"So who's coming to pick us up?" I asked, holding two of his right hand's fingers with my left hand.

We were both holding the handle of our suitcases and still carrying our backpacks since we left the quiet area of the airport. After texting the person who's supposed to pick us up, Briar figured out where we were located and then brought us to the waiting area outside. And that is where we've been waiting for five minutes.

Briar chuckled. "He's a bit of an oddball, but I think you'll like him."

I frowned. "I thought you didn't want me liking other people and instead wanted me to focus only on you this week."

Briar blushed and turned his head. "Th-that is true, but we will be meeting people that play a pretty big role in my work and my life."

My tail wagged and whacked Briar's legs. He looked down with a laugh on his lips since my bright-eyed face and beaming smile was angled up towards him. I hopped on my toes and squeezed his fingers, then lifted his hand and kissed it.

"I'm so excited, Bri! I've been wondering about what you do for work for a long time."

Briar smiled happily. "It has something to do with the ribbons I was asking you to help me choose."

I tilted my head, but I didn't have a definitive idea from that hint. Briar smirked and rubbed the back of my hand, then he perked up and his ears flicked over when we heard a couple honks. My eyes were suddenly accosted by a fluorescent light blue as the sports car pulled to a stop in front of us. A super tall, lanky guy leapt out of the idling car towards us.

"Boss!" he exclaimed with a bright smile, hugging Briar tightly. "I've missed you so much."

Briar smiled and patted the guy's back. Appearance-wise, I would guess that this person was in his late twenties, early thirties. He was very slim with little muscle tone, which made him more like me in that sense. But this guy had long light brown hair that he'd braided, and the tip of the braid ended at a little past his chest. Any stray curls of his side bangs had been pinned back with fluorescent blue clips.

Briar, although happy to see this guy, was now getting a bit annoyed. "Kyler, let go."

"Aww, no way. Not happening. I'm not letting my cute boss get away from me so quickly."

My lips quirked down. So someone other than me had discovered my beloved's cute side. Clearly, Kyler had known Briar much longer than me, and that thought made a little twinge of jealousy appear. I tamped that down because I am happy that Briar has other allies/friends.

"Well, we need to get going because the airport security is looking like they're going to come over here soon."

Kyler groaned aloud. "Fine..." He let go of Briar and went to turn, then noticed me and inhaled sharply. "Is this the famous 'Ann'?" he breathlessly asked with wide blue-gray eyes.

Briar grinned. "Yup, this is my Ann. Anwyll DeLuca-Arcane." he stated, then turned to me. "Ann, this is Kyler Allaway, my subordinate and friend."

I smiled happily and held out my right hand. "Nice to meet y—mmh!"

Kyler had grabbed my form and lifted me with surprising strength, hugging me tightly. "He's so cute!" he exclaimed, pressing my face against his neck. "Oh, I just love him. He's like a little doll!"

Briar snickered when he looked at my buggy violet orbs. "Unique like Waltz," he reminded, and I managed to nod.

I returned Kyler's hug and he squealed, bouncing around like an excited goat kid. Briar had his super bouncy friend unlock the trunk, then loaded our stuff into the back of the car. Once he was finished, Briar tried to take me back but Kyler refused to let go.

"Forget that. You drive. I'm holding this cutie-pie."

Briar's jaw ticked, but I moved my right hand to reach out for my Emerged black jaguar. He grasped my fingers and kissed my knuckles, his pupils growing larger as he stared at my face. I managed to move my head so that I could speak to Briar.

"We'll cuddle some more later, Bri." I said softly, then he harshly exhaled and kissed my palm.

"Fine," he murmured, "I'll drive for now."

Even though I thought Kyler was just being cheeky by saying that he wouldn't let go of me, he was completely serious. I was turned around and settled into Kyler's arms in the front passenger seat, then the belt was strapped over our laps. Briar hopped into the driver's seat and drove out of the pickup area.

