“I am interested in leaving the hunt but only a certain way. It's become a little bit dangerous for my liking. I'm looking to leave while only paying the minimum price. Does that sound acceptable to you?”

Julia couldn't help but feel silly. Both she and Sharon were trying to avoid admitting to being witches while still speaking with one another. She doubted anyone was listening to their conversation but neither of them wanted to take a chance. The end result was she sounded like a crazy conspiracy nut. “That is perfectly fine. Now my councilor suggested that we should meet in a public location for the exchange. He believes that it'd help us both feel more comfortable and I agree with him.”

“He?”

A sheepish grin appeared on Julia's face when she looked over at John. He had noticed her slip of the tongue as well and was giving her a scolding look. “Yes. I would rather not get into that. When would you be able to meet with me?”

“Well that depends on where you want to meet.”

“How about a nice restaurant? I was thinking Maya's just off interstate eighty seven ramp twenty three. If you'd like.”

“Oh I know that restaurant! I have been wanting to eat there for a while now. You're talking about the one with the red lettering on their sign and a big section of the building is glass so that you can look out into the forest right?”

“Yes that would be the one.”

“I can do that. What time would you like to meet?

“How about tomorrow at seven fifteen?” Julia was actually quite surprised by the eagerness in Sharon's voice. It seemed like eating at such a restaurant had been a long term goal of hers. Exactly what had she been before she became a witch?

“That sounds great. That gives me time to go shopping and pick out a nice dress for my final day as part of the hunt. Oh! We're going to need a means of recognizing one another. Well you shouldn't have any trouble picking me out. I'm the one built like a brick house and probably going to be wearing a black or red dress.”

“Okay. Well.” For a moment Julia was silent then glanced down at her chest. “I'm around two meters tall and each one of my breasts are larger then my head.”

“Are you serious?”

It was impossible for Julia to keep from chuckling as she noticed Sharon's tone. “Yes!”

“Okay I don't believe too many women fit that description. I'll see you there.”

Julia actually felt light headed as she hung up the phone and glanced down at John. “Okay that just seemed too easy. Now I'm scared that I'm walking into a trap. John where is Rina?”

In truth John felt a little out of place as well. As dangerous as hunting another witch could be the fact that Sharon was just surrendering her power seemed unreal. From what he'd seen of the hunt he could understand a witch wanting out especially after she'd already gained a lot. It still seemed far too easy. “Make sure you augment your body before you actually speak with her. I know you're good at self defense and you've been conditioning your body but let's play it safe. As for Rina. Well I think she's teaching Lina how to play video games. She wants to try something.”

Despite her concerns Julia couldn't keep the shock from her face. “What?”

“Rina wants to see what game Lina likes the most now and then see how their desires change whenever they become one being. She's doing the same thing with food as well. I'm pretty sure she also had Lina write down her opinions of you and me. That last one actually got me to thinking a bit. Is it possible that a merging could result in Rina's view of me changing? So far I've been pretty happy with her seeing me as more of a friend then someone to be killed. I would prefer if that that trend continues.”

“That's actually a scary thought. It seems that as she's merged with other sprites she's become more concerned about your well being. I wonder if her feelings about you remain consistent but how she responds to those feelings might be changing. Blast it. Now I want to take you to work with me even more so I don't have to worry about something happening to you while I'm gone.”

John held his tongue as Julia took hold of him and lifted him towards her face. He waited until she held him at just below eye level to begin speaking again. “Well doesn't the contract insure that she can't harm me? After all you're working within the rules.”

“That's a good point. Still she's surprised me more then once with what she can do while working within the rules.” A sigh escaped Julia and she lowered John further and tipped her hand so that she was pressing him into her chest. “I think we should talk to her about this now actually. Otherwise I won't be able to relax at all while I'm at work.”

Rina, “I have no desire to harm John and a rather strong desire to make sure he's comfortable and safe. I have positive feelings towards him based on how he's treated me and how useful he's been. I will work to insure his safety within the guidelines of the rules so long as he doesn't break them especially if he continues to be of assistance. Please hold all comments and questions until later.”

Julia couldn't help it. Her jaw loosened and her mouth slipped open for a moment. Naturally Rina had heard everything they'd said. Her choice on how to respond to their concerns was a bit shocking and in truth reminded Julia of a child that didn't want her play time interrupted. After a moment she remembered to close her mouth and glanced down at John. “Well that seems good enough for now.”

“Uhuh.”

***********************************************************************************

Anon 7, 1558 HH

“Now you promise to protect him?” Julia couldn't hide her concern as she glanced down at John within her cleavage. Currently Rina, Lina and John were all setting within their little safety egg. With Rina's growing body this had become rather crowded and the sprite was currently holding John and Lina in her lap. This was something Julia intended to fix but it would have to wait until later. Currently they had just pulled into Maya's and she could feel her heart positively racing.

“I promise he'll be safe Julia. Even if you have to fight the egg is super strong now.”

