Snow crunched under her boots as Kimari made her way through the forest back towards her house. It was still getting dark quite early, since it was only the beginning of January, but instead of rushing home she was taking her time. She was actually quite reluctant to return to the warm cosy cottage that both her and Jo called home. There was a good reason for that, though. Thanks to her little fight yesterday, Jo had explicitly told her not to take one step out of the door – which was why Kimari had gone out through the window.

Jo wouldn't be impressed.

Kimari knew that much, at least. Lost in thought, she wandered towards the edge of the little village of Linacre, pausing when a shadow detached itself from the trees. Her hand fell to the dagger strapped to her belt out of instinct, her brown eyes narrowing on the dark figure, relaxing when she realised it was only Riko.

"Jo's angry," he said. "I'm guessing that it's got something to do with the fact that she told you not to go outside."

"Actually, her exact words were: Don't you dare take one step outside that door." Kimari smirked.

Riko's shoulders sunk. He knew her far too well. "You went out the window, didn't you?"

"Of course." She grinned, absolutely loving the thrill of outsmarting Jo, no matter how much she'd get scolded when she was caught. It was totally worth it.

"You probably should've listened to the implied meaning behind those words." Riko sighed, tired of her antics already. He was strangely similar to a crabby old man in that respect, all he was missing was the cane to whack her over the head with. There was no doubt he got the urge to hit her from time to time, though luckily for her when that happened the only thing nearby tended to be a pillow. "She's got me and the airheads out looking for you."

"I suppose I should be glad that you found me first, then."

"Of course I did." He shoved his hands in his pockets. "I knew you'd head out to find that pack of wolves that you always hang out with."

"My pack, actually." She folded her arms, daring him to contest her claim. There weren't many things she was possessive over, but this was one of them. She led those wolves, looked after them, and they were hers.

Anyone else who tried to claim them as their own would be fought with tooth, claw and Kimari's fist.

"Whatever you say, Kim," he mumbled, apparently knowing better than to rile her up. She wasn't particularly reasonable when it came to wolves. She acted far too much like one whenever the problem was brought up. That and her protective instincts were off the charts. "Whatever you say..." he trailed off, stiffening as the bushes next to him rustled.

A wolf emerged from the shrubbery, tall enough to reach his waist, and Riko leapt back. He hid behind Kimari, who was far too accustomed to his reaction to all things wolfish. "Relax, Riko. It's only Maya," she said, bending down to greet the sleek white-furred wolf who snapped her teeth in greeting.

Riko turned a shade paler, evidently transfixed by the sight of Maya's sharp white fangs. "It's a gigantic wolf that could tear my throat out in ten seconds!" he muttered, keeping his eyes fixed on the animal, dark brown clashing with an eerie grey as the wolf met his stare head on.

"More like five seconds," the teasing voice made Kimari smirk.

"What are you grinning about?" Riko asked, staring between her and the wolf.

He couldn't hear Maya's voice, unlike her. Of course he couldn't. In fact, aside from Kimari, no one else in the village could. They couldn't talk to wolves telepathically or otherwise, and she liked it. It made her different, and she liked being different.

Not that her quirks didn't make her different already.

She'd never felt like a part of the village in the first place.

Not with the amount of time she was missing.

"Nothing," Kimari mumbled, pulling herself out of her thoughts before she spiralled back into the cycle of worry.

It always consumed her whenever she thought about those missing years.

She felt like a stranger in her own body, and that hadn't helped her training in the slightest... not that Jo had let her do much in the first place.

A furry head nuzzled against her leg, Maya jolting her back to reality. "You okay?"

"I'm fine," she whispered, patting her favourite wolf on her head. Maya had always been there for her, whether she was lost in the woods or not, and she loved her for it all the more. "Maya just came out to see who was making such a racket," she said, plastering a grin on her face as she turned back to face her only friend.

"Please don't tell me the rest of the pack is nearby," Riko said, grabbing her by the arm, scanning the forest around them.

Red eyes met his.

Riko whimpered, scuttling backwards, dragging her with him. "Kim, none of your delightful wolves have red eyes, do they?" he asked, inching back towards the safety of the village. "And I mean like the glowing ones with thin slits..."

"Nope," she said, turning to face the source of his worries without a care in the world. No matter what the problem was, she'd take care of it. That was a silent agreement between them. All things wolfish were hers to deal with. Riko wouldn't go near them, not even if Kimari paid him. She knew that for a fact – she'd tried it and learnt that her lovely friend didn't take bribes. Well, not when it was anything involving his least favourite animal.

"We should get Jo..."

"Where would be the fun in that?" She grinned. "Let's go and see what this new wolfie wants."

