Author Note: Finally got the chapter out! I had a computer problem earlier and as a result I lost not only the chapter as I was going to post it but also the notes that I wrote before I started. Therefore I had to rewrite the entire chapter from the beginning from memory and a lot of improvisation. I am still ill as well so I am not having a good day but I hope you guys enjoy the chapter and sorry in advance if it is not as good as it should have been.

"Toad in the hole with some mash potato and gravy. One of my favourites" I said and immediately after dug in with relish.

"Oh is that so? I will have to remember that and in future let you sample my cooking and see how it compares. If you had come out more or to some clubs then you could have already tried some you know? I always make loads to share around as Fran can't cook" this came from Virginnia who was proudly boasting.

"I am a woman of many prodigious talents... Unfortunately cooking isn't one of them" sighed Fran looking a bit dejected.

"What about you Annabeth? Care to give these to a run for their money?"

She shook her head at that. "I am usually at the library club so I generally eat cold lunches or sweet snacks. If you want a dessert or something along those lines come to me and I will dazzle you anything else Vi has it sown up."

"I see well I also like making desserts as well. My favourite are homemade sponge cakes with lots of buttercream and homemade cheesecakes. I remember when I made one so perfectly that it looked like a master chef had made it and I left it in the fridge over night and when I came back in the morning it was all gone. I had only a tiny slither but it was godly I can tell you. Never been able to make another one quite like it. Guess if I was an artist you could say that was my masterpiece."

"Excuse me sorry for the intrusion but would I be able to join you?"

I turned round to see Yuki with a tray of food in her hands. I smiled at her an replied. "Of course you can join us the more the merrier right? You don't mind do you girls?"

"No its ok."

"Thank you very much everyone. I could use some company to cheer me up" Yuki smiled wanly at us.

"Now that we are all together shall we discuss our future goals and ideas? We are leaders here and each of us is respected in one way or another. I think that-"

"Please wait a minute Yuki. I realise that it is important to hammer out a plan but can we not do that after dinner? After everything that has happened we all need to find some time to wind down and relax for a bit and pretend the world hasn't got o hell. It's times like this that we should cherish and later on in life this will be something we can look back upon fondly even if it doesn't seem like it now. Being able to mess around and be carefree when surrounded by friends will help keep us sane."

"Yes you are right Robert I apologise. Sorry it is just that I am so used to having to jump right to the matter at hand then having to dash off and deal with something else that I seem to be doing it unconsciously in every situation."

"No matter we are all feeling the pressure and dealing with it the best we can."

"Yuki that reminds me are you still reading that book you were telling me about? I am reading-" Annabeth spoke up trying to engage Yuki in a conversation and lighten the mood.

Now that I think about it the are both in the library club so maybe they are friends? If not they are acquaintances at least. I zoned out and let the girls talk so I could eat my dinner. After we had finished eating we got down to talking about the important stuff.

"So Robert what should I out my stat points into?" inquired Virginnia.

Well that depends on what you want and what your fighting style is. I you want to hit harder to do more damage or to carry more then strength is the way to go but if you want to perform actions for long like battle or running away then dexterity is the way to go as it raises the stamina and stamina regeneration. If you want to be faster and to be able to jump around like an acrobat then agility will help there and vitality is for boosting health. Bear in mind that you can have a million help but it won't help if you get your head chopped off as you will still be just as dead. It will help with taking damage and prevent a spell or the like killing you in one shot and I think it is the most important attribute so I put points into it at every level up. This is all from my experience and observations so there may be things that we haven't noticed yet."

"Well how do I go about using magic like you?" Fran asked me.

"Francesca!" Virginna hissed at her.

I glared at her then at Virginnia. "So much for keeping her mouth shut. Why don't you say it a bit louder so the whole world hears you."

To her credit she instantly looked guilty and tried to cover up with a lame excuse.

"What I meant is that monsters can use magic and that you are the most powerful of us I was wondering if we could do it and how we go about learning it."

I rolled my eyes at her and looked around.

"Relax I think that people are too busy eating and having their own conversation so I think nobody of then Yuki heard you. As for that well Yuki is fairly smart and astute so your lame cover up with not convince her. So the cat is out of the bag."

"Wow you can use magic? Can you take me with you next time as I want to learn magic! I always read fantasies back when I was younger and just like every kid was enamoured by magic and dragons. You are living the dream of everybody in the world. How did you learn it you must tell us."

"Well I read a book and it was pasted to me. Simple as that really but the book disintegrated afterwards so it could only be used once. The old saying knowledge is power was literally true in this case."

Figures that Yuki would want magic as she is the intellectual type. Well she is part of the library club with Annabeth it would be amusing if she was a closet otaku as well I mused. That would ruin her dominant and prim and proper image. I imagined her in a magical girl outfit nd almost burst out laughing.

"So you read a skill book and it gave you the skill? With the way the world has changed do you think if we red books in the library about things like blacksmithing and the like it would gave us the skill?" Yuki asked me.

"No that shouldn't be the case. It was a magical book I read after all." I answered back.

"Are you one hundred percent positive it wouldn't work? If it does it would be a veritable goldmine. I think they should hold off allocating their points until we at least try a it might effect their fighting style if it does work"

"No I am not completely sure. We haven't explored that area yet so we can you that as an excuse when we set out. Event if the system doesn't give us the skill by reading the books and sharing ideas we might be able to work something out and learn the old fashioned way" I told the group.

"We will rest up for tonight then move to the library tomorrow morning and yes before you ask Yuki you can come with us. It would help having two library girls and if you point us to where we need to find the books then we will do the manual stuff."

Yuki was so happy she gave me a quick hug and a kiss on the cheek then sat back down before I even had the time to move even with my enhanced agility. That brought a few interesting stares not least of which were the girls with us.