Gossamer and Spidersilk

schwaerze: Tseng, Genesis, Sephiroth

Chephren: Yazoo, Throck and Fen

A/N: This chapter, there is a fanart I made and posted on DeviantArt. Follow the linky here if you would like! XD

http : //darkmorgainelefay . deviantart . com/art/Yazoo-the-Fairy-Prince-164276898 (again, please take out the spaces before and after the colon and periods)

Hope you enjoy! XD

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Chapter 2

As Yazoo entered the chamber, he walked straight past the walls of shelves. He had read many of these already, and the reading level he'd reached was beyond his abilities really, but hopefully it would not always be so. Crossing the section, Yazoo held the amulet in front of him and again it started to glow... He had found a secret door here by accident once, and had yet to see where it led. From what he could tell, it went down to the Underground, a labyrinth of tunnels and recesses beneath Faefeather. Every so often though, as he investigated it now, there would be an upward exit. In this tunnel, maybe a few giant caterpillar strides down, he could see light at the end. It seemed simple enough, but he could not get lost or he may never find his way out.

Picking up a splintered shard of broken rock, Yazoo marked the position of the door he had entered through on the earthen wall beside it, and every so often, an arrow pointing the way back, as he flew to the end, tentatively. In front of him, the youth heard a sloshing, wet sound and grew a bit uneasy. Flying closer, he saw a large earthworm, which was about five times his length. These things creeped the Prince out a bit because they were so large, but it seemed as though they couldn't see. If it could sense him, the creature certainly didn't seem interested, just kept on its way, to Yazoo's great relief.

The light at the end of the tunnel became larger and brighter and he continued to mark his way. It seemed a beautiful day out so he did not expect rain, and hopefully the signs he made would last for a while. As he reached the end, and flew out into day, Yazoo stretched and sighed languidly. He would have to pluck a bit of luminescent moss if he came back when it got darker, so that he could find his way back through the tunnel. He would have to come back by dusk too, before night fell since Genesis would want to close up the shop and retire for the evening.

Yazoo found himself on the edge of Faefeather and darted quickly toward the border, remaining low so the sentries would be less likely to spot him.

Tseng didn´t know how long he had wandered the forest now. All he knew was that it had gotten so dark that he couldn´t see three feet ahead of him, that his legs hurt and that he was so hungry, he could eat a whole bear! Not that he wanted to meet one, mind you! It was creepy and dangerous enough here as it was! He couldn´t even see the stars over him, or the sky, because the canopy was so thick. Thick branches and roots were hindering his way, and his clothes were hanging in rags down his muscular, lean but dirty body. Sighing, and too tired to walk anymore, Tseng sat down under a large three, leaning his head against the mossy branch, eyes half lidded. He was so thirsty...

Just why had he gone off the known paths on his stroll? Now he most certainly would pay for his curiosity with death...

Two fae sentries patrolled the branches far above Yazoo, about midway up the trees. If he could only make it to the canopy above them... It was really an issue of timing. Yazoo skittered from knothole to knothole, hiding under leaf and branch until he made it to a spot hidden just below a male guardian.

This sentry, Throckmorton, had been at his post for as long as Yazoo could remember, and fortunately, although good at his job, Yazoo knew that Throckmorton had a weakness for pretty things. A good thing to know in the event that Yazoo was seen here again. Perhaps he could bribe the stodgy guard somehow to keep him from telling the King.

The other guard, a female, Fenchurch, was immovable. She may have been the one that had reported on Yazoo the last time. Not only one of the most beautiful females in Faefeather,with multi-hued hair the colors of Autumn leaves, she had a great eye, was shrewd and a bit cunning. Yazoo knew better than to underestimate her. Today though, she zipped over to Throckmorton, calling him away, both very agitated about something near their borders.

Curiosity getting the better of him, Yazoo followed them in an act of adventure - or stupidity- he supposed, depending on how all this turned out. He couldn't very well just ignore the big event, whatever it was, could he? What if it was one of these monsters Sephiroth had told him about? Or another four-legged being? Either way, it was something that did not belong here....

Yazoo followed them at a distance, ducking behind the trees and under branches on his way, dousing his natural glow, which allowed all fairies to be spotted at great distances. This was one small thing he could do with his magic that the common citizens of Faefeather could not. As long as they remained within the magical barrier though, they would go unseen by outsiders.