"Don't you have any sense of danger, idiot!" he hissed, waving his finger at her.

"Danger? What danger?"

Riko looked on the verge of tears.

"Listen to him, Kimari." Maya's voice made her pause. "Can't you feel it?"

"Feel what?" she asked, concentrating on the pair of glowing red eyes she could see, blinking as she felt a wave of familiarity wash over her. "I don't feel any danger..."

"Of course..." Maya huffed. "I forgot you wouldn't."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Kimari, let's just leave this to your pack to sort out – Jo wants us back before dark," Riko said, dragging her away slowly.

"Fine," she grumbled.

Maya was by far the smartest wolf in her pack, so if anyone could deal with whatever that situation was – it'd be her. After all, she was going to leave the pack in her care when she set of for Kasari. Kimari sighed in contentment. That was right. Soon she'd be well on her way to the City of Enforcers, ready for the next part of her training – and it'd be the fun part too. No more long lectures, and no irate Jo hovering over her like an irritable mother hen.

"Come on, scaredy cat," she sung, skipping back out of the forest, pulling Riko after her as she headed towards the small cottage. "Let's go and tell Jo to call off the hunt."

"Well, she's in the middle of an important meeting now, so you might want to wait for a bit..." he trailed off, sighing when he realised Kimari wasn't listening to him.

She was busy being embroiled in a staring match between two girls sitting on the steps of the veranda. One was a slightly overweight blonde, wearing a plain blue tracksuit, and the other was a petite redhead dressed almost identically. That was one of the few things they had in common, along with matching scowls and a general hatred of her.

Kimari couldn't work them out for the life of her, but their combined hatred was what made them such great friends.

"Hell," Riko muttered, equally displeased at seeing them there. Neither of them held much fondness for the duo. "The airheads have found us."

"Not much they can do." She shrugged. "I'm surprised they even..." Kimari trailed off, blinking as she realised why they both looked so angry. "Oh."

"I take it you've just remembered you put both of their brothers in the hospital yesterday," her helpful friend said, smiling as he clapped her on the back.

"Wolf Girl..." The blonde stormed towards her, and Kimari knew things probably wouldn't end well for either of them.

Jo didn't like unsanctioned fights outside of training.

"Something tells me this isn't going to end well..." Riko mumbled, echoing her own thoughts on the matter.

"Hey, blondie. What's up?" She smiled brightly, blinking when the girl's fist slammed into her face at record speed. Pain exploded from her nose – which felt slightly out of place – and she winced alongside Riko.

There was no hiding a broken nose from Jo.

Which meant there was no hiding the fact they'd been up to no good.

"You..." Cold blue eyes locked on her confused brown ones. She'd been polite, hadn't she? "How could you?"

"Could you get to the point?" She raised an eyebrow, pinching her misshapen nose as blood leaked over her lips. "Bleeding here."

"You really need to work on your people skills, Kim." Riko sighed, moments before the red-haired girl decided to join the fray too, sending her flying through the air with a well-placed kick.

They were playing dirty – using magic in the simple ways Jo had taught them, channelling it to their limbs, adding a painful amount of extra force to each blow.

Kimari had no idea how to do that.

Not that she'd ever needed to.

She'd been strong enough to topple trees with a single kick ever since she'd come back.

Still, it didn't mean being on the receiving end hurt any less.

"No fair!" She scowled. "You used magic with that."

She'd slammed into the table and chairs on the large porch, splintering them into pieces when they cushioned her landing. Not that they'd been very good cushions in the first place.

She really hated Augmentation – as the technique was called – especially when it was used against her by the terrible twosome. They liked ganging up against her.

"You happy?" she grumbled, dusting herself off, thinking it was over.

But she was wrong. Very wrong.

A far too familiar boot slammed into her stomach, and then she was flying back into the side of her house with a loud thud. Cracks spread across the brickwork, every single part of her aching as she became one with the wall. Another kick later, and she was no longer part of the wall. She sailed through into the room behind in a flurry of brickwork and plaster board, coming to a stop only when she collided with the conveniently placed coffee table. Glass shattered under the impact, shards lodging themselves in her skin, and Kimari growled in pain. Her hands closed around the legs of the half-broken coffee table, yanking it up off the ground, ignoring the burning stares she could feel boring into her back. "Die..." she hissed, lobbing it out through the gaping hole in the wall with strength she didn't even know she possessed, smiling widely as it slammed into her intended target. A thrill of satisfaction ran through her, a smile pulling at her lips when her least favourite blonde slumped to the ground.

"You idiot!" Emily, the enraged redhead, hissed, stepping towards her.

