Earth and Shadow (read desc)

One piece

I nodded, looking up at Nightmare.
"Let's go."
I grabbed something from the table and tucked it in my pocket. It'll be useful if I need it later.
"Awww already??" Lily complained, pouting.
"Yeah but don't worry, we'll be back soon," Nightmare promised. He picked her up and kissed her forehead, "You'd better behave, little angel, I don't want to come back and have the house burnt down."
She giggled, "Ok!"
He gently put her down then picked up his scythe. Honestly, it was amazing how good of a father figure he already was. Lily already adored him, just like he adored her. They were a good match honestly, and I'm glad that they found each other and Nightmare could look after her.
"Take care," He said, waving goodbye. And like that we walked away together. After some distance Nightmare spoke.
"Okay, the first shard is in a mansion outside of the faunae borders. It shouldn't be too far, so, want to fly with me?"
I smiled excited, "Sure!"
He spread his wings and picked me up so my feet were just off the ground.
"Put your arms around my neck and hold on tight so I don't drop you." I held onto him as he asked, and a second later he launched us into the air. Just like any angel, he went high and moved fast, except his wings looked bigger and bulkier so his beats were quite slow.
I looked down, wind madly whistling into my ears. The ground below us zoomed past, trees the size of baseballs. I laughed and said, "This is so fun!!"
He grinned, a bit mischievous, "You wanna see fun?"
Suddenly everything went inverted as he did a loop midair. I felt the exhilaration of gravity taking over me, turning my stomach round.
"Weeee!!!"
Once Nightmare levelled off he smiled more, getting a idea.
"Do you trust me?"
I nodded, "Yep!"
He then tossed me in the air. For a second I was struck by a sense of weightlessness. The cool air struck my face, and everything seemed still. The ground below still rushed by, the sun still beat down on me. The only difference was that I was in control. At least, that's what it felt like for a moment, until I plummeted downwards. He caught me by my wrists, smiling down at me. I laughed with excitement, adrenaline shooting through me.
"Again??"
"Yes!!"
He threw me into the sky once more, and this time I burst through a cloud. I gasped as the Icey droplets blanketed on my skin, but I didn't mind. I kept laughing, smiling uncontrollably by the pure joy I felt. I loved this!
Once I fell Nightmare caught me again, so I was hanging underneath him. He was grinning, and I could tell he enjoyed this just as much as me.
"If I had known you liked this so much," he said, "I would have taken you flying ages ago."
"I've always loved flying, I think it's amazing!" I said, giggling.
He pulled me up so he was holding me close again, making sure I wouldn't fall, "Well why didn't you say so? I've got these things for a reason y'know," he said, motioning towards his wings.
"I didn't think you would have taken me flying," I admitted, still giddy with joy.
"Nah, I don't mind it. The only reason I don't do it as much is cause of people from below. But I doubt it matters," He smiled at me, and I smiled back. Then he looked up, ahead of us.
"We're almost there. There's going to be guards and such, so we'd better be ready. Eh, in the meantime."
He threw me into the air a third time and caught me. I began to laugh and smile again, wrapping my arms around him.
Nightmare grinned at me, then he held onto me tightly and wrapped his wings around us both, like a cocoon. He slowed down and tilted forward, our heads facing the ground, then he dove. The air rushed past my ears, screeching like a dervish. The wind whipped my hair around and stung my face. I felt my ears make a loud pop, the sudden pressure change hurting them a bit. But above all else, I got the intense feeling of falling.
I wasn't scared, though. In fact, it elated me.
Seconds before we smashed into the ground Nightmare snapped his wings open, straining them against the savage winds. He let go of me and stumbled purposely, landing in the tall springy grass. He smiled, looking up at the sky, panting a bit from adrenaline.
"That was fun."
I nodded, "It was AWESOME!!" I exclaimed.
He stood up and brushed himself off, "Let's do that on the way back too."
We walked to the top of the hill, overlooking a mansion. Its dark cherry wood walls and shingled roof made it look quite rich indeed. Whoever owned it obviously had money to spare, which meant it would be no obstacle if, say, you wanted to buy something rare..
"So what's the plan?" I asked.
"I'll try and locate where the crystal is. Meanwhile, stay on the lookout for guards and stay close to me. I don't want you getting hurt or captured. If I get captured I'll eventually die and escape, but you won't. So be careful."
"Alright."
"Right then, let's try starting from the top shall we?" He picked me up and flew us over to the mansion, but unlike before, he kept the beat of his wings slower, more fluid, so as to avoid attracting attention. The only sound he made as he flew was the faint slither of feather against feather. Below us I saw the heads of guards and servants alike, all of them oblivious as they rushed around to do their various tasks.