As the two sentries halted and spoke in hushed tones to each other, Yazoo hid beneath an opposite branch on the same tree so that he was behind them and out of their line of sight. As he ducked there, he had seen the direction in which Fenchurch had pointed, her hand over her mouth. Yazoo looked in that direction as well once he was settled and he saw... one of them. A monster? Sure didn't look like one...

Tseng closed his eyes for a moment, trying to calm down before panic could overwhelm him. So he was lost, in the woods, at night possibly. It probably would only get worse if he stumbled through the forest without direction any further. All he could do for now was to stay here and hope that he wouldn´t get eaten by wild animals. Tomorrow, when it was lighter, he would try to find his way back.

Remembering the animals... Maybe he should try to get up into the trees? Groaning, he stood back up on his raw feet and tried to climb up the thick trunk, but it was so wet and slippery that he fell right back down, and very painfully so. Kneeling there in the dirt, head hanging down, long hair falling into his muddy face, Tseng remained, too exhausted to try again.

Hn, the creature seemed to be trying to ascend into the tree tops, and Yazoo couldn't help but notice the sheer lack of wings. Poor creature. Yazoo was moved to take pity on it. Funny, but he rather liked the look of this so-called 'monster.' It was very interesting, covered in dirt. A bit frightening to be sure, but it seemed exhausted and Yazoo would help it if he could. Closing his eyes, the fairy prince called up images in his mind, just as he had read in the magical tomes, and all at once, the space around the monster wavered. Opening his eyes, he hoped and prayed to the Earth Mother that it had worked.

"What do you reckon King Sephiroth's gonna do abou- … Wait, where'd it go?" Throckmorton's voice drawled out, and Yazoo relaxed. It had worked, alright... a very basic invisibility cloaking spell.

After a moment of near panic, Fenchurch whispered, "Okay, listen, neither of us breathes a word of this to the King. Understand? You know how he hates false alarms... no telling what he'd do."

Throckmorton bit his lip, "Agreed, Fen, I promise upon pain of death, I won't utter one word, not one syllable..." and he mimed sewing his lips shut.

Clapping him on the back, Fenchurch then silently pointed for him to turn around and get back to his side of the barrier. He saluted her wordlessly and went.

Yazoo, light still dimmed, waited for her to fly off in the opposite direction before carefully making his way toward the tree where the creature sat quietly. Concentrating, he cast a spell on the tree that made the knotholes extend out a bit further so that the creature could climb up. Surely this being didn't mean him any harm, but Yazoo knew that it might be a different story altogether when the creature could see him.

Tseng shook his head, damning his own weakness. Sighing, he looked up at the tree again. Wasn´t this branch looking quite promising?

"Very well, let´s try again," he muttered to himself, just because hearing a voice in this no-mans-land was at least a bit comforting. He grabbed the branch and tried to heave himself up, but his feet still slipped from the mossy trunk and with a grunt, he fell back on to the ground. Resigned, he didn´t get up again.

"Should probably save my energy," Tseng breathed, "If I ever want to get back to the castle..." If he wasn´t starving beforehand... His stomach felt like it was just one massive hole.

What? Yazoo understood these sounds! The voice uttering them was much deeper than anything that he had ever heard before, perhaps due to the sheer size of the voicebox, and yet, the creature was trying to get back to a castle... Yazoo lit up immediately, bouncing and dancing in front of the Fairy-with-no-wings' eyes to make sure it saw him, only at a safe distance. Then he started to move off into the direction from whence the creature had come, pausing to make sure it understood him.

"Come, come with me... I think I know where you need to go..." Yazoo said, but after a moment, he didn't really think he could be heard by a creature that size, so he gave up talking, but continued agitatedly sparkling and dancing.

Something in the corner of his eye suddenly lit up and tiredly, Tseng moved his head. Then his eyes first widened before they narrowed.

"What...?" he rubbed his eyes to make sure it wasn´t an illusion. But there it was between the trees: a light! Where had it come from? Where did it lead to? By now Tseng didn´t care anymore. He had heard tales about bewitched places and how people who had entered them had never come back, but this surely was better than dying of hunger and thirst or being eaten by wild animals here! Getting to his feet as quickly as he could, Tseng stumbled towards the floating light with outstretched hands, shouting with a hoarse voice, "Wait!"

