Alice: SOLOMON!

Having waited a long while for Solomon's return, Alice had become anxious. Though she'd tried to distract herself by helping her injured teammates, her heart couldn't ignore the pain it felt. Though she knew he'd won, she was worried about what he'd done to get that victory. Knowing what Solomon was like, she couldn't shake the idea of him doing something stupid and getting hurt. So when Solomon finally made it back to her, looking perfectly fine no less, she couldn't stop herself from screaming out his name. Sprinting forwards, she pounced onto him. Before he even had the chance to realise what had happened, she had settled herself into his arms. Tightly gripping onto him, she finally felt her heart calming down. Feeling his arms wrap around her gave her an even deeper sense of comfort. Sinking into that feeling, she felt the worries in her mind and the tension in her body drift away.

Solomon: Alice? Are you alright?

Having recovered from his initial surprise, Solomon looked down at Alice. Seeing her head buried in his chest and Feeling the slight trembling of her body, he felt a wave of guilt hit him. Having spent long enough with her, he knew how concerned she'd be for him. Yet when it came down to it, he'd still left her behind. Though he was sure it was the best way to protect her, he couldn't shake his guilty conscience. Especially after seeing her like this.

Alice: Hmm, I'm fine.

Nodding her head gently, Alice looked up at Solomon. Though she tried to suppress it, the tears in her eyes started flowing freely down her face. Knowing that he was safe had brought all of the complex emotions in her heart out. Looking up into his clear brown eyes, she let all of her pent up emotions out.

Solomon: Agh, It's okay, I'm here now. I won't leave you.

Seeing her pained face, Solomon's heart cracked. Though he knew he'd made the right decision, seeing her like this made him question himself. If this was the result of his actions, was it truly worth it? Was it worth hurting her heart over and over to protect her life? Or was it better to protect her heart and put her life at risk? At first, Solomon thought he knew the answer to that question. Her life was the most important. Her heart could be healed, But her life could never be recovered once it was lost. But as his own emotions affected his judgment, Solomon questioned himself. But before he had the time to think about it further, Alice's voice drew him out of his own mind.

Alice: I, I'm okay. I'm not upset. It's just, I'm just really happy that you're okay.

Seeing Solomon's panicked expression, Alice chuckled to herself. Knowing that he was so worried about her, she felt touched. She tried to tell Solomon that she was alright, but her roiling emotions prevented her. After stuttering her way through a couple of sentences, she gave up on words entirely. Smiling widely, she hoped her actions could convey more than her words. But before she could appreciate the heartfelt scene for much longer, a hoarse cough brought her back to the present.

Gareth: Kahum.

Remembering where they were, both Solomon and Alice quickly jumped away from each other. Seeing a thin film of scarlet red creep onto their faces, Gareth couldn't help but chuckle.

Gareth: hehehe, you two grown awfully close, haven't ya? It Shouldn't be long now before I can expect a nephew then?

Taking advantage of their embarrassment, Gareth teased them.

Alice: Agh! Tha, tha, that's!

Caught completely off guard, Alice stuttered over her words. Though she tried desperately to stay calm, the sudden thought of children in her mind was causing her to panic. As they were in Domain, the topic of children had never come up between them. It wasn't that they were ignoring it, just that they had other priorities on their mind. So now having it suddenly brought to her attention, Alice was stunned. On the other hand, Solomon wasn't reacting nearly as much. Though the touch of red on his face had grown a few shades lighter, his overall composure was the same. Looking at both of their reactions, Gareth felt a grin spread across his face. Seeing the usually collected couple become so embarrassed he couldn't help himself.

Alice: you, you see! It's, it's! AAAGGH!

Letting out an exasperated sigh, Alice looked pleadingly over at the silent Solomon. Since she'd started fumbling over her words he'd remained unusually quiet. Seeing him react like that, she felt a little awkward. After all, she was making such a big thing out of it. Worst of all, she didn't feel too opposed the idea. Though she definitely wouldn't tell him that.

Solomon: I think you might be getting a little ahead of yourself there. We're still far too young for things like that. Those things should be left for the future.

Under Alice's gaze, Solomon quickly spoke up for her. Having enough experience with her, he knew that it'd be a death sentence to ignore Alice. Though he'd hoped to stay out of this conversation, she'd ended up dragging him into it. It wasn't that he was against having children, just that he'd not really though about it. Being under an almost constant fear of death had left him with little time to think about unimportant things like this. Choosing his words carefully, Solomon came up with a diplomatic response. As Alice was listening to what he'd say, he didn't want to come off in a bad way. So he made sure not to commit himself to anything. Though he'd not said he was interested in children, he'd left it open to the future. He hoped that Alice would be content with such an answer for now. After all, they had plenty of time to carefully consider it. Especially now that he'd learnt what happens to children in Domain from Tony.

Alice: that's right!

