Two weeks have passed by since Shiro set his sights on leveling up his friendship with both Azalea and Kade. It was easy since they both knew each other through Kurosu so it wasn't entirely awkward and easier than starting something from scratch.
Shiro got much closer to Azalea than he did with Kurosu. Azalea was a green dragon and they are considered the most endearing of their species so starting a friendship with her was easy.
He started spending a lot of time at her house in between his training. Terra also liked the company of another dragon other than his sister.
"Shiro-Ani*I've been grounded by Azae-Chan and I can't go outside today"
Terra grumbled as he sat at the tables staring at a blank piece of paper.
"Lemme guess. You failed another one of your lessons" Shiro sighed as he looked over at the younger green dragon with a slight smile.
"Ugh!! He's so hard to understand!" Terra yelled as slumped his head down on the table, his tousled brown hair covering the table around his face.
"Er- Maybe you should try studying more often?" Shiro tried to offer some level of encouragement but he couldn't help but sympathize with Terra.
As a hatchling he was no different. He'd rather go play at the beach than study.
Terra groaned more.
"I don't like studying. Master makes it so hard to understand."
"What exactly are you even learning?"
"It's history. We're learning about the Oboro Rebellion"
Shiro choked a bit on his tea as he heard Terra.
"T-That's pretty complex for a kid your age you know!"
Terra grumbled more and looked ready to cry in frustration.
"He wants me to write an essay on how it all started! I don't even remember!"
"Don't you have a book?"
"N-no? He wants me to remember it all from my head! I can't even remember what I ate yesterday!"
Shirl laughed a bit as he grabbed the paper from Terra.
"Give me a pencil, I can help!"
"W-wait! Really!?!"
"Yeah I know this stuff so I'll try to help you"
"Cool!"
Terra scooted over to watch Shiro draw six circles in the middle of the paper.
"There are 3 kingdoms that we know of today: Avalon, Kannauj, and the Oboro Empire. Are you with me so far?"
Terra nods as Shiro continued,
"Before the Oboro Empire was a thing, it was made up of 6 small clans. They divided the land into small states to each rule: Yue, Oboro, Taira, Iga, Inei, and Kira."
"Wait-Oboro wasn't an empire!?!"
"No"
"!?!"
Shiro and Terra both looked over to see Azalea standing by the door, apparently listening in to their conversation.
"The Oboro was the smallest of the six clans. They each fought each other for power since they all claimed to be descendants of Vitra"
Shiro nodded.
"Vitra was the God of Darkness while his twin sister, Tiamat was the goddess of Light. It's well known that all dragons are descendants of one or the other so the Rebellion was mostly just for territories rather than birthright" Shiro thought to himself.
Azalea continued,
"Oboro came on top surprisingly thanks to the support of the Valkyries"
"A Val-kyr-ie? What's that?" Terra inquired, fully engrossed in the story.
"They are a religious institution who worship Vitra" Azalea explained as she walked over to the two males, "They are very powerful so they helped the Oboro Clan take over the other clans."
Terra was in awe over the story and was hanging on every word.
Azalea laughed a little, "I don't know much for this is all I know about the event."
"Hey, you got it right, Azae-Chan!" Shiro encouragingly replied to the dragoness.
She smiled softly
"Terra that should be plenty for you to write your homework for the Master, so you better start on it before you forget it all."
Terra groaned loudly and threw his head, his long gray horns hitting the table with a loud thud.
"Shiro, can I talk to you for a moment? Terra needs to focus for now" Azalea motioned for Shiro to follow her.
"Ah-Sure" Shiro complied as he got up to follow her out of the living room and into the kitchen.
Azalea motioned for him to sit at the kitchen island as she went back to the counter to pull out two cups of hot tea for him and herself.
"Shiro, I'm grateful for you coming over but I'm concerned for you." Azalea talks sweetly, like a mother trying to coax her child into telling the truth.
"What for?" Shiro inquired
"Kurosu can be a bit…difficult."
"Difficult is an understatement"
Azalea smiled a little at the comment,
"I'm just worried for the both of you. Kurosu has been through alot and he can be hard to understand."
"Yeah, I'm sure" Shiro shrugged as took a sip of the tea. It had the familiar taste of hibiscus and honey with an undertone of mint. The Summer Moon Tea, his mother's favorite.
"Just like mom," Shiro thought to himself,
"It hurts to think about now…I'm not ready to deal with that."
Shiro put his thoughts aside again and focused back on Azalea.
"Kade told me Kurosu got you a weapon"
"Yeah, it's pretty nice. I've tested it out a few times but Kurosu said I'm not ready for you. Like he thinks I'll hurt myself with a giant stick basically" Shiro laughed a little as he took another sip of tea.
"He's just staying cautious. He's never done this with other partners." Azalea mentioned
"There were others?" Shiro put down his tea abruptly.
Azalea nodded, "he's had a few in the past but never stayed long"
"Wh-what why??"
"Most of it had to do with his teaching style but I think it was also because he's an outsider"
"Outsider? I thought he lived here a long time," Shiro was confused. "Kurosu didn't grow up here? Where's he from?"
"...He doesn't know" Azalea spoke softly with a mild frown.
"You mean you don't know?"
"No. He doesn't know…he can't remember"
"Wait….so he doesn't know where he lived before being here???"
Azalea walked over to Shiro and sat down beside him.
"I'm only telling you this so you understand why Kurosu is so…well him." Azalea continued in a whisper. "Kade found him in a river a few miles from Ryoko about a year ago. He was badly beaten and clutching his sword so tightly, Kade couldn't pull away from him. He was unconscious for three days and when he came too, he didn't remember who he was or where he came from. He didn't know his own name."
"But Kurosu-"
"It's what the Hunters called him when he first joined their ranks. It stuck like glue. I personally hate it."
"How come?"
"It's from the old Draconia language. It means killer."
Shiro felt his heart drop. The entire time he's been calling his mentor a killer.
"Kurosu rose up to become a high ranking hunter quickly. So the villagers are afraid of him. Very few talk to him."
"If no likes him….Why was Master Koen so desperate to find him a partner if they all leave"
Azalea sighed
"Kurosu is talented in the art of fighting and is his biggest asset. Koen merely wants more of Kurosu in future hunters. But most leave after a few weeks. You've stayed the longest so far."
"Wow, I feel so honored. He didn't even want me to stay to begin with."
"I'm not telling you this to scare you…I want you stay with him"
Shiro shot up at Azalea's statement.
"W-what why!?!"
She smiled sadly, her deep green eyes staring into his soul.
"I think you can help him heal."