[center][u]Mar, Althalus and a bit of Coco too![/u][/center]

Mar had listened to the boy’s words. From above, his voice screamed from inside the home and just past the still of his window at them, his face hovered far out of reach for anyone to reach him. Her lips visibly curled into a frown at his high spirited wrath. Not even Lyn, only three months, acted in such a matter as the human teen did. Currently it wasn’t hard to see this boy had emotional problems and needed help. His mind lost in some sense of madness she would never understand, a grateful thing for the Naga. 
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Even in her absent mind, she had tried to avoid thinking about the scene or brushing too closely over the corpses around her. Death was never a comfort to Naga. Even though they were human, Mar’s inner nature half expected the corpses to sudden start to rise and try to kill them all. Impossible but it didn’t stop her paranoia from seeping into her. Part of the reason she let the others deal with the disturbed and misguided child, her thoughts on other more disturbing things, as Athalus’s voice broke into her ears.
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His breath brushed her ear, her body lowered, while her tail flinched yet didn’t lash out. Her brown eyes stared at Althalus, narrowing with acknowledgement for his presence. Also slight worry beneath the show of strength. 
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“I’ve no idea what you’re talking about. Naturally Lyn would be my main concern, no matter where, because she is my daughter. My future. What you saw was only mother instinct and nothing more.” 
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"Yes, you do know what I'm talking about." Althalus chided gently with a small smile. "The others may not have noticed, but I lived with you for months before Lyn was born, and these months after. We both know that mother instinct doesn't override common sense when Lyn isn't even here. Especially in Naga. It's been happening more and more ever since Lyn was born and we both know it. Regardless, I take it that means there won't be any passionate kisses? Such a shame, I was looking forward to those type of displays of affection. It would have stopped other students in their tracks when they saw us doing that. Alas, it will never be it seems." He gave a dramatic sigh.
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This entire time Althalus had had the crossbow cocked and ready. The death and devastation itself gave him no problem. It was just like a night in Port Slaughter when a holiday was on and everyone was celebrating by drinking heavily. But there was something wrong about it all, and that made him wary. He made sure to keep the crossbow pointed away from anyone in their little group, but it was ready to be brought down and shot in a moment's notice. He was tense, despite his teasing and carefree chatter. Something wasn't right.
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Mar's frown deepened. Althalus, like a snake, had sensed a oozing wound of emotion and naturally attacked it. Her tail tightened but again, it didn't lash out. It didn't mean she wasn't tempted. Instead she continued her denial igoring his words, her head lifted to scan the surroundings and changed the topic quickly.
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 "So much death and carnage... I wonder if they are still lurking about. If this was demons, they won't leave a single survivor. Only demonomancers usually survive an attack and from the damage done, this was beyond any I've seen. Save for Tyrael's ability." Mar said in a slight whisper. 
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Althalus chuckled, but didn't pursue the subject any further. He glanced around at the devastation as she spoke. "I don't think it was demons. At least, it wasn't wholly demons. There are too many bodies that are relatively untouched. And the soldiers," he gestured to the Yarosmerian bodies, "are relatively unmauled. They would have had the best chance of killing any demons, so it stands to reason that they would have gone down first. Horribly, with lots of pain. You saw the remains of the guards in the College, the frontliners. They were torn apart, and that was a fight the demons lost. And if they were still lurking about, I imagine they would have tried to kill us already, distracted as we are by nutzo over there." Althalus indicated the boy with his crossbow.
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"I think it was our lovely little mages who did this. If you listen to his babble, he mentioned a fire breather, and a demon blood, and the everlasting hunger. Sounds like mages to me. I hate killing mages. They never go down without doing something to complicate things."
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"If that was true, the Naga wouldn't have survived in the Ravine. Not all demons act the same. A Ridge Hound, for example, becomes smarter when alone. It could wound a creature then wait for them to bleed to death or another creature to kill it, leaving behind a corpse. They are more reckless in packs which can number up to a hundred or more at a time." Mar had began to tell Althalus, namely as if he was a young and inexperienced Naga. It was then she blinked, realizing what had started. It was time to flip the subject and her attention leapt at his certianty this mages when there was hard to gather evidence to support it.
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"And how would you know this?" 
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She turned to face him, her eyebrow raised and focused. Her arms had crossed over her front and settled there while her tail flickered behind, twitching in warning. 
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Althalus raised both his eyebrows at Mar. That little tirade was something he hadn't expected. As he opened his mouth to point out the fact that Naga turn into unstoppable killing machines whenever they didn't get their brains killed, she trapped him with a her gaze and everything else that indicated he wasn't going to get out of this one easily. Althalus's teeth came shut with an audible click. The one thing he didn't want to get into with..well, anyone from the College, Mar had picked up on a slip. Mentally cursing he replied, the lie easily coming, "Well, it makes sense doesn't it? You've seen Uicle, and Tyrael and all the other teachers. Does killing them seem like an easy prospect to you?" He shifted uncomfortably and then froze, wincing. Naga understood body language very well, and Mar understood his down to the smallest twitch. 
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This wasn't going to end well.
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"Althalus..." Mar gave a warning, her voice ended in a slight hiss. "That doesn't answer the question well enough. Only experience would make your claims correct, and from the sound of it, you might have something you and I need to talk about." 
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She leaned into his personal space, her knuckles tightened and weapon readily at her side in moments. Mar looked as if she was about to assult Althalus in a way he would find rather...unpleasant. 
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[i]Clink.[/i]
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"I know I wouldn't go down without doing something to complicate someone's day. Would you two not do that, too?"
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Mere feet away from the couple, Coco leaned towards them. Leaves puffed out the moment she turned her back to the 'King'.
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Althalus opened his mouth to deny it further (uselessly, he knew), while getting ready to dodge anything that might be thrown at him, be it tail, slap, or scythe, when Coco spoke up. Softly, so softly that he could barely hear himself, he whispered "Thank you." to the Foreas. It only delayed the inevitable, but the inevitable could be avoided for a long time, he found. Seizing the opportunity, he spoke, "Before we continue and I explain why my certainty doesn't need experience, lets not distract our allies any more, shall we? We don't want to be surprised by mages powerful enough to destroy a small village by themselves." Mentally crossing his fingers, he glanced around the devastation again, pretending to look for hints of deception. 
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"Aw, bummer..." Coco mentioned, then listened for a second. "Althalus is right, though... Mages could come from anywhere!" She exclaimed. Turning away, she focused on the nearest body and poked it with the wooden end of her spear. "I'm not sure there's resurrection magic, though..." And Coco went on, checking the bodies for some sign of the mages.
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Mar ignored Coco for a moment, her eyes shifted a bit to acknowledged her presence, then turned back to stare farther at Althalus. She hadn't realize her height had started to rise higher above him as her eyes fixed on his eyes, unwilling to let this go. However Mar didn't interrupt Coco while the fern's little leaves were puffed out and started to speak about what Althalus had said. For a bit, she listened to the coversation while Althalus weakly covered his lie which only irritated Mar farther. Her eyes seemed to spark with a slight fury uncharacteristic of her. Silently she waited until Coco had left before she leaned into Althalus's ear then whispered something into it. 
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"You and I will discuss this later... or you will never be welcomed back in the Den again." It was filled with vemon, though hidden behind was slight pain she tried to overcome with anger. After she let her words linger, Mar lifted upright then twisted about to view the current ongoings with the youth still locked in what she assumed was his home.