Kimari wrenched an armchair from the floor, ready to throw it at her target, but the murderous intent radiating from behind her made her freeze. Her head cranked around, eyes locking on the shaking figure behind her.

Jo glared at her from beneath a curtain of blonde hair, hands curled into fists. "Kimari... put the armchair down. Now."

She placed the armchair down quietly, her legs shaking under her mother's furious stare. "They started it, technically," she squeaked, slowly trying to shuffle out of sight.

Unfortunately she didn't get far.

"Emily, take Chiara to the backroom," Jo ordered, sighing deeply as she glanced at the unconscious blonde on the porch outside. "Riko, go with them," she said, waving a hand at the gaping hole in the brickwork.

Stones regrew, the walls seemingly mending the gap between them seamlessly as her mother used a form of magic she hadn't been introduced to. Sure, she'd seen it plenty of times when she broke something around the house, but Jo had never taught her how to use it.

She'd said something about her not being responsible enough to wield it safely.

Kimari didn't know what she was talking about. Her? Irresponsible?

"Kimari..." Jo folded her arms, and she found herself reminded she didn't have any escape exit nearby. "That's the fourth coffee table this month."

"Oh... um... sorry?" She laughed, scratching the back of her neck.

"The kid broke four coffee tables in a month?" The unfamiliar voice made her freeze, her gaze darting to the sofas where three people sat. Fear shot through her, closely followed by annoyance. She hadn't sensed them at all – intruders in her home. Though, Kimari supposed, they weren't really intruders given how Jo wasn't beating them senseless. "Impressive." A blonde-haired man grinned at her, his expression cheery as though she wasn't glaring darkly at all of them. "Though I don't think your instructor here is that pleased..."

"Blaine, shut up," the only other guy in the room glared at him, and Kimari had the distinct impression she wouldn't like him in the slightest. "We aren't here to discuss the brats, no matter how annoying that one might be."

Kimari twitched, itching to punch him and his stupid blue hood.

He was covering his head with it, no doubt to seem cool and mysterious, his face barely visible thanks to the shadow it cast over his features. It's rude to wear a hood indoors, her mind added snidely, intent on ripping the man's image to shreds... even if she'd never get the chance to say it out loud. Her head would become well acquainted with Jo's heaviest textbook if she was rude to a so-called guest. Scowling, she refocused her attention, eyeing the golden buttons holding together the top part of his coat. Rather tacky, in her opinion. Silver was a far more refined colour for buttons. Then there was the bottom part of the coat, one which split into two sections she knew would whip around his legs dramatically when the wind hit.

Dimly, a small part of her mind, which sounded oddly like Riko, told her she was just being petty and childish. The larger part told her she needed to snap a reply.

She might not be able to physically fight the guy no matter how much he seemed to grate on her nerves, but she could certainly use her voice. There were few who could hold a candle to her snark.

"At least I'm not a Drama Queen," she muttered.

Jo stared at her, disapproval written all over her face.

Kimari scowled. He'd started it.

One of her mother's eyebrows rose.

Her cheeks puffed out as she snorted through her nose. She could already see Jo rolling her eyes at her, having already seen the determination written on her face.

She'd return every insult.

The only other woman, aside from Jo, spluttered at her statement. Water sprayed from her lips, her hand slapping against her knee as she sniggered. "I love it..." she mumbled. "I love it when they're clueless and spunky."

"Isobel."

Her shoulders sunk. "You have to admit it's a very fitting name for you."

"Isobel."

"Spoilsport," she grumbled, tying her brown mane back in a high ponytail, her amused expression quickly being replaced by a far more serious one. "But I suppose we oughta get back to the reason we're here."

"Kimari, go and get our guests some drinks," Jo ordered.

"You're not going to lecture me?"

Jo grinned darkly. "I'm saving that for after our guests have left."

She yawned, trying to conceal the shudders she could feel racing down her spine. "I'm going to my room then."

"Kimari. Drinks."

"I don't wanna..."

Jo stared at her flatly.

"What?" She blinked, hastily ducking under the arm reaching for her. "Wait—"

An arm looped around her neck, her back colliding with Jo as she was dragged to the ground in a headlock. "Are you disobeying me, Kim?" her mother asked, ignoring the way she was frantically tapping her hand against the floor. "I do hope you aren't entering your rebellious phase just yet..."

The pressure on her neck vanished, Jo rising to her feet, and she sucked in a huge lungful of air. "About those drinks?" she mumbled. "What does everyone want?"

"Coffee," the Drama Queen demanded.

"I'll have tea," Blaine said.

Jo smiled down sweetly at her. "I'll have some unpoisoned black coffee, please."

Kimari scowled.