Thankful that Solomon had bailed her out of embarrassing herself even more, Alice hastily agreed with him.

Gareth: haha, I guess so.

Looking at Gareth's evil grin, Alice had a sudden urge to hit him. But looking at the limp body that lay in his arms, she refrained herself.

Alice: Ah!

Having reminded herself of the situation, Alice rushed over to check on Pluvia. Having completely neglected her and though almost exclusively about Solomon, she felt quite guilty now. Looking over her body, Alice couldn't find any obvious injuries. But seeing her limp figure and pale face, she started to fear the worst. Looking over at Solomon, her words came out after a slight hesitation.

Alice: She... what happened to her?

Looking at Alice's panicked eyes, Solomon quickly explained Pluvia's state to her.

Solomon: |It's alright, she's only knocked out. As far as I could tell, she's not injured anywhere. So I think she's just exhausted.

Just like with Gareth, Solomon made sure to leave out the extent of Pluvia's injuries before she changed back into her human form. Remembering the cuts and shattered scales all over her dragon body, he suspected there was a lot more to her unconscious state than it seemed. But knowing that they didn't have any ways to help her, he refrained from telling them about it. After all, It would only distract them from the mission.

Alice: As for as you could tell? Well, at least she's okay. Seeing her like this, I thought she'd be far worse off.

Picking up on the implications of "as far as I could tell" Alice wanted to immediately question Solomon. With her keen intuition, she could understand the meaning of his words. And looking at the shoddy appearance of Pluvia's clothes, she could easily deduce that he'd clothed her. But knowing that it wasn't the time or place for her to pursue such thoughts, she held back. Though now that she'd figured out as much, she committed it to memory. As soon as she had the chance, she would undoubtedly chase him up on it. Knowing that there was no way to escape from Alice's eventual interrogation, Solomon felt his mood dampen.

Solomon: Yeah, it's crazy that we got away with just that... if you don't mind, could you give her one of your potions? Though I'm not sure if it'll have any effect, I'd rather be safe than sorry.

Setting aside his sour mood, Solomon spoke to Alice. Having already decided that it was worth using up Some of Alice's energy for this, he asked her to use a potion. Hearing him, Alice hesitated briefly. She was worried about spending her already sparse energy in such a way when they didn't know what dangers they still had to face. But after taking stock of her rift energy, and realising that a quarter of it had already recuperated, she agreeing. Though she was reluctant to use up her precious energy, especially at such an important time, she didn't place it on the same level as helping her allies. If it had a chance to help Pluvia, even if only slightly, she'd give to her. Thinking about it logically, she felt it was a good decision as well. As Pluvia was their strongest fighter, it would be best for her to recover quickly.

Alice: Yeah, I'll do it. I'd feel better if I knew she'd taken a potion.

Reaching into her sleeve, Alice took out one of the familiar cards that resided there. Holding it out in front of herself, she activated it.

Alice: Potion!

Watching the card smash into pieces, then form into a torrent of green energy Solomon was once again amazed. Even though he'd been a resident of this crazy world for a little while now, he still hadn't gotten over how nonchalantly everyone used their powers. It was like they were extensions of their body that had always been there, even though they were very new. Even he himself had been doing it. Looking back at how he handled his powers in the fight with the Queen, he almost couldn't believe it. If someone had told him he'd fight against a 12 ft tall insect and win before he came to Domain, he'd call them mad. Yet here he was.

Alice: Tilt her head back for me.

Hearing Alice's instructions, Solomon's moment of realisation was shattered. Bringing his attention back to the matter at hand, he did as she asked. Holding the purple bottle firmly in her hand, Alice uncapped the lid. Then holding it up to Pluvia's lips, she gently poured all of the contents down her throat. Though she had to take it slowly, stopping several times to let the liquid flow down, she had quickly emptied the whole bottle. She then watched as it shattered into pieces. Those tiny pieces soon turned back into a bright green energy, forming into a small card. Quickly grabbing a hold of it, she shoved the card back up into her sleeve.

Alice: it's done.

Looking down at Pluvia's body, Alice felt a little less guilty. She still felt bad for ignoring her who was much worse off and going straight to Solomon. But at least now she'd done all she could for Pluvia.

Solomon: good, all we can do now is wait then.

Happy that everything they could do for Pluvia had been done, Solomon felt his concern for her lesson. Though he still felt responsible and guilty, he could now get on with his other responsibilities without being distracted. Thinking about his other allies who were still injured, he looked towards the cave where they all were. Though it was partly obscured by darkness, his superior vision could still pick out a few people in the darkness. Though he couldn't tell how they were, he at least knew they were back on their feet.

Solomon: Alright, let's go back to the other then.

Glancing back over to Alice and Gareth, he noticed that they were still looking at Pluvia. Speaking up, he drew their attention. Then without waiting any longer, he walked forwards