Yazoo's light bounced up and down impatiently, but he did wait, and let the Fairy-with-no-wings draw near, a bit too close even before flitting off again. When he was certain the creature had gained momentum and kept up with him, he led it through the dark forest, all the way to where the daylight crept back in, the very last of it, and they found there a rushing stream. Yazoo didn't know his way from here but he hoped the creature did. When he had told Sephiroth that he had not ventured beyond the barrier, he had lied quite a lot, but he had not yet ventured into the Land of Light, and he wasn't sure if he should. It was plainly courting danger, and he didn't know if he was ready.

Tseng staggered behind the light, not looking right nor left. Why wasn´t it getting bigger? If it was a house or so, the light should become nearer and brighter.... Or maybe his mind was playing tricks on him? All the same, Tseng could not stop. He felt magically drawn to the bouncy spot, the warmth radiating from it...

"Wait for me please..."

When they reached the stream, Yazoo simply stopped and waited there. He didn't know how or where to tell the creature to go from here, and hoped that it could find its , Tseng was a bit confused when he suddenly found himself at a very well known stream again. The forest had become considerably friendlier, he could see the colors of the setting sun through the leaves again!

Greedily Tseng first knelt down and drank from the fresh water. He´d been so very thirsty! Once he had enough he looked up again, now fully realizing what had just happened. Looking at the nervous little ball of light that danced further away from him, he lowered his head.

"Thank you," he said in deepest gratitude. "I apologize for entertaining the thought that you could have been something vicious for even one second. I can find my way back home from here on now."

Yazoo watched in wonder as the creature took its nourishment. When it thanked him directly, the fae youth froze. What impeccable manners. The Fairy Prince was intrigued, most certainly, and he couldn't help but feel a bit sad to see it go before Yazoo could watch it more carefully. Seeing the sky darken though, he felt a twinge of panic, and he bobbed his light once to the creature in farewell, and he sped back to Faefeather with all speed, back to Genesis, the shop and Sephiroth's dinner.

Tseng felt reluctant to just leave, but he didn´t know how else to express his gratitude for now. So he made an inner vow to thank the shiny little ball -which at that very moment seemed to him the most beautiful thing he had ever laid eyes on- after he had reached his castle and recovered. Turning with one last look, he walked off into the opposite direction towards his home.

Dousing his fairy glow to sneak past the changing of the Fairy Guard at the border, so that Throckmorton and Fenchurch could retire for the night, Yazoo lit back up once he was well away from them and back at the mouth of the tunnel. Inside, he didn't need any lantern after all because the his own excited fairy light illuminated the passageway with an ethereal blue glow. Strange that he felt this exhilarated...

Thankfully, all his marks still adorned the walls and he quickly and easily found his way back to the Deep Magic section and came back out into the rest of the shop so that Genesis could finally close.

The auburn haired fairy was leaning against his desk, legs and arms crossed. An impatient eyebrow was arched and restless fingers were tapping against his bright, red coat.

"You are late again," he deadpanned, obviously not amused. "You think I have no private life? It´s not ALL about books actually, you know."

"I'm sorry, Scrollmaster, I just got carried away again,"Yazoo apologized, honestly. He had really cut it close. Up to this point, the Scrollmaster had been discrete and he really couldn't afford to piss the redhead off.

"Really." Genesis didn´t look appeased at all. "And what could have you drawn in so very much that it appears more important to you than my well-deserved, hard earned evening?"

"I found..." Yazoo searched his mind for something plausible, anything... and frankly, he was feeling the stress of the situation. As beautiful as Genesis was, very pleasing to the eye... he could be damned intimidating, even moreso than Sephiroth, Yazoo thought, because Sephiroth pressured and scolded out of brotherly love. Genesis on the other hand, sometimes eyed Yazoo as if the man were a babysitter who had just resolved never to have children. The silver haired youth caved and blurted out the first thing that popped into his mind.

".... I found the real adult books section in there and it is a lot more interesting than that illusion that hides Deep Magic."

Genesis´eyes widened remarkably as he heard the words coming out of the flustered youth´s mouth. His stance relaxed a bit and he didn´t seem that angry anymore; now he turned sly and almost predatory. Pushing himself off the desk, Genesis started to slowly circle the royal fairy, drawling, "I see... The adult books, hm? And, did you like them?"