Her mother had already figured out her enjoyment of exploiting loopholes.

Isobel stood. "And I'll be helping you," she said, offering her a hand which she gratefully took.

"Thanks," she murmured, staggering into the kitchen, Isobel close on her tail. "So..." She grabbed the teabags and coffee granules out of the cupboard whilst her helper filled the kettle, all the while keeping the unfamiliar woman in the corner of her eye. "What do you do for a living?" she asked, figuring it was the best way to start a conversation. Not that she'd started many of those.

"Well, technically I kill people and other threats for a living." Isobel shrugged. "It's part of my job description as an Enforcer... especially considering I'm part of Special Operations."

"Special Operations? Am I supposed to know what that is?"

Isobel laughed. "You're a weird one, kid..." she said, and Kimari preened. She liked being different and coming from Isobel it seemed like a compliment. If it had come from the recently dubbed Drama Queen, it would've no doubt been an insult... "I talk about killing people, and you just brush it off like I'm talking about the weather."

"Good to know."

She chuckled again. "I'm not going to kill you, if you're worried about that."

"I'm not."

Isobel shook her head. "You know, you're the first person I've come across who has absolutely no regard for their own safety."

"Why thank you." Kimari grinned. "I try my best."

The smile soon fell from her face, though, as she heard the conversation in the other room.

"You've certainly got your hands full with that brat..."

Three guesses who the brat in question was.

"The brat has a name." Kimari scowled, sticking her head around the door to glare at him, ignoring the long sigh that came from Jo. "And the brat can hear every single word you say."

"She has no idea who she's talking to, does she?"

"Not a clue, and I really don't care," she said, disappearing back into the kitchen.

"You should," he called, watching as she reappeared at the door.

"How much nightshade would you like in your coffee?" Kimari stuck her head around the doorway yet again, thinking about one of her favourite poisons. If brewed correctly, it could be lethal in the tiniest dose, and Kimari was excellent when it came to the theory of poisons. "Because I found a lovely little supply near some caves that I can't wait to use."

"You really need to learn when to shut up," he continued, sighing almost as deeply as Jo.

"Again!" Kimari muttered. "Nightshade and coffee. How much do you want?"

"If you poison me, they'll be hell to pay."

Kimari stuck her hand into view, waving around a sachet of crushed purplish powder. "One or two?"

"Kimari!" Jo finally snapped. "That's enough!"

"Okay, mum," she muttered, slipping the small packets back into the pockets of her coat, watching as Isobel stared flatly at her.

"You have absolutely no sense of self preservation, do you?"

"Nope," Kimari said, picking up the tray full of drinks. "Do you think the Drama Queen would mind if I accidently tripped and spilt everything over him?"

"I'm fairly sure I wouldn't appreciate it, brat," a low voice called from the other room.

"There goes that plan," she mumbled, carefully carrying the tray out, putting it on the coffee table that had been replaced in her absence before slowly placing a mug of coffee in front of the man with the blue hood. "One mug of coffee. No nightshade and no sugar."

"Brat." His hand closed around her arm without warning. "You do know it's illegal to have certain poisons in your possession without a licence or express permission from the Council, don't you?"

She folded her arms. "Oh really?"

"Yep, and nightshade is on that list."

"Oops?"

Jo pinched the bridge of her nose, sighing loudly yet again.

"You might want to go and search her room for any other contraband," he said, briefly glancing over all four corners of the room, making the others freeze. They knew who he was looking for. Even Jo knew who they were searching for.

Kimari felt a bit left out.

Jo turned slowly, fear and horror written across her face when no one moved. "Is he here?"

"Yep." He nodded. "My older brother has sent him to help us deal with this hellhound. Apparently, my brother thinks that this particular hellhound may have been powered up by a Bloodstone."

"A hellhound?" Kimari turned to the annoyance who was still gripping her arm. She didn't like wherever the hell the conversation was going. Anything that had the word hell in its name couldn't be good. She'd read far too much about that place, not that anyone was supposed to know about that little fact, of course. "What the hell is that, and what the bloody hell is going on?"

"A hellhound is a slightly larger, and a much more dangerous version of a wolf," Blaine explained, looking at his superior – the Drama Queen.

"So that idiot wants to kill it before it hurts anyone." Kimari tilted her head, pointing at her least favourite person in the room.

"The brat has no idea when to stop insulting people..." He scowled. "That mouth of hers will get her killed one day."

"Are you offering?" she asked.

"See?" He turned to Jo, glancing between the two curiously. "You're her mother, aren't you? Are you sure you raised her properly? She's the complete opposite of you in every single way."

Jo shrugged. "She's adopted."