Kyler bounced a bit and cooed while he petted my head. I noticed that he wasn't surprised by my two sets of ears, so he must have seen my wolf characteristics. And that meant he wasn't human. I glanced at Briar. He was brooding about something, but he smiled at me when he noticed my concerned gaze.

But I jumped when Kyler suddenly asked, "Is he going to participate?"

Before Briar could answer, Kyler immediately apologized for startling me and showered me with affection. He squeezed my form tighter and cooed when I looked at Briar for help. He chuckled and waved his hand.

"You're charming, Ann, and I'm driving. You can handle him."

I pouted but silently agreed. Kyler poked my cheeks and lightly pinched them, then continued to check out my body within reason. I shivered when his hands wrapped around my waist. Kyler marveled that he could partially lace his fingers around my waist. But he did have quite large hands and long fingers, which made me wonder what kind of nonhuman he would be.

"Such a marvelous tail," he breathed, lifting it carefully as if he was inspecting a swath of expensive fabric. He gently moved my wolf ears around as he said, "And these lovely ears are adorable."

"You finished the project, correct?"

"Of course! And Boss, you have such an eye for design. This little one here will look stunning!"

Briar smirked. "Of course he will. He always does."

I blushed and the heat crept down to my chest. I didn't really understand what the two were talking about, but I'm assuming Briar designs things and Kyler makes the designs come to life.

"Um, Ky?" I asked, and Kyler squealed.

My ears lowered, so he apologized and hugged me a bit tighter. "Geez, he's too damn adorable, Boss." whined Kyler, rocking back and forth with me.

"And strong," added Briar with a small smile. "So strong."

Kyler noticed Briar's mood and looked between us. "Did something happen?"

Briar sighed aloud. "Two things happened today."

"Two?"

"Mmhm," I hummed my agreement. "I wonder if someone had set this up."

Briar eyed me. "What do you mean?"

"There is an entity out in this world that I call the 'Evil Spider', Bri. He's kidnapped me before and has tried to capture me again, and there's no way he's given up. I am the most interesting hybrid to date."

Kyler had tensed upon the mention of the Evil Spider, so I wonder how he knows of the evil man and how he knew exactly who I was talking about. I think Briar recognized the body language of Kyler as well, but he chose to leave it be since he didn't have all of the information.

"When did that happen?"

"Um, when I hung out with Uncle Andros for the first time he was able to kidnap me and the second time he tried to, although that was when Angel was in a coma."

Briar clenched the steering wheel. "You mentioned hybrids."

"I did, Bri. I don't really know what he wants to do with them; maybe study and or dissect hybrids. He seems to be making chimeras from the information I've gathered from my elderly vampire advisor, Matthew Jackal."

Briar frowned. "Isn't Ambrose your advisor?"

"He is that, but technically Rose is also my queen."

Kyler inhaled sharply and then coughed. "Wh-what?" he croaked.

Briar snickered. "Ann is the king of vampires."

"What!" shrieked Kyler. "How in the diddly-donuts of that fractured society is that possible!"

I giggled, my tail wiggling against the door. "Well, I just defeated the previous king, scared the elite of the kingdom to make them submit, and now I'm the uncontested, fully supported king."

Kyler hugged my midsection and pushed his fingers through my thick, silvery heather waves. "Am I really holding the king of vampires? This cuddly, fluffy, adorable little thing?"

"I'm not a thing."

I twisted around and peeked at him, pushing my lips out in a puffy-cheeked pout. Kyler's blue-gray eyes widened and then he began to laugh. I relaxed my expression and grinned. Kyler continued petting my head and tail, lifting the latter and rubbing his face in my tail's fluffiness. Kyler inhaled deeply and released a slow exhale.

Briar chuckled. "He might get X-ray vision at this rate."

"Maybe so," I replied with a bright smile.

"X-ray vision?" asked Kyler, although his voice was muffled. "Why would I get that?"