After a moment of consideration Julia gave a sigh and a nod. “Can you feel Sharon inside John?”

“Yeah but I swear Julia her harmonics don't seem anywhere near as powerful as yours. Well they don't seem to be as intense. I'm still rather new at this but she just doesn't seem on par with those other witches.”

“I hope that you're right.” As she climbed out of her car Julia was already augmenting her body for a fight. She didn't want to risk using too much energy but she couldn't leave herself vulnerable either especially if what she'd heard about Sharon was true.

John took a deep breath and locked his hands together in a silent prayer. He didn't want to tell Julia but he was scared. None of the witches he'd seen so far would want to fight in such a public location. This witch may not be playing by the same rules the other ones were though and that scared him. Lina seemed to be certain things would work out but he didn't truly know her. Rina on the other hand he'd come to trust and she seemed confident which made him feel a bit better. He didn't even realize they were inside until he heard Julia speak up.

“No thank you. I'm here meeting a friend. Oh! There she is.” Julia smiled at the greater who gave a slight nod upon turning around and seeing Sharon waving to Julia. Julia took in a deep breath and moved towards the rather comfortable looking witch. As she walked she could see what Sharon had meant by built like a brick house. Her dress was drawn tight against her body revealing remarkably toned looking muscles. Thanks to Julia's own harmonics she could sense how refined Sharon's muscles were and in truth it frightened her. A few steps closer and it also became clear to Julia that Sharon was easily two hundred twenty centimeters tall.

“Hi Julia. I'm so glad you came. Isn't this place just amazing? I mean. Wow.”

Despite how nervous she felt Julia gave a smile and set down. “It is very nice. I don't get to eat her too often because of the price.”

“This is my first time here! I thought the guy upfront would give me trouble but he backed off after he looked up from his book.”

“I can see why. Your work is remarkable.”

“Thanks! But that's actually one of my problems. My physical appearance has changed so much that I can't risk going around my friends. There is no way they'd believe this happened naturally. Fortunately once we do our little exchange that won't be a danger anymore.”

“That is true but Sharon still. Wow. Would you mind telling me how you did it?”

“It would take a little longer to explain all the details then I have time for. I can give you the basics though.” As she spoke Sharon took a moment to raise her right arm and flex her bicep flaunting its size for a moment. “Before we do any of that how about we end this game? Like I said before. I want to be out of the hunt. So I'm just going to set here and relax and you focus on drawing the harmonics out of me. That way you can stop worrying so much!”

“I'm sorry. I know that this must be very uncomfortable for you and here I am being the scared one.” In truth Julia felt rather silly. In terms of harmonics she was a much more powerful witch then Sharon. Yet when she looked at the witch's body she could imagine Sharon snapping her neck in an instant. She wouldn't need magic for that just her muscles.

“It's alright. The fact that you're so nervous actually made me feel a lot more comfortable. Rina told me a lot of good things about you though.”

Julia gave her head a slight nod and felt herself reaching out to Sharon. She was actually surprised whenever she felt the part of Lina that had been placed within Sharon responding to her call. It was the first time she'd felt this happen without the witch being incapacitated first. The fact that the energy was flowing from a healthy body and a still conscious witch seemed to alter its behavior. Yet she could still feel it flowing into herself. “This is very strange.”

“I wouldn't know. It's my first time.” A delighted giggle escaped Sharon as a blush formed on Julia's face.

It didn't take long at all for Julia to absorb the energy from within Sharon's body. She felt a rush of energy flow into her body as if stepping inside a warm building after standing in the cold. The energy sank into her skin and then seemed to radiate out from her being while a ripple seemed to run throughout the environment. Julia had taken to thinking of this as the reality warping wave though in truth she didn't know its purpose or if it had one. All she knew is it happened whenever she absorbed the power of another witch. As Julia took the energy in though she was rather surprised by how little she felt. “Wow. I'm kind of surprised. When I looked at you I had expected a bit more of an energy rush.”

“Well I only had one.”

“True true but you just don't look it. I.” Julia took in a deep breath as she felt every muscle within her body tighten up. It would be several hours before she felt the full affect but already she could feel it happening. “Sharon how strong are you?”

“That's my secret. I tried to make sure I'd still be plenty strong even after I was defeated Now you wanted to know how I got here. Well you know what harmonics can alter minerals but I'm betting you don't know how those minerals influence the body.” For a moment Sharon went silent and gave a slight chuckle. “Are you sure we should be talking about this here though I guess it's our only chance. I don't believe you'll see me again once we leave here.”

“What? Are you planning on leaving?”

“Yeah I want to make sure I'm well and away from the hunt.”

“I see. I understand but I would appreciate it if you could tell me more. No one is listening to us I assure you.” Julia bit down on her lower lip gently. She didn't want to seem overeager but she did want to know how Sharon had influenced her body.

