"Master, how am I doing this?"
"Guess," Gale said with a smile.
"Is it the mark?" Xiaolin asked, arching an eyebrow.
"The mark is simply the manifestation of your lineage, but you're thinking in the right direction," said Gale. "Do you mind if I inspect it again?"
Xiaolin shook her head and finally remembered she was soaking wet and in her master's embrace. She blushed, but thankfully with everything she went through, her face couldn't go more red.
Gale manoeuvred Xiaolin like before, making her sit on his lap, guiding his left arm behind her. A strip of cloth covered the mark. Gale uncovered it as both of their sights laid at it.
At the centre of it was a circular mark, and below it was the complicated runic pattern. Gale touched with his finger, making Xiaolin shiver at the very contact as if electric pulsed through both of them.
A frown appeared on both of their faces. As he feared, there was something more than Gale had assumed.
"Master, what happened?"
"Hmm," Gale hummed slightly and started to strip off the clothes of his upper body.
"Master?" Xiaolin blushed furiously.
Her mind ranged wildly at the anticipation, but Gale didn't go where she was imagining him to go. Instead, he laid bare only until his second fate mark could be seen. There was a slight circular mark below it as well, exactly identical to hers.
Gale had noticed that the moment it had appeared on his chest. It was during her advancement when Gale helped her in the entire process. Something convoluted happened, and Xiaolin's reliance and complete trust in him made it happened.
"What is this?" Xiaolin asked. She had a terrible impulse to touch the little circular mark, even though more of her master's property laid bare before her eyes.
"It appears you have bonded me somehow," Gale said, exhaling.
"What?" Xiaolin was dumbstruck again by the news.
"Exactly what it sounds," Gale said, unsure what to do about it. "No, I'm not secretly a spirit beast that could manifest human form. It's probably something to do with your spiritual nature. Also, two humans could bond if they have the required trust between them. Of course, they need the help of something spiritual in the process."
"Master," Xiaolin called, as many ideas flashed in her head. She could feel the string that attached them if she put her mind to it, but the string was barely anything, a thin tendril of something she couldn't understand. "Is that bond permanent?"
"If we work for it, then yes," Gale said. "It's like the bond between me and Vale, works completely on trust and reliance. Your spirit probably trusted me completely during the process as you pulled the power of your lineage instinctively to make it happen."
Honestly, it made the process of his assistance to her a lot easier. Xiaolin probably worked on her instinct to save her life, but without the trust in him, it wouldn't be completely possible. Of course, it needed consent from Gale's spirit as well.
Only simply could not put something on someone else spirit, just because they desired it.
Xiaolin blinked and then bit her lips. "Master, you are. . ." she asked, evident anxiety jittered her expression. "Are you okay with this?"
"Sure," Gale said easily, "anything for my disciple."
Xiaolin sighed in relief big time. She wasn't shy about showing it. "So what does the bond do?"
"Location tracking, for starters. As for the other elements, we have to figure it out slowly." Gale had some suspicions, but he didn't spout something he wasn't sure about.
"Back to your lineage mark." Gale drew attention to the thin mark on her abdomen. "It is one of the complicated things I ever encounter. And it is still incomplete."
"Incomplete?" Xiaolin arched an eyebrow.
"This is merely a part of the lineage," Gale said. "This part of it enables you to use the inheritance over the element water. I would need to inspect it more to figure out more, but we don't have time for it now.
"Anyway, since you have water power now, you'll have no problem cleaning yourself, even when your body is limp. I'll help myself out. Take as much time as you want."
Gale was about to leave, freeing her from his embrace, but Xiaolin called before he could do it.
"Master, wait," Xiaolin said.
Gale lifted an eyebrow.
Xiaolin bit her lips, staring at his eyes, and then embraced him tightly.
"Thank you for everything, Master. If it weren't for you, I would have died."
She was probably right about that. The half-human, half-spirit race nature only brought disaster to her life. She wouldn't have made it without his help.
Then again, Gale brought this calamity to her life. Without him, she would never have had access to pure crystals. And without pure crystals, the inheritance in her blood would remain dormant for her life.
"I'm your master. I'll be there for you. Always."
Gale caressed her golden hair as Xiaolin lay safely on his chest for some time. Their relationship was growing weirder with each day, and now, with the bond between them, it complicated things even further.
'Looks like I can leave things for the future anymore,' Gale thought.
"Now if you excuse me," he said, "Linlin, you stink. Clean yourself well. I'll be outside."
***
Gale got out of the bathhouse and found Vale nearby. The hound stood up and came forward to lick him, but stopped midway, smelling the reek of him.
Gale smiled. "I need to clean up as well."
There were two things he could do here: wait for Xiaolin to finish up, or fly to the nearby stream to clean himself. Gale had the urge to do the latter, but considering Xiaolin was still needed his help after she's done, he remained standing outside the bath.
That turned out to be the right decision as before a quarter of an hour could even pass, Xiaolin screamed from the bathhouse.
"MASTER!"
"Linlin," Gale launched himself into motion, literally flying back to the bathhouse. "What happened?"
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