"Mm, one of our family members now has controllable X-ray vision to see through walls and clothes after spending as much time as possible hugging my tail and burying his face in it. It was quite embarrassing at first."

Kyler lifted his head from my tail and looked at Briar with a bleary-eyed expression. "Your Ann is unbelievable."

Briar smirked. "I know that all too well."

__________________________

The drive didn't take too long. We had arrived at a parking garage of the apartment complex where Kyler lived. He'd insisted to have us stay with him for the whole week. I don't know if he meant it, but he appeared to be genuinely excited for this week-long sleepover.

As soon as we lugged our stuff out of the car, to the elevator, and then later set our things inside the spare bedroom in Kyler's spacious apartment suite, Briar flopped himself down onto the couch with me on top of himself. I giggled and thanked him with a few smooches for driving us here safely, which made Briar very pleased.

Kyler was in the kitchen making some tea, but he called out, "Before we got to talking about hybrids, vampires, and weird magic, you mentioned that two bad things happened earlier today."

Briar groaned aloud. "I'm too tired. Ask Ann!"

I used magic to switch Briar's and my positions on the couch. I was sitting upright in the corner with Briar's head on a pillow that rested on my lap. He curled up and snuggled in a bit more, then started purring as I began pushing my fingers through his black locks.

"Okay, Ann, tell me what happened." stated Kyler, as he walked around behind me to a chair on my right. He paused when he noticed Briar snoozing but smiled at me and crossed his legs. "If you want to tell me."

"I don't mind," I replied quietly. "At the airport in our state, there were ten people threatening civilians with guns. Most of the weaponry wasn't the average guns civilians would buy for hunting and or self-defense, so regardless of their numbers, I thought that was really strange."

Kyler mutely nodded, looking very troubled. "Did anyone get shot?"

"Nope. And according to one woman, they'd agreed beforehand that no children were to be taken hostage to avoid the Feds' involvement."

"Interesting," he said, then paused. "How did you find that out?"

"Well, she was talking to the guy that had grabbed me and three other people above my head. It was hard to miss hearing that, to be frank." I replied with a dry chuckle.

Kyler's eyes were wide as I went on to explain the events that had transpired today. Briar was still sleeping comfortably while I spoke in a soft, calming voice. I enjoyed taking care of him even just a little bit like this because it felt special. Kyler, on the other hand, was tense and pale-faced. He looked sick to his stomach.

"Ky," I began, and he closed his eyes for a moment. "Are you okay?"

Kyler slowly let out his breath and uncurled his fists. "Y-yes," he stuttered, then grimaced. "Yes, I'm fine."

"You aren't fine, but I won't pry." I responded, eyeing him for a moment. "But if the information you're not willing to share will put my beloveds in danger, consider yourself an enemy when you refuse to explain."

Kyler jumped up, fear in his eyes from the killing intent I directed at him. The illusion of my wolf-dragon form jumping out and gnashing my teeth seemed to frighten him to his core. Since I protected Briar from the illusion of my dark aura, he continued sleeping unaware. Kyler now looked very wary of me.

I turned my head and smiled. "But as long as you choose to do the right thing, I can protect you from whatever you're so afraid of, Kyler."

Kyler gripped his left forearm and his bottom lip trembled, then he slowly unbuttoned his shirt. I raised an eyebrow but, as he shrugged it off, I realized why he'd been so frightened when I mentioned the Evil Spider. Kyler had black veins like spider webs from his heart across his chest and down his arms.

"Are you a pawn or a victim?" I asked, and he shuddered.

"Both," he whispered. "If you are truly as strong as Briar says, I will trust you to protect me. But if I say anything right now, I will get killed on the spot. I worked so hard to escape that bastard, but he only let a failure like me 'escape' his clutches."

"Hmm," I murmured, eyeing him up and down. I decided to actually look at him—beyond his physical appearance.