The Prince stiffened. This was not going where he wanted it to at all. "Mm, some of them were quite nice, others were... uh... interesting..." He had never had sex before, and he didn't know much. He was bluffing, but hoped Genesis wouldn't notice.

"Really..." The librarian's expression changed to a lewd one, as he still circled the beautiful youth, looking him up and down with a wholly new interest. He hadn´t thought this innocent looking creature was actually so... naughty. Sephiroth would certainly have his balls if he ever found out about this, but Genesis just couldn´t resist letting his fore finger wander up Yazoo´s arm, as he said lowly, "I could teach you a few of these things... for real."

"...." Yazoo's breath caught as he felt the first-ever stirrings of his young manhood in his breeches, his cheeks heating up and the flush evident in them. "Scrollmaster..."

He started feeling really uncomfortable and really torn. The beautiful redhead was making his body do things, which felt really good actually... but he was so LATE! Sephiroth was going to kill him and his wand would be standing up like this through it all. Nice. He couldn't say he wasn't enjoying it though, and he leaned into Genesis' touch.

"Yes?" Genesis breathed, thrilled that he was being called 'master', even though it was just as part of his formal title. "What do you say, little prince? No one has to know, I will not tell your big brother, if you won´t..."

"...Sure," Yazoo replied, hearing his voice sound a bit weak and affected, and he cleared his throat. "I .. would like that. Until next time then." Regrettably, or thankfully, the youth couldn't decide which, he took his leave, knowing that he was eons late for their dinner. Genesis seemed a bit disappointed, but then he just shrugged and finally closed the shop.

Upon sneaking back to his rooms at the Palace and then down to the large great hall, Yazoo found that 'dinner' was an all-out formal event, a ball to be exact, for there was dancing. It was not anything so formal as that, but it was fine attire. He crept in with the intent to stand near their thrones as if he had always been there.

Sephiroth´s neck tingled, a sure sign that a certain someone had finally deigned to grace them with their presence. His pupils dilated, as he noticed his little brother sneaking inside with an expression as if butter wouldn´t melt in his mouth and so the king gallantly let go of his dancing partner, to catch the sneaky latecomer in a swirl before he could safely get to the throne.

Grabbing the youth around the waist, roughly, Sephiroth pressed him close and kept dancing through the ball room, past all the other couples as if nothing had happened. His expression was straight and neutral, but his slitted eyes and the strong grip should tell Yazoo that he was in for something.

"Where. Have. You. Been!" the king hissed through gritted teeth, his nails digging into Yazoo´s back.

"Oh, brother, I'm sorry I'm late. I was at the Scrollmaster's..." Yazoo lilted, as if it were natural that he were so studious, but hadn't read anything there for a while, not since he had taken an interest in the borders anyway.

"You are late for an important official dinner, I told you three times not to be late too, because of some stupid book you were reading?" the king deadpanned, pushing Yazoo away from him and twirling him in some kind of pirouette. It was a good thing they had broken bodily contact; being so close didn´t do Sephiroth´s anger any good.

"And you think it is done with a simple apology?" His eyes flared up as he hissed into Yazoo´s ear, this time letting the boy be a few inches away from him while they danced. His scent was so intoxicating, his lean, slender body so graceful... and his scent, his sweet scent... The king´s eyes narrowed. Something was wrong about that fragrance.

Yazoo didn't know what to say that would appease his brother, but he truly had not meant to be late. He didn't seem to realize that his careless, unaffected manner tended to irritate Sephiroth to no end, even if it was a trait they shared in abundance. The Prince truly did appreciate that his brother cared about him so much, but telling Yazoo 'no' was like.... well, it was utterly pointless and usually drove him toward the forbidden object instead of away from it.

"I'm truly sorry?" he tried again, at a loss.

Sephiroth´s brows were still knitted, as his nose came close to his brother´s ear, sniffing it, wandering down along his neck. He hadn´t even heard the prince talking again.

"...What is this smell? I know it, and it definitely is not from the library..." the king said lowly, his movements slowing till they were standing in the middle of the dance floor.

Yazoo's breath hitched again as his brother invaded his personal space, "It's me?" he said, playing dumb.

