The boy is a man

SAM As soon as the sword pierced through his heart, Sam felt a release and she was able to move. She immediately let go of the sword. The boy was bleeding from the wound. "What the hell!?" Sam screamed. The chief was still staring at the sword. A second later, he nodded. "Yup, it's there, alright... it's been so long I couldn't recognize the sword they stabbed you with." "What?" Sam hissed. "Are you crazy? He's dying!" The chief barked a short laugh. "Ha! Far from it." He waved his hand, and two chairs and a small quaint table materialized. The table was adorned with a flower-patterned tablecloth, and on it sat a small yellow teapot with two matching teacups. The chief sat down and motioned for her to take a seat. She stared at him as if he was mad. Catching her look, the chief scoffed, "Oh, please, it won't kill him... but it will hurt a lot." His tone sounded rather gleeful. Sam plopped down on the seat. The child had stopped moving; the sword sticking out of his back made for a rather ghastly sight. She turned away to see the chief happily sipping his tea. "Now," the chief announced as he set down the cup, "pray tell, why is a pretty girl like you dressed like... well, a pretty boy?" Sam jumped out of her seat. The shock of the chief's sudden statement nearly made her give control to Scar. She reined in her emotions but left her claws elongated. She wasn't sure what gave away her true gender, but she would not hesitate to kill him if he posed a threat. The chief did not even twitch at the hostility flowing from her. He leisurely took another sip of tea. "I mean no harm, little one." "What do you want?" Sam growled. "Mmm, this... this is some good tea," the chief sighed. Sam frowned deeply. She approached him and clamped a clawed hand around his neck. "Don't play with me; I could kill you with a twitch of my finger," she threatened. "Little girl... behave while I'm still being nice." "What do you want!!" She tightened her grip and lifted him. He was taller than her, so she couldn't lift him high enough. The chief smirked and snapped his fingers. Honk! Honk! Honk! Bright light illuminated the forest. Sam turned to the source only to see a large truck charging towards her. She barely had a second's thought before shifting into Scar. Scar spun to dodge the truck, but the next second the forest was once again dark. Scar turned to see the chief once again seated and sipping tea. But the table and chairs were different. "Why don't you take a seat and let's get properly introduced," he said. Scar growled at him. "Stop," Sam said. 'He tried to kill us!' Scar argued. He was furious. No one had ever disrespected or even threatened them before! "Wait, I'll talk to him... maybe he wants something in return for silence." Scar glared at the unbothered man. 'Let's just kill him!' Scar was adamant, so Sam had to force a shift. Because she forced a shift, it was rather painful. She endured the pain and walked to the second seat. "What do you want?" "My name is Vel, and you are?" Vel began as if they had not just been close to killing each other two seconds ago. Sam clenched her jaw and ground out, "Garsam." Vel raised a brow. "Weird name for a girl." "Stop calling me that!" "Why?" Vel turned to her. His face was eager for gossip. Sam remained silent, just glared at him. Vel sighed. "Fine, don't tell me..." Suddenly there was a powerful surge in the air. The air was filled with a thick essence of power. The small body that had been immobile on the ground as if dead was now glowing. The sword that had pierced the boy's chest dissipated. Sam watched in wonder as the gaping hole in his chest closed up. The light surrounding him grew brighter; Sam turned away. A few seconds later, when the light became dim, Sam turned again to look. Gone was the little boy; in his place was a fully grown man. Thick dark hair covered his face, his body was... Sam flushed red. His body was large—and gloriously naked! She turned so fast she got whiplash. Behind her, Vel was cackling. Her face burned even redder. *** Aria's POV I waited two days for the chief to call me. When he didn't, I went to see him only to find out they were gone. I was so mad I couldn't eat. Jerry and Sue still asked me why I had gone missing and returned looking half dead and smelling like smoke. When Jerry touched the box, I had exploded with pent-up fury and hit him, then promptly broke down and started crying. Sue hugged me for nearly an hour; I must have cried myself to sleep because when I opened my eyes, I was on my bed, and a warm bowl of stew sat beside my bed. Sue was sleeping in hers, and Jerry was not in the room. Today as I left the Chief's house, I knew one thing for sure: we had to get out of here. I frowned as I recalled the path that took us to Everburn. All I needed was one of those gate-opening balls, and we can get out of here. I walked up to Lili, who was playing with a fiery-haired girl. "Hey, Lili," I smiled. The little girl turned from her game to pout at me. "It's not time for lunch, yeah?" I chuckled uncomfortably. "Ah, yes, I know, but I need your help." Lili frowned then turned to her friend. "Go on, start the fire; I'll be back." Her doe-eyed playmate nodded, puckered her lips, and spat on a small pile of sticks. I frowned in disgust but quickly changed my expression when the wood caught fire, burning with a hot blue flame. The little girl clapped happily and set about spitting on more wood. I turned away with a shiver. Lili was standing a few feet away, her arms akimbo as she faced me. "What do you want?" She sounded like a little gangster. I smiled and bent to her level. "Lili," I began slowly, "I need you to get something for me, love." "Don't call me that," she swished her ponytail in my face. I had a moment of déjà vu. "Sorry, but I just need you to help me get May's little black ball." "Her Open Sesame key? Why?" "No reason, I just need it for something quick. I'll return it once I'm done," I lied smoothly. Lili frowned, then she shook her head. Her wide eyes met mine. "I'm ten, not dumb—you want to run away!" I was startled. Maybe I should have tried to steal it myself; she'll definitely tell May! As my thoughts ran wild, she spoke again. "What do I get?" "Get?" "Get," the little girl rolled her eyes, "Am I supposed to help you for nothing?" "Uh... I can..." Damn, I had nothing to offer! "What do you want?" I asked her instead. "Your food." Huh? "... that's it?" She nodded with a sweet smile, returning to the cute girl I once knew. "O-okay, it's a deal, then... but what if you get caught?" I nearly bit my stupid tongue. Am I trying to make her change her mind?! I turned to Lili, who was still smiling. "It won't matter," she grinned. "They can't bear to scold me—I'm adorable."