He landed on the edge of the building, right by the window. He kept his balance on the precarious footing, and carefully opened the window. Still not saying a word, he helped me through then went through himself.
We entered a long, dim, hallway, the walls littered with various signs of wealth and luxury. The only light came in from the large windows along one side. The other held doors, many doors, each leading to a new, separate, room of the mansion.
Nightmares voice made me jump a little,
"Okay, try not to make noise, I'll check each of the rooms and try to track the crystal," He whispered, silently opening a door, peeking through the crack. I nodded to him then looked around, ready for any signs of guards. While he was in the room, exploring, I heard distant chatter of servants. Before I could decide whether it was worth it or not to hide, Nightmare came out.
"Find anything?" I asked, whispering.
He shook his head. Suddenly the voices got louder as two servants walked down the hall. Before I could react Nightmare yanked me in close and covered us both in his wings. Because of his dark feathering everything appeared black within the shadows of his wings. Nightmares eyes glowed a faint silver in the dark, and he didn't move a muscle.
I heard as the servants footsteps paused.
"I swore I saw something..." One said, "Eh, probably my imagination."
"Yeah I don't see anything. But what can you expect? It's all the work the lord has given us. It was bound to drive us crazy one point or another." They joked.
The servants laughed and walked away. As soon as they were out of earshot Nightmare sighed in relief and unwrapped his wings from around me. His eyes stopped glowing silver and returned to their normal look. He looked as if he had lost 2 hours of sleep
"Are you alright?" He asked.
"I'm okay, but are you? You look tired."
"I used some light magic. I can't use it too many times in a row without passing out, but it's the best and only way to hide in plain sight. Let's try not to get caught again."
"Alright"
"Also I tracked the crystal. It's a floor below us."
"So how do we get there without getting caught?"
"Not sure. There's too many guards and servants around to do any sneaking. We might have to cause a distraction."
"Easy enough, I brought some things along just in case. Looks like they became useful."
"Oh? What do you have?"
"Smoke bombs, fake dark, light, and fire magic so it looks like somethings happening when it's not. Illusions."
"You sure came prepared," he noted, "Let's make some fake fire somewhere outside and put a smoke bomb in there too, so it seems like a major fire is happening. We need to get as many people there as possible."
"Okay," I said. Then I made the smoke and fire bombs start to float and turn invisible. I shot it outside, and the disaster appeared. For a moment nothing seemed to happen, and I started to lose hope, then people started rushing outside, going to the fire.
"We have about 20 minutes until it disappears."
"Then I might as well contribute."
He whispered to his scythe, speaking a mixture of ancient wordings, then stabbed it into the floor. Shadows curled out from the blade, intertwining. around the scythe. Suddenly a giant obsidian scaled dragon, with burning fiery red eyes and long horns, appeared outside. It roared at the mansion, at everyone really, throwing out a challenge to those around it. It looked almost to be made of swirling shadows, not unlike Raven. It was probably another thing Nightmare could summon though.
He yanked his scythe from the floor boards, the wood cracking and creaking slightly, and put his scythe on his back.
"Let's hurry."
He grabbed my hand and we went downstairs, cautious yet quickly, in case some guards came around the corner. As we sprinted we heard some voices up ahead, so we hastily ducked into a room. The room was dark, sunlight streaming through the window onto the old bed. Lavish red curtains were strung along the windows with matching decorations around the small bedroom. Motes of dust floated through the air. I don't think anyone had occupied this room for awhile.
"Hey, look at this." He motioned towards a safe in the corner. Without any hesitation I went up to it and within three seconds cracked it open.
"How did you do that so fast?" He looked impressed.
"I grew up stealing things. Being a kid I had to fend for myself and didn't have a job, so this is what I had to resort to."
"Huh. Didn't know you used to be a thief. Then again you stole my heart so." He started digging through the safe. I blushed a lot, surprised by the unexpectedness of that comment.
After a moment he pulled out a shard of crystal, "Got it."
"O-okay that's good."
He stood up and we turned to leave, only to notice someone standing in the doorway. She had long black hair, deep green eyes, and she was of medium height. But that wasn't what was most interesting. She had two wild cat ears, tipped with black, as well as a long tail. Her dark pupils were slitted, and as she smirked two small canine teeth appeared. She had a green scimitar, which seemed to glow with a soft light. There were strange lines and grooves within the metal. I couldn't get a close look however before she asked,
"What do you think you're doing?"
Nightmare instantly nudged me behind him, and brought out his scythe.
"Just taking back what belongs to me," He replied.
"That's funny, cause I never saw you do business with my boss before, and here you are stealing from him. Who exactly are you?"
"You can call me Nightmare."
She scoffed, "Okay I'm sorry but that's very obviously a fake name. You know what, whatever. Just fight me already."
"You?"
"Yes, me. My names Diana."