Sephiroth´s eyes narrowed further and then he went stock still for a moment, as they widened. The pairs around them had stopped their dance, seeing that their king and his brother had stopped too. Then there was a sound that wasn´t particularly loud, but echoed through the room nonetheless as if a pollen bomb had gone off. Sephiroth had realized what Yazoo smelled like and hit his brother square across the face.

Barely containing his agitation, he bellowed at the guests, "The party is over. OUT!"

They all scurried away as fast as they could, because usually their king was to be known as a very well-tempered, maybe a bit strict, but fair king that very, very rarely lost his temper. If he did however, something bad must have happened. The room was empty within seconds, leaving only the two brothers.

"You have been outside!" Sephiroth blazed, making another menacing step towards his little brother.

Yazoo stood his ground, his hand on his burning cheek, thunderstruck. Really, though, he had disobeyed and gone to the danger zone directly after he was pleaded not to. How else was Sephiroth supposed to deter him? He understood completely but it didn't lessen the shock of it. He had never pushed his brother this far.

"I only wanted a short look. It all sounded so exciting."

"Exciting." Sephiroth echoed, griping the youth by the shoulders now, shaking him. His face was devastated and disbelieving, hopeless and desperate even. "Exciting? Did you even listen to one word I told you? It´s perilous out there, Yazoo! You could have easily died, and no one could have helped you, not even I!" He shook the poor boy some more, as if he could knock all the dumbness out of his little brother.

"Bro-o-other, please..." Yazoo's expression went blank as Sephiroth jostled him. He thought about it though, and he was able to visualize himself lying in a large monster's foot print. The four legged ones anyway. That being he had met today was not like that at all... at least he didn't think it was.

"I'm sorry I make you worry... that was thoughtless of me..."

"That was thoughtless of you indeed." Sephiroth snapped, stopping finally as he somehow got himself back under control. His expression went blank as well, mirroring that of Yazoo´s, as he slowly said, "I do not know what to do with you anymore. I asked you, I ordered you, I pleaded with you, but it seems that you just won´t understand. I didn´t think these measures were necessary, but you really leave me no other choice, Yazoo."

With that, he took the young fairy by the arm, and, with his lips pressed into a thin line, he dragged the young man with him, out of the throne room and down the corridors towards the boy's bedroom. He pushed Yazoo inside, standing by the door, back straight, unwavering, as he slowly closed the door with his key in hand, "You will stay in your room and think about your actions till I have figured out what to do with you. I am very, very disappointed in you. I thought you to be more mature, but obviously, I was wrong. Maybe you have to learn the hard way." Then the door was closed and locked from the outside.

"Brother, please, can we talk about this?" His room was just about the most boring place ever, and Yazoo didn't know what to say, because he had tasted blood and there was really no going back. He loved his big brother dearly though and wished that they could come to an understanding somehow.

Sephiroth leaned his forehead against the sweet smelling wood of the door, briefly closing his eyes. He really didn´t want to do this, but right now there was no other way to make Yazoo understand how much he worried his king, how much he was loved... So he steeled himself and replied coldly, "We will talk about this tomorrow, after you have thought about it. Good night."

He sincerely hoped that this would teach Yazoo a lesson. Putting the key in his pocket, he turned and left for a night of little to no sleep.

Looking out his dewdrop window, the Prince glanced out into the night, over their sleepy little kingdom. The dinner tonight had been packed, and many of the guests were still filing out of the palace, their fairy lights glowing in the night, lining the streets. Beyond that, darkness. Out there somewhere, in that exact direction, was where Yazoo had met the kind other-being. Such a big world beyond what he knew, and Yazoo wasn't allowed out of his room? Sighing in frustration, the prince ran toward his bed and threw himself face down on it, for no other reason than because it was fun. Rolling over onto his back, he stared at the domed, orchid petal ceiling until he fell asleep.

The next morning, Sephiroth was up pretty early, very much earlier than he usually was. He didn´t bother to dress in his formal clothing, just took a light robe that left his smooth chest open and went down to his brother´s quarters. He had spent the night thinking about how to keep Yazoo on a short leash, searching the archives for a way, and he had found one, maybe... It was a dark one, one he didn´t even want to contemplate, but if all else failed, he didn´t know...

