- Ch. 11 - A Canary's Decision, The Family Meeting, and Harsh Truths

{After 5 hours...}

The moment she saw one of the library clocks hit 5 PM, Dinah stopped for the day, wrote down the pages she stopped at in each book in her journal, and then she returned the books to the front desk.

After a few seconds of pleasantries, Dinah stepped back out into the Guild Hall. With great fortune, she found that the Hall was almost empty. She looked over at the Guild Familia Advisory area and found someone that wasn't currently helping out an adventurer.

Before she approached, she looked the young human woman over. The young woman had short red hair, brown eyes, tanned skin, was dressed in the customary Guild black and white, and she looked slightly lethargic. 'But she's free, so it doesn't matter.'

With hastened steps, Dinah reached the desk of the red-haired woman and greeted her with a wave. "Hello, I'm Dinah, and I'm here to register as an Adventurer for the Panacea Familia."

The slightly lethargic look vanished a little, and her brown eyes met my blue. "Greetings, I'm Henrietta. And that's good to know. Do you have your first Status sheet with you?", she asked tiredly.

With a nod, the Canary handed over her edited Status sheet to Henrietta who took it and then looked it over before nodding to herself. "Okay, I'll be taking this and filing you into our books as a new Level 1 Adventurer of the Panacea Familia. Any changes to your Level should be filed to me or another Guild Advisor, but if you want me as your Official Guild Advisor, then I'd be fine with that. You can and should ask me for advice, but if you don't want to, then it's your funeral. I've been working at the Guild for 6 years now, so you should know that I know what I'm talking about. *Sigh* Any complaints about my way of doing things or behavior should get filed to the receptionists, but in all honesty; it just gets thrown away. It's not the Advisor's fault when the one their advising doesn't listen to them, so any problems you might have are your own. Oh yeah,... and please don't die. Speak quickly or leave... I get paid either way."

When Henrietta started speaking, Dinah nodded along. The spiel she bore witness to just now sounded rehearsed, monotone, witty, and informative; all at the same time. It was at this moment that the Black Canary decided, that Henrietta will be to her what Alfred was to Batman. With that decided, she replied with one word, with a calm expression on her face, "Excellent."

After a second's pause, Dinah continued, "I'd like for you to be my Official Guild Advisor. I'll be going to the dungeon for the first time tomorrow, and before I do, I'll be talking to you in the morning. I've got no complaints. I like people who are straight forward and aren't afraid to tell me straight to my face what's what. I've been in the library for more than 8 hours doing my own research.", Dinah paused and took out her journal; which had page liners with all sorts of labels on them, for Henrietta to see before she placed it back into her satchel. "When you talk, I'll listen. And I'll be writing your words down for later referral. So, what do you say?"

Henrietta kept her stoic gaze on Dinah's face for a few minutes, before she held out her right hand to Dinah; who took it and shook it with her own. "I think that this is going to be a beneficial partnership. I'll be seeing you tomorrow morning, Ms. Lance. Have a great afternoon."

And with that, Dinah gave Henrietta a smile which the red-haired woman returned; with a very small one of her own. With natural class, Henrietta waved her away, and Dinah nodded before she left the Guild Hall with poise.

As Dinah walked away, Henrietta yawned subtly and watched her new partner walk away with a curious gaze on her face. 'I don't think I've ever met an Adventurer like her before.'

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{After 20 minutes or so...}

When Dinah was walking home, she felt a sudden chill in the air; and the sudden weight she felt almost made her vomit. She had to stop near a stall where the female, cat-person, sales clerk was selling all sorts of leather armor for cheap and affordable prices.

Dinah leaned against the wall right by the stall and had to steady herself, while she tried to calm herself down. The chilling aura she felt reminded her of something she's only ever felt from some very dangerous people in the past.

After a few moments, the chilling aura left, and Dinah found that she could now breathe easier again. 'I guess I found a downside to having my instincts and senses enhanced.'

After she fixed herself up, and straightened her posture, she rushed back home with a faster gait while her neurons were firing. 'I think I just felt the presence of a very high level Adventurer.'

'This is a very dangerous city...'

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{After 10 minutes or so...}

When she reached her new home, she felt an overwhelming sense of safety and happiness fill her entire being. And after what she experienced not too long ago, she needed it badly.

She took a breath to take in the homely atmosphere, and then she promptly entered her home for the foreseeable future. Dinah walked in, greeted a few of her Familia, and then she asked around for Panacea's location.

