where Aria was coming from, and how could she, she already had a sweetheart that she was waiting on. As for the other elf, getting another dark elf to join felt like an obvious thing to do, especially since being the most condemned at times, even more than the monster girls, she needed someone to confide in. But would that girl be Dandy or someone else? Well, like most things this city has thrown at them, it simply remains to be seen.