"Ah-yup." Ash responded.

With that, he and Desiree left, making their way to the teleport pad room. Once they were on an outgoing pad, he looked at her.

"Take my hand." he told her, extending his palm out.

When she accepted it and grabbed him, they were both surrounded by a swirl of black fire, until Desiree could see nothing but darkness surrounding her.

It lasted for all of a second, though, before the darkness faded, and Desiree found herself in a large livingroom-like area, that looked well-lived in, but clearly well-kept and cared for.

"Woah, what!?" Ash exclaimed, hearing the crash, the curse, and the footsteps.

"The HELL was that!?" he asked the air.

He then looked at Desiree, and sighed.

"Seems there's been a bit of an accident." he told her.

"Want something to drink while I check it out?" he asked.

He just sighed deeply as he saw Desiree on the floor.

"No, no, no." he said to her.

"The floor is not a place for you to sit. Sit on one of the chairs, or couches." he told her, as he lifted her to her feet. "It's okay to sit on the furniture here. Really. Seriously." he assured her further.

"And here." he then said, handing her a bottle of juice.

"Drink as much as you like."

Ash was silent for a moment, before sighing.

"All right, let me clarify." he said.

"Do not feel like you HAVE to sit on the floor. You are allowed to sit on the couches or chairs." he told her.

"That's all." he said further.

"Now, excuse me a moment." he finished, before leaving the room.

"Hey! Everything okay up there!?" he called up, as he started to ascend higher into the manor.

Ash looked at the man that was there, and couldn't help but realize that Lindsay was a very muscular man. It was clear that he worked out, and knew how to tone his muscles.

Beyond that, he looked just like Ash did... just taller and with red hair.

"Uh..." Ash muttered.

"It needs medical attention." Lindsay commented, his voice and tone very articulate. "Don't think you'll need to go to OLA for it, but we should bandage it up here, before it gets worse." he said further.

"Now, where's the first aid kit?" he asked, looking around, as Ash noticed a slightly scorched white box by where he was.

"Yo." Ash responded, picking it up and tossing it over towards his brother, his brother catching it.

"...right, thanks." he said, before opening it and starting to tend to his mother's wounds.

Ash looked over at the cupboard, before opening it and grabbing a few of what his mother had requested. He then walked over and gave them to her.

"Here." he said.

"...a fine introduction for your daughter." Lindsay commented to Ash.

"She didn't even hear anything." Ash responded.

"...ah. Indeed." Lindsay said after a moment, as he continued to bandage his mother's wound.

"And I know it as well." Lindsay replied. "Not for any specific reason or anything, just... I thought it would be an interesting read, and useful to know." he admitted sheepishly.

"....ah." Ash responded.

"Well, that DOES make things easier." he admitted.

"Regardless, she's down in the den with the juice I gave her, and she'll be there until I go back and say she can leave the room." he told them with a small sigh, sadness in his tone.

Ash just looked at his mother.

"She will do as she's told." he said.

"That's the problem. She will do EXACTLY as she's told." he went on, before Lindsay interjected.

"...and nothing more. Nothing less." he finished.

"...yeah." Ash admitted.

"She has... abuse in her past. She's been taught that she's inferior, and that she is to do what she is told. And that is ALL she is to do." he lamented.

"...I now see why you wanted to adopt her." Lindsay murmured.

"Ah... ah..." Ash stammered.

"Yeah... yeah, she's a mage." he said.

"A wind mage, it seems." he told her.

"But she's being dealt with. I gave the info to my boss, who passed it along to the Council." he then quickly told her.

"Mom, please." Lindsay then said to Rowena.

"Don't start to go down that path again. We need to concern ourselves with being there for Desiree, right here and now." he added.

"Yeah, she's... still trying to get a hang on it." Ash muttered.

"We can teach her general tips and tricks on how to control it, but in the end, the one person that can truly understand a wind mage, is another wind mage." Lindsay said. "Or one that has wind available to them, at any rate." he then clarified.

"Pretty much." Ash said.

"Perhaps we should go and meet the little lady." Lindsay then suggested, as he finished with Rowena's injuries.

"Done." he told her.

"Might be a good idea, so that Desiree knows who all lives here." Ash reasoned.