C5: Juno the Rabbit Lord

To avoid distractions, Fran went to the back of the castle and settled under the shade of a tree. She sat in a lotus position and closed her eyes to concentrate.

She imagined mana as blood flowing through her veins, from her core down to her fingertips. She started feeling something warm in her palm but this time, she didn't open her eyes. Fran continued to focus and imagined a steady flow to her palm.

While her eyes were closed, A white ball of energy continued to glow in her palm. The sun went down and Fran was still continuing her practice. When she heard the insects fluttering, Fran opened her eyes and was met with the dark. She was kind of thankful since it wasn't hard on her eyes.

Fran was not very fond of the night. She was always sneaking in at night and her brain automatically sets on work mode whenever its dark. And she hates work.

She stood up to leave when she heard a rustle. Stopping in her tracks, Fran eyed her surroundings.

....

It was quiet.

Nothing can be heard but Fran felt a pair of eyes watching her.

"Show yourself."

Moments later, she saw a bush move and out came a rabbit. With wings? The rabbit came into the light and she saw it was a brown hare. Its eyes stared straight into Fran's

Its ears twitched and began to hop into the forest. After two hops, it stared back to Fran. Does it want her to follow?

Fran looked to the forest ahead. It was dark and silent. Somewhat similar to the horror movies she saw back then. Looking back to the beast, It gave her that same unwavering stare.

Figuring it won't go unless she followed, Fran decided to follow suit.

They made their way through the dark forest. Trees stood like columns in a long winding path with their roots filling the ground. Fran followed the hare in a steady pace until they reached a clearing.

It was filled with grass that reached her ankles. Fireflies lazily hanged on like little lights. Not long ahead, a small pond was mirroring the round moon. The quiet night now filled with sounds of fireflies and cicadas.

Like a gust of wind, the fireflies started to come together. Thousands of lights came out of the forest and started to cluster from the ground up. A figure began to form from the insects. Fran just stared wide eyed at the phenomenon in front of her, not sure how to react.

"Hello, my child."

The familiar voice rang in Fran's ear. That deep mellow voice is something she can never forget.

"It's you."

Fran broke out of her shock and bowed.

"Thank you." She expressed her heartfelt thanks.

A smile was seen from the figure. The figure emitting a warm, almost mother figure vibe. Amazing when she's just a bunch of insects.

"This may be rude but may I ask who you are? Why did you help me?" Fran couldn't contain her curiosity and asked.

"The shell died but the spirit has yet to grow. How could I not?" The voice seemed to speak in her mind directly instead of a voice sounding out.

Memories flashed in her mind. There wasn't really much growing to happen when she was trained to be an emotionless tool following their orders.

"Your soul is not of this world," The voice continued. "It holds greater power than the rest. This will protect you from those who seek of your misfortune."

A gasp escaped Fran when a sudden burning sensation was felt below her shoulder blade. When she checked, a faint light was disappearing leaving a small crescent moon. It shined like glitter on her ivory skin.

"May I know your name?"

A smile ran across her face. "I leave her in your care." Another gust of wind slowly dispersed the the fireflies and slowly flew just like the way it was before she came.

The hare knelt and bowed his head slightly.

"Live well, my child." The voice echoed from everywhere before muting out.

Everything was silent again. Nothing amiss to point out anything ever happened. The only mark left was on Fran's shoulder. She took a look again and it shined even brighter under the moonlight.

And the hare. It was the one who lead her here.

Fran knelt, meeting eye to eye with the beast. "What should I call you?"

"I am called Lord Rabbit." Fran was a bit shocked not expecting an answer, but compared to the figure of fireflies, it was not that surprising.

She coughed awkwardly. " Don't you have another name?"

Its ears twitched as he thought it seriously. "Is it necessary?"

"Yes." Fran said with a serious face.

"This Lord shall give you the honor then."

"What do you say to Juno?"

"I think it sounds noble." he nodded in agreement. "I shall be called Juno henceforth."

"Then let's go back Juno."

The sun was starting its way up when they got back. Were they away that long? Fran didn't feel that it was that long but paid it no heed. Juno was in her arms when Yulia came rushing out.

"Where have you been all night? I was really worried!" Yulia called out.

"I was out practicing."

"Which doesn't need to take all night! Something could have happened!"

Something did happen, Fran thought. Seeing her so worried for her made Fran's heart warm. Not like a prickly heat like when she was generating mana. It was warm and fuzzy like a hot cocoa in a rainy night.

Yulia's face changed from worry to shock as she saw the beast in her arms. "Is that a skvader?!"

"A what?"

"A skvader! They run away at the slightest movement so no one can see one up close. Let alone hold them. These wings doesn't help either." Yulia spoke fast trying to hold Juno but he slapped her hand in protest.

Fran lifted him to meet his face. "I thought you said you were a rabbit, Lord?" she whispered.

"The goddess prefers things simple. I am part hare so that's not too far fetched."

Fran and Yulia sighed at the same time.

"Wish I have a rare spirit beast. "

"Spirit beast?" Fran shook her head hoping for an explanation and she wasn't disappointed.

"You guys don't have that too? People usually have one from childhood. They're very expensive so mostly nobles have them. Or children of their parent's spirit beast gets passed on.

"Once you have a contract established, the two of you are bound to each other. Just release mana upon its head and say 'From this day forth, my spirit will bind with yours and yours with mine. Do you accept?' If it accepts, a white light will glow from its head and its done!

"You feel what they feel and same goes for them. It's an eternal pact. The best part is that it levels up with you. When you break into another level he grows with you. Same thing with him. "

Fran pondered about it and caught the eyes of the skvader. She saw herself reflected in its' two black eyes. Like boring onto her soul.

"Do you want to?"

"She already entrusted me to you." he said.

She place the animal on the ground. Warmth surged to her palm and a white light appeared.

"From this day forth, my spirit will bind with yours and yours with mine. Do you accept?"

The skvader bowed its head and a white glow showed between its eyes. The glow disappeared and everything was back to how it was.

That's it?

"Don't just sit there in a daze." Juno broke the silence. "I'm hungry."

Fran let out a chuckle and lifted him up.