My eyes widened when I realized the full scale of what even a failed hybrid could look like through my magic. His arms were completely black on the inside, showing that they were foreign. Those arms did not originally belong to Kyler. The heart did not belong to him either, but it was filled with pitch black magic and pumping it through his body. The Evil Spider had completely made Kyler his puppet. He literally could kill the man at any second if he chose to do it.

That thought really sickened me. It was one thing to protect and defend, but to murder someone on a whim—no rhyme or reason for it... Now I really want to find that bastard and rip him to shreds.

"C-can you help me?" shakily asked Kyler, freezing upon noticing my furious expression. "Is it impossible?"

"Kneel at my side."

Kyler cautiously stepped over to the couch and knelt next to me. "Anwyll?" he whispered, and my lips lifted up.

"You finally used my name, Ky." I said with a soft laugh, gently ruffling his light brown hair.

Briar's tail swished in annoyance, so my left hand began stroking his head again. Briar calmed down and relaxed once more. I used magic to block any sound that would come from Kyler's and my lips, then smiled when the older man flushed beet-red as my fingers traced along his jawline.

"Ky, this will probably hurt a lot."

His blue-gray eyes were a bit red. "Why?"

"What the Evil Spider has done to you is what I wish on no one but my enemies. He could literally kill you at any second if he chose to do it, just as you said. You live because of his magic."

"What?" he whispered, then eyed Briar.

"He can't hear what we're saying. No one else can, not even your manipulator." I stated with a small smirk, tucking one lock of light brown hair behind his ear. Although his skin was naturally tanned, I could still see his cheeks redden. "So speak freely, Ky."

Kyler swallowed thickly. "Why would this hurt?"

"Because I will have to remove the dark magic and replace it with my own. I believe I will be able to heal you from the inside with my magic so you won't need it to remain within you, but I believe the removal is what will hurt the most."

Kyler took a deep breath in and slowly released it. His determination showed on his face and in his eyes, then he nodded in agreement. "I will take your word for it. With every agonizing moment I've suffered under that entity's hands, I am certain I can survive this despite whatever pain I will face." he stated firmly.

"All right, I will do my best." I said, then pressed my hand right hand to his chest.

Kyler flinched, then he gasped when I teleported carbon copies of ourselves into my inventory. "Wh-what the—? Where the hell are we!"

"Inside my inventory space. Our real bodies are still in your apartment." I replied with a smile. "Time flows differently here, and I made sure Briar won't wake up while we're not fully there."

Kyler breathed a huge breath out. "You really are powerful."

"Mmhm, thanks to my papa and something else, I think." I replied with a bright smile, taking his hand. "But before we start, I want you to meet someone."

Kyler's blue-gray eyes were wide as my words sunk in. I guided him towards the cell a little further away, which obviously hadn't been noticed by Kyler. I removed the sound-blocking barrier, and Aeglaeca jumped when I said hello.

"Little wolf," he murmured with a tired smile. "You have returned."

"I have, although it wasn't for your sake."

"Oh, you wound me." he said quietly, placing a hand over his heart. "I have thoroughly considered your offer and have chosen to gratefully accept it."

I grinned and the cell disappeared in a flash. "Good timing! You and Ky can both have your connections with the Evil Spider removed!"

Kyler flinched when Aeglaeca's crimson irises moved over to him. They stared at each other in silence.

"Kyler, this is Aeglaeca. Aeglaeca, this is Kyler. We're all friends here."

Kyler shuffled closer to me and then knelt at my side. I placed my hand on his chest, then Aeglaeca knelt and turned around so his back faced me. I removed his shirt with a touch and he hissed as my hand hit his skin.

"Breathe," I murmured. "And relax after this is over. I will be sleeping."

Kyler looked concerned, but he slowly nodded his agreement. Aeglaeca didn't say a word. I closed my eyes, viewed their bodies with my magic, and started my task.