She was told that Mother Panacea was in the playroom that was directly to the left of the dining room. All she had to do was go towards the dining room, turn left to an antechamber, and through that she'll find the playroom.

She thanked the young, 13 year old, human teen, who was sporting a neutral expression on his face, but his brown eyes; which reminded the Canary of the color of bark from an oak, held great warmth in them as he met her gaze. Dinah found out that his name was Christian, and that, "..I'm just passing by. And I'm happy to help. I'll see you at dinner."

Christian nodded at her before the young boy; of whom was dressed primarily in grays, and blues; while holding a log of firewood, walked away.

With her direction in mind, Dinah headed towards the location of her Goddess with due haste. When she entered the playroom, she saw Panacea; with Conner in hand, and they were surrounded by 5 other younger kids whose ages ranged from 3 to 6 years old.

There were 2 other teens in the room watching over the group while playing chess in a separate area of the playroom.

The playroom was a big room with no windows. The walls were decorated by photos, framed pictures, and there were all kinds of recreational games, activities, and other items dotting the room. There were reading tables, bookshelves; with both easy-to-read books and learning games stored in them, comfy looking chairs and couches, and the lights from the mini ceiling chandeliers gave the room a very nice ambiance. The floor of the playroom was covered in a soft blue carpet that looked soft to the touch. Overall, it looked pretty impressive.

Dinah smiled at Panacea, who smiled back before she went back to playing with the kids and telling them stories while teaching them how to say different words with a picture book. Conner was sitting on her lap and he looked happy as he waved his tiny little arms in the air.

Dinah walked and sat down next to the 2 teens who greeted her with a smile and a nod, before they continued their serious match of chess.

The young, blond, mother watched them play while occasionally watching Panacea and the kids.

"So, what are your names?", Dinah asked curiously, while she watched their chess match; which was slowly growing in both intensity and speed.

"I'm Desmond, but you can call me Des.", answered the 14 year old, chientrope teenager. He had soft brown hair; cut short, to go with his brown dog ears and tail, and his mocha toned complexion. He wore a brown tunic over a black long sleeved shirt, green shorts, and brown leather sandals.

"The name's Isabella. You can call me Iz.", said the much shorter, 14 year old, human teenager. She had a shocking head of electric blue hair that reached her shoulders in curls. Iz wore a pair of glasses with bronze colored frames that were etched with small pictures that Dinah could barely make out. She had on a soft red blouse, black skirt, and brown leather sandals.

"It's great to meet you two.", Dinah said conversationally.

"Likewise.", said Des with a nod.

"Same.", said Iz right after.

"So, how was your day?", the Canary asked; while trying to avoid sounding too awkward.

"Can't complain.", answered Des while he moved another piece across the board.

"Today was our designated baby sitting day, but thankfully Mom took over.", replied Iz with a shrug. "I love teaching my little brothers and sisters as much as the next girl in our family, but I don't like it when they pull on my hair because of how eye catching it is."

"Yeah, that tends to put off most women.", Dinah said with an understanding nod.

"At least you two don't have extra appendages to worry about. Having my ears and tail pulled hurts and it feels weird.", said Des with a slight shudder.

And with that, the three started to bond and their conversations jumped into one subject after another. When Panacea saw this happening from the corner of her eye, her smile widened. 'It's good to see that she's slowly bonding with more of the Familia. I foresee good things ahead of us. And it all starts with my Familia's new Songbird. She's slowly changing the atmosphere of the family. I can't wait to see what happens...'

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{After a couple of hours or so...}

Dinner was certainly another upbeat affair for Dinah. A lot more of her Familia talked to her, little Conner was given a lot of attention; which he loved and soaked up like a sponge, and Panacea was all smiles. Dinah was also asked to teach some singing lessons in which she agreed wholeheartedly.

Dinah also found the time to tell lighthearted stories of her past while she ate, and the kids just ate it up with awe and stars in their eyes. Telling them about her heavily edited brushes with death, as well as the adventures that she's had before was a huge hit at dinner.

The food that she chose and ate tonight was delicious. Dinah had tuna, rice, caramelized vegetables with some sort of secret sauce, and a cup of refreshing orange juice. Dinah gave her compliments to Jillian and Sam, who were only too happy to hear praise for their hard earned skills in the culinary arts.

