Kagami had been so buzy fighting and shopping and other stuff recently, and now she was broke and others didn't want to fight anymore... Such a sudden change was rather jarring for her mentally, and so she decided to find a place where she could calm down and take some time to relax... And so here she was in some forest, looking around. Suddenly she got some ideas - quickly taking out her journal and a pen, she began writing. Whatever came to mind she would write - a journal entry, poem, or even a short story or two. A lot had changed since she had met Mortimer, she was finding interest in activities she hadn't liked in centuries. Maybe it was her memories coming back, or maybe it was something more.

"KAAAAGAAMIIII", Mortimer called out he had been searching the woods for a while now. Currently he was humoring her during a "shopping spree"... and by humoring he meant carrying all of the bags and boxes. So there he was in the woods looking rather foolish and carrying around what felt like a ton of clothes, hat's shoes, makeup and other stereotypically "girly" things. He was kind of dissapointed that he never got to do this kind of thing with Kitty, but then again, she never really seemed the type to go out of her way to buy these things. Still, Kagami had been working hard to control her Ki and so deserved a little treat... even if it was on Mortimers dime.

Kagami snickered to herself as she finished writing a poem... Thank goodness Mortimer had spared his money... "Over here." She finally said, getting tired of playing the 'find me' game with him... It had been a while since she'd had this much fun with one person, especially considering she'd only fought with him once and she'd lost. So why was she blushing about him... Then again she did think he looked rather nice. She jumped up (Even though there were sharp rocks around here she was wearing heavy boots) and put away her new journal, using the strap on it to secure the pen...

Mortimer was groaning slightly under all the wait. But still, he was trying to bear with it. Must. Resist. Urge. To. Collapse. He finnaly managed to catch up with Kagami, and tried to make the appearance that nothing was amiss. "So how's the little mirror doing?" He asked the vampire girl. He had to admit that she was rather fetching in her outfit today, but that was about as far as his attraction to her went. Before Kagami could reply Mortimer sensed the presence. It was something he hadn't felt in weeks and had hoped he wouldn't have to feel it for some time. Dropping the bags Mortimer gripped Kagami's forearm and with unchracteristic urgency he said "We need to go, now", and trie to lead her away from the clearing.

Kagami reluctantly followed, she'd never seen Mortimer act like this... "Wha... Ok..." She wondered what Mortimer was so panicked about... And wished he would just tell her what was going on. "What is it?" She finally asked, barely able to keep up with him. Long story short she wondered what Mortimer was so worried about, but wouldn't be angry if it was something reasonable... Since being with him she'd become more patient and willing to listen to others...

"Whatever you do, hold on tight and we might get out of this alive". Seeing that kagami couldn't keep running anymore he positioned himself with his back facing her, bent down and reached behind him gripping her lower thighs and pulling her onto his back. THis was yet another thing he had never done before, but it was now or never. He pperformed several shundo's attempting to navigate his way through the dense woods and get to a heavily populated area. Kagami was decreasing his total range and slowing him down but he just couldn't leave her behind there... and he couldn't let... THAT, get a grip on her. He knew that if that were to occur then Kagami really would be lost to her darkness. And so he shundo'd looking for someone, anyone who might be able to get them away faster.

Kagami felt sick at her stomach from all the 'shundo' teleporting... But if Mortimer was worried about something, she knew to trust him. For their sake she would just do her best to bear it. 'Ugh, it feels like my stomach was just shot out of a cannon.' She thought to herself, it didn't help she expected teleporting to be more fun at first... Ah well. She tried to focus on the thrill of surviving whatever Mortimer felt coming, if it ever caught up to them... She was starting to show her old on-edge self just a little bit now, but with one major difference. The old her would never be running, especially with someone else helping...

Marie had just woken up from a long night of studying for school when she noticed a strange glow coming from her closet. She walked over to it and slowly opened the door. The glow got brighter and a voice came out, "It's time Marie Tokochi." She looked shocked and kinda scared after hearing the voices when all of a sudden something pulled her into the closet quickly and the door slammed behind her. She blacked out from being pulled into the closet and she awoke to find herself in a strange new land that she has never see before. She quickly got up on her feet and started to look around. In the distance she could see someone carrying someone else on their back and they were running this way.

Mortimer had managed to bring them to an open field, and from his perspective at least, things were getting bleak. He could feel the presence getting stronger every minute. And he was running out of energy to shundo with. That was when he found a little girl in the field, no more than ten years old and wearing yellow pajamas. "Get out of here as fast as you can!" He panted to the little girl. Mortimer attempted to perform one more shundo but collapsed partway through. He was spent and would need to sleep before he regained enough energy to keep moving. "Go *pant*, on *wheeze* without me *gasp*". Before coming to a complete stop and passing out in the middle of the field.