Shaking these thoughts out of his head, the king silently unlocked the door to his brother´s bed chamber. He would see what this morning would bring first. The sun was just rising, filling the room with a warm, soft light. Soundlessly, the king slipped in and closed the door behind him, walking over to the bed. There Yazoo lay, on his belly, his wings folded, but trembling slightly. Sephiroth wondered what dreams this frail creature might have...

Sitting down on the edge of the bed, the king watched long black lashes resting on impeccable, soft skin, pink parted lips and long moon light tresses. Unconsciously his hand reached out, to stroke over a smooth cheek, as Yazoo stirred.

One emerald eye opened as the youth sensed another presence in the room. "Good morning, Brother," he smiled sleepily at him, but he noticed the tired expression.

"Did you sleep?" but Yazoo couldn't manage to sit up yet, his body was so comfortable...

"Not much... But you seem fine," Sephiroth observed dryly, inwardly grieving that Yazoo didn´t seem to have let the events from last night bother him much. Still, he strode one silver lock out of the boy´s face, asking, "And, did you think about your actions?"

"Yes!" Both of Yazoo's eyes opened now, and he caught his brother's soft hand in his own. "But there is such a big world out there... and I am so curious... What if we organized a large expedition, so I wouldn't go alone?"

"No!" Sephiroth growled, exasperated, withdrawing his hand as he stood. "This world outside is dangerous, Yazoo! Do I have to spell it out for you? D-a--n-g-e-r-o-u-s! There are creatures so vile and evil that you can´t even begin to understand the horrors they are capable of inflicting on us! Why do you think we stay here, hidden and living in peace? Because I am evil and want to spoil your fun?"

"You are?" Yazoo looked at his brother and blinked. Sometimes it certainly seemed that way, but perhaps Yazoo would be putting the other fairies in danger with an expedition like that. Very well then, but he would still have to go himself. He took care of himself pretty well the last time, didn't he? He also knew that asking Sephiroth to come as his protector wouldn't bode well at all.

"What? No, of course not! I am forbidding you to go outside because it´s dange-" the king stopped, actually tearing at his hair, very compelled to give a laugh, but refraining from it. This boy was driving him nuts. He just shook his head and stood from the bed, to wordlessly leave, before Yazoo could make him go insane. It was probably Sephiroth´s own fault, anyway and now he had it all come back to him.

"I have spoiled you far too much. You will stay in here until you understand."

Part of Yazoo didn't want Sephiroth to leave angry with him, wanted to feel the comfort of his brother's arms around him, but he was also a bit stubborn at times. So he sat there with a petulant look on his face, thoroughly unhappy with the situation.

Sephiroth inwardly cringed as he saw Yazoo sticking out his full lips, pouting at him... Oh he just wanted to go back and... but he didn´t. He had to be hard on Yazoo this time, or the elder knew what would happen.

"Don´t give me that look," he therefore snapped, irritated at himself that he had really had spoiled Yazoo so much. "You can´t just sulk your way out of everything, my dear."

The prince traded in his pouty face for his blank one and he sat there, watching Sephiroth until his brother was about to close the door behind him again.

"...Brother..." and he quickly leaped up out of the bed and ran over to ambush his brother in a hug. No matter how sulky he was feeling, if it really was suicide to go back out there, he wanted to hug his brother again just in case. He reveled in the feel of that strong embrace...

"I love you!"

Sephiroth was a bit surprised by the attack but instinctively his arms closed around the naked, slender body that pressed so close to his... They really were just kept apart by the too-thin spidery web robe Sephiroth was wearing and the warmth of his brother´s delicious, innocent body stirred desires within the king that were anything but brotherly.

Appalled, the man drew back abruptly, not wanting for Yazoo to feel his awakening flesh, and stepped out of the room.

"I love you too. But you must learn your lesson," he breathed and avoided looking at the slim figure, then quickly closed and locked the door behind him. He needed a cold bath now. Desperately. Hurriedly, he walked back down the way he had come, making a mental note to go back to the secret archives later.

Feeling warm that his brother cared so much, Yazoo quickly found the clothes he'd been wearing before and found a pointy enough object to burst the liquid surface of the bubble that was his window.. Going invisible, his new and very favorite spell, he climbed out and took off into the morning sky, flitting quickly to the border, where he knew Throckmorton and Fenchurch would be patrolling as they did everyday. Successfully slipping past them, he crossed through the magical barrier once again.

TBC

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So what do you think? You likie?