Jillian and Sam; a.k.a. Samantha, were a pair of identical twins, who were both Chienthropes. The two teenagers were both 15 years of age, had shoulder-length maroon hair; which matches their pair of dog ears and tail, and they had fair skin and matching beauty marks underneath their left eye. Their eyes were a shade of royal purple with flecks of gold in their irises. They even wore matching outfits which consisted of a pair of matching yukatas in the colors of black, white, and yellow.

Dinah didn't bat an eye at their choice of clothing, because it matched the personalities of the two young teens to a tee and they pulled it off naturally. Apparently, the two are a big fan of the Far Eastern styles of dress as well as the culture, so they learned as much as they could about it and emulated it to an astonishing degree.

'To each their own.', Dinah thought to herself while she nodded in approval.

When dinner was over with, everyone cleaned up the dining room in earnest and waited for things to calm down. Dinah and Panacea sat together near the front with Conner in the blond mother's lap.

Everyone was sat around and formed a loose semi-circle around the fireplace while leaving a respectful distance from their Familia Captain.

Faith stood in front of the fireplace, facing them all and standing straight with her staff in hand.

A few minutes passed in silence while Faith swept her cool gaze across each and every face of her Familia. With a nod, she started the meeting in earnest.

"Welcome to the 3rd family meeting of the year. I have a few things to talk about as I'm the one who called this meeting to order. I'd like to happily inform everyone that our new big sister, Dinah, has successfully registered as an Adventurer for our Familia.", after those words, Faith gestured to Dinah before she continued on with the meeting.

"She's under my command, and I'm still your Familia Captain while Kim and Zack are still your Vice-Captains. Nothing in our leadership has changed. But what has and will change will be a few dynamics in our family. As you have all seen this morning, Dinah has a certain set of skills and she knows how to defend herself. Little Lianne and I asked her to teach us what she knows.", Faith nodded to the silver-haired bunny girl with a small smile and then looked at Dinah, before she swept her gaze again.

"Ultimately, it's your choice whether you want to learn from her or not. Just ask, and she'll gladly teach you. Now then, I've also been informed that Dinah will be heading into the dungeon for the first time tomorrow."

The moment that particular bomb dropped, Dinah felt the sudden weight of different gazes boring into her with an increased intensity.

Thankfully, Faith continued on as if she didn't notice the atmosphere in the room changing. "As you've all seen from this morning's demonstration, Dinah isn't like any ordinary Level 1 Adventurer. If I had to compare, I'd say she's faster than a Mid-Tier Level 1, but then again... this morning's performance was just her warming herself up for the day. Think of that what you will."

That tidbit of info helped alleviate some of the slight pressure in the room, but it was still there. Dinah tried to maintain her calm by playing with Conner's fingers, while she tried to keep a calm expression on her face. But she found it to be a difficult endeavor. She's always been ready to jump in head first into danger, but the weight of her new family's worried gazes felt like boulders weighing down her soul.

"She has done her research and has an Official Guild Advisor that she plans to talk to in the morning. Your new big sister has a complicated past, but I have confidence that her past experiences will help see her through. She will come back to us. So don't despair."

When Faith saw the atmosphere was still dampened, she changed tactics right away. She immediately thumped her staff into the floor, distracting everyone with the sudden echo of sound while a cold glint hardened in her green eyes. "May I remind you all who we are? We are the Panacea Familia. A family above all else. We support each other in what we strive to achieve. Dinah will come back, understand?"

There was a moment of silence, but Faith wasn't having it. "I said, Dinah will come back. Do you understand?!?", Faith proclaimed with vigour and enthusiasm rarely seen before.

"Yes, Captain. We understand!", proclaimed Jillian and Sam with matching grins.

And with that proclamation, began the chorus of "Yes ma'ams...", "Yes, Captain Faith...", "Hai hai, Mommy Dragon..."; from the group of excited 3 to 6 year olds, and the sole "Affirmative, Lady Faith...", from the very serious looking Vice-Captain Kim.

After all was said and done, and the atmosphere within the dining room returned to a semblance of calm, Faith gained a small smile to her lips, before she continued the meeting. "Excellent.", she said bluntly while nodding in approval.

"The next topic I want to bring up is something else Dinah brought to my attention. It's something I want everyone to learn from her as soon as possible. We'll schedule something on Saturday for a mass lesson and introduction..."