Kagami could see a young girl soon enough... and as Mortimer collapsed she got off of him... She sighed. "Well crud..." Now the presence was within range that she could sense it... Aw crap. "Get outta here, save yourself from a painful death as well kid!" She said to the little girl... "I have 200 years experience, and there's no way either of us could survive the person coming whose presence I feel." Kagami hated giving away her true nature, but she had already gnashed her teeth and shown her fangs. Also she didn't want another casualty...

It was here, right on top of them in fact. Quite possibly the most evil destructive being Mortimer knew... and it had found them. Umi

"Yo-kun, We should use the new haul we got to learn some new abilities, like this Illusion Rod, combined with the illusion book and the illusion clam i have, I think becoming an illusionist will be easy as pie, lets begin.."

Withdrawing data from his activated Archive Interface, he search for the topics on illusions and items he owned in the system. A few topics and windows came up from his search, and using those, he planned on forming those ideas together to create a training method. Sitting with his back to the side of a boulder, he came up with the theories and requirements needed for this specific ritual to be used.

"If I get the requirements right, i can use the Illusion Rod to manifest a Phantasmagoria Ritual, sealing consciousness in my mind from the ritual and creating whatever illusion i want too, it's different from the illusion fields and reality warping normal illusionists use these days. Its much stronger, but requires a lengthy incantation. You ready to practice Yoko?"

Kagami didn't exactly overhear what Umi was saying, and so simply determined where he was by hearing, looking at the rock he was hiding behind then back at the little girl. She came closer to the little girl... "You stay with Mortimer-sensei... I can sense you're a healer... If either of us get hurt, you know what to do..." And then Kagami quietly tried to sneak up on Umi... She tip-toed towards him slowly, bringing her cleaver out from Mallet space. This may well have been one of the toughest fights of her life for all she knew, and she was dead scared despite her promise she never would be...

Marie hides behind Mortimer as she watches Kagami sneak up on Umi.

Mortimer lay there unable to move and not wanting to be anywhere NEAR umi when the %*@! hit the fan. And fan it would hit

"Its not nice to point weapons at people you dont even know..."

Yoko taking his replacement blade, the Gladius Fulminus in his hand and performing a diagonal slice, cleaved the cleaver in two with the slightest touch as he shot in with his Shundo. The cleaver fell to the ground with a metallic clang as Yoko stood behind the girl, ready to strike her down before she even drew another weapon.

Rather than even bother with a kill, or even bother Umi while he was performing the ritual, he was just gonna disarm his opponent while his Magister continued. Sure his barriers would have blocked the attack easily, but if Yoko did not defend him, then what kind of bodyguard would he be?

Kagami was frozen in fear... 'He sliced right through my weapon... Oh crap crap crap this is not fucking good!'

"Oh?"

Umi, in the middle of reading through the specifics and particulars of this certain spell was absentmindedly reading, focused so intent he did not even notice the people who had snuck up on him, at first. Using his ESP as a radar, he sensed 3 individuals, two of them to weak to be important, and the other slightly stronger power, which he could tell was Al from the signature of his magic.

"A Cleric......Vampire that uses....KI?... and a skilled Shadow mage?....nvm, it's Al.. What do you guys want?"

"Kagami... it's over. This would be Takashi Yokohama... Umi's bodyguard and minstra. He is actually less powerful than Umi, so please don't try to fight him." Drawing himself up from his prone position and walking over to Yoko shakily he asked "so what do you guys want this time?"

"I was about to say the same thing..." Kagami cleared her throat. "Mortimer-sensei sensed you a while back, and I still dunno why he wanted to avoid you or anything..." She hadn't really been given a lot of information to go off of. "He's exhausted from using that teleporty-thing so much trying to run... So in my desperation I tried a sneak attack, and well... Your goon here got me."

'Dont talk about Yoko that way, He's much more than a goon to me!"

Umi had finished reading his document, he had everything he needed except for the names of the people who would use in the ritual. Looking around, he decided to get to know them a little first.

"So who are these people?"

The obe Yoko is holding is kagami and this... Mortimer gestured to the little girl only to stop himself half way. "Actually I don't know who this is, who are you anyway?" Mortimer asked the little girl

Marie looks up at Umi and Mortimer says, "My name is Marie Tokochi. I just woke up this morning and I saw my closet glowing and when I opened it I got sucked into this strange world."

Kitty was silently bounding through the forest feeling playful before she'd heard Mortimer. "Actually I don't know who this is, who are you anyways?" Kitty stepped out from behind a tree, wondering who Mortimer was talking to. She blinked in confusion seeing Mortimer, and another girl side by side facing Umi and Yoko!!! "U-um, w-what's going on?"

Kagami heard someone come over and say "U-um, w-what's going on?" At that Kagami snapped... she was tired of all these questions to which she did not have the answer. "I don't have a damn clue. Mortimer-sensei, c'mon. I want to know what the heck all this is about!"