For a moment Sharon went silent and rubbed her head. “Julia to really understand what I did you'd need to know a lot about microbiology, human physiology and material sciences. I mean I assume you want to duplicate my results. To put things simply don't try to alter yourself directly. Instead work on augmenting those aspects of your body that help you to grow stronger. That way even whenever the song fades you'll retain the main benefits. It's like trying to work a puppet with a set of strings that are attached to the handles that are themselves attached to other strings or at least sticks.”

John, “She has a good point Julia. With your ability to alter living life forms this should be even easier for you.”

“What the?” For a moment Sharon's eyes widened as she glanced towards Julia's chest. “That glow in your cleavage. Is that Lina and Rina?”

Julia felt herself blush slightly. “Yes as well as my companion. I'm not sure if Lina told you but I have a bane helping me hunt. Wait. I had to adjust my ears just to hear John. How can you?”

“So that's how you did it! As for hearing him. I became very good at working my puppet.”

While the surprise in Sharon's voice was clear Julia was surprised that she had remembered to keep it low. The fact that she could hear John was even more surprising. “Yes. Honestly I didn't intend for this to happen to him it was an accident.”

While Julia and Sharon talked John found himself focusing on something else. Rina's body had began to glow more brightly while Lina's had began to dim. Neither of the sprites seemed to be frightened though and both were smiling. Lina had turned to her side and curled up against Rina while Rina had placed one of her arms upon her fellow sprite. He could see slight wisps raising up from Lina's skin as if she was evaporating and they were being drawn into Rina. “Lina are you alright?”

Rina, “He wants to know if it hurts.”

“Are you worried about me.”

“Yes. I believe I am.”

Lina gave a slight chuckle before she looked at John. “It doesn't hurt. I'm not. Well what you humans do. I'm not dieing. My awareness will still exist I'll just be part of a larger awareness. I can feel Rina opening up and changing to let me in.”

“What about you Rina?”

“I like carrots more then I used to.”

For a moment John wasn't certain what to say. Out of all the things he'd liked to know about how much Rina liked carrots wasn't one of them. Yet it did show that she was changing. “How do you feel about me and Julia?”

“I still like you and think you're a good friend but your chin isn't quite as cute as I remember it. Exercising with you sounds like more fun then it used to. There are a few shows I'm going to confront Julia about as they really annoy me but I still care for her a lot to. I don't like Sharon one bit.”

“Because she broke her contract with you?” John took in a deep breath as Lina and Rina nodded their heads. It seemed their sense of self joined very quickly. Despite the implication of the situation John couldn't help himself. “Does that mean you're going to start depending on me less to beat shadowlands for you?”

“Nope.”

The fact that both of the women responded once again made John's nose twitch. Rather then continue his questions though he settled against the side of the cage and continued to watch Lina and Rina wishing that he'd remembered to bring a note pad. At least now he could focus on the harmonics. Yet despite the clear magic involvement he couldn't hear or see anything that would indicate it was in use.

***********************************************************************************

Anon 8, 1558 HH

Julia smiled as she looked at herself in the mirror. Her muscles were toning up remarkably well thanks to the traits she'd taken from Sharon. As she looked at herself in the mirror though she had to remember that these weren't just Sharon's muscles. They were also the ones she'd already developed. The implications were clear. Sharon still had plenty of strength despite what she'd lost. This actually did more to excite Julia as she imagined what she'd be able to do with her harmonics. After a moment more of self admiration she looked down at John. “Well do you like what you see?”

“A great deal. But there is something I've been thinking about.”

“What's that?” As she spoke Julia carefully picked John up and held him against her chest.

“I was just wondering. Once a witch has been defeated can another sprite make a contract with her.”

“Huh. That is a good questions. Rina?” Even before she responded Julia had began to walk over towards the sprite who was currently settled in her bed.

“Yeah but what sprite would make a contract with a witch that has not only lost already but one that has lost some of her abilities.”

For a moment John was silent. “Well. If I'm not mistaken one witch can't have a contract with two sprites. What if the witch used the powers of the first sprite to better herself to grow stronger. Then she intentionally gave up her abilities so she could form a new contract. That witch might be strong enough to form a contract with one of the elder sprites. You know the ones that people normally don't live long enough to contract with.” John felt his heart jump a beat whenever Rina suddenly shot upright in her bed.

“That bitch! She was using me even then!”

Julia was actually a bit surprised by Rina's response though she had to agree with John. It was a possibility at least. “You really think that's what she might have been doing?”

“Well look at it this way. If her plan works she gains a contract with one of the most powerful sprites there is without having to do any hunting. If her plan doesn't work she still has a superb body and vast wealth. It seems worth it to me.”

For a moment Julia was silent. A slight chuckle escaped her after a moment of consideration. “That Sharon might be even more cunning then we thought. Fortunately I have someone very cunning on my side as well.” Without a moment's hesitation Julia lifted John higher and planted a kiss on him that covered nearly his entire body. “Now how about we go to bed and enjoy these new additions?