And the meeting continued well into the night, to Dinah's astonishment. It might have felt long winded at first, but Dinah learned a lot from it. She was thankful that Faith brought up certain topics in a sort of roundabout way that made others consider them with thoughtfulness without overwhelming them with the details. She also made it a point to remind everyone that if they needed more information on a topic, then all they needed to do is to talk with the matter subject expert in the Familia. It was a truly impressive showing of Faith in her natural state as the Familia Captain and how she understood everyone's needs, listened to their thoughts, and made certain that if someone has a voice, then she would speak in their behalf if they didn't want to talk in front of everyone. 'She's got the charisma down pat and she naturally embodies the opinions of others. In a few more years, that charisma could become something more tangible...'

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{After the meeting... 11 PM...}

With Conner asleep in his crib, Dinah was free to rest for the night. She showered, changed clothes, and then she turned off the lights and laid down on her comfy bed. But at the moment, she couldn't reach the bliss of a good night's sleep. Her thoughts were currently a whirlwind of new information, which she received from her Captain.

After the meeting concluded, she decided to talk to Faith in her office about a few things she wondered and was curious about... And the answers she was given was a bitter pill to swallow. But she should've realized it in the end. She still remembers Faith's slightly reprimanding tone of voice and the way she was talked down to not less than 20 minutes ago.

["...you're no longer in your old world. The cost of items, lodgings, clothes, equipment, water, food, all of it... are weighed differently here. I know that you're an adult, but to me, in this world, here and now, you're still barely a teen. I don't mean to offend. But you've got to look at things from my point of view.

You barely understand the ins and outs of the political climate in this city as well as the one outside of it. I know that you're doing your best, Dinah, and I commend you for your efforts. *Sigh* Since I mentioned politics, then I'll get into the confusion that is the economy. The economy is another whole can of worms and the prices of things are always fluctuating. Do you wanna know why registering in this city is so damn cheap? It's because they want as many sacrificial pawns to feed into that damned dungeon!!!

I apologize for yelling...

*Sigh*

I've healed my fair share of idiots, reckless fools, glory hounds, and assholes. But if they haven't died in the operating table, or have been severely wounded enough, then they keep on going down that fucking death trap. Our Familia are getting by as much as we are thanks to the recklessness of Adventurers as well as the potions, tonics, and elixirs we're selling. Even if they are the lowest grade, they are still being bought. We pump out at most 40 - 50 Low-Grade Healing Potions in a good a week. We have to outsource for the ingredients, reagents, and other materials. Even if what we get is utter crap and the lowest of the low of materials. And if we're lucky, someone buys them all in bulk. The cost for several things in this world, in my opinion, are utterly ridiculous!!!

Do you really want to know how much it costs to get Magic Stones replaced once they run out? Do you want to know how much it costs for us to get fresh vegetables, meat products, and other food items. I hate this damn debt hanging over us like a scythe from the reaper! Frankly, you asking me how our Familia has this kind of debt is insulting?!

*Sigh* I'm really sorry for being like this, Dinah. I just...-

Do you know what they call Familias like ours in this city? I don't even want to say it. I hate those people. What the hell do they think is happening? That we're skimming loaned money?! LOANED MONEY?! Off the top?! That our Goddess is irresponsible?!?! Who the fuck do they think they are? I've been working my ass off for 7 fucking years! Everyone in our Familia has been working as much or even more than some adults in this damned city. Before they question anything, listen to naysayers, or even spread lies, they should see what they refuse to acknowledge with their own Damn EYES!! The world is not just this dungeon. The world is a bigger place...

Money... materials... everything in this world fluctuates like the tides of the ocean. The prices... Last month a barrel of turnips was only 200 Valis. This month it was 425, because a caravan was attacked by bandits... Low supply, high demand, and the prices change. Another caravan that was carrying wool got attacked by some monsters a couple of months ago... It took the city until now to form a raiding party to take care of the threat. They should've looked at the inflated prices for wool at the markets first for the signs. Instead, they waited for actual messengers... The messengers that were asking for assistance took a month to get here. That guy was the 5th one they sent..."]

Dinah felt both terrified, ashamed, and she felt like an utter asshole for inadvertently opening up a can of worms that she didn't realize was there all along. 'Thank goodness Panacea still had Conner at the time.'

*Sigh* 'I have to find a way to apologize... Words won't make things right here. Materials, ingredients, and reagents... hmmmm...', were her last thoughts before the realm of Morpheus welcomed her.

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Author's Note: Hello all,

I kind of went on another Fixing/Correcting/Grammar tweaking binge today. On the 22nd of March, 2020. I've got good news though, there was only less than a dozen fixes overall from the first chapter to the eleventh. I hope you enjoy the story. Drink some tea, and relax. ;)

Have a wonderful day or night. Either one.