A/N: That's the first story from me, so hello! Negitoro is my favourite pairing so I thought that maybe writing fics about Miku and Luka would be a good idea. However, I have to say you, that English isn't my first language. This chapter was proofread by music96ninja.
Today's Miku's 10th anniversary. I want to wish everyone from the Vocaloid fandom many new songs and stories.
I hope you will enjoy your reading!
Luka sighed as she stood in front of the big brick castle. Around the building, gardeners have been working busily, watering rose bushes and hydrangeas. It was one of the hottest periods of the year. If it wasn't for people's help, the garden would have turned into a dead field of hanging leaves.
In the stained glass of the building, the blazing sun dazzled the girl. She decided to hurry to the entrance.
The castle was decorated with painted red roses and ornaments. Most objects clearly indicated the age of this place. In the corners of the long corridors, cobwebs dangled with their delighted little inhabitants. No one seemed to be bothered by their existence, probably until they would bite the queen at night. Luka opened the heavy, decorated door leading to the throne hall. There was a tall woman sitting on the throne. Her red dress seemed to be much longer it should have been. When she noticed the pinkette, she stood up.
"Your Majesty Meiko..." Luka murmured, her eyes closed.
"Get up from your knees, please. Or no, do not stop."
Luka rarely spoke face to face with the queen herself. She was looking nervously around the room trying to keep herself calm in a stressful situation.
"What can I do for you, Your Grace?" She asked softly.
"It's nothing you shouldn't be able to handle." The dark-haired queen slowly circled the kneeling girl. She gripped her shoulders and set her upright.
Now it was clear that Meiko, although tall, was not as tall as Luka. The girl nodded, confirming that she listened attentively.
"I have a quest for you. You know those elves that have been springing up like mushrooms... We must stop them from becoming any more of a nuisance."
"What do you mean?" Luka asked, patting dust from her knees.
"There are rumors that some elves were seen in our area. A few elves too many." She explained, gesticulating lively. Luka looked at Meiko quizzically.
"You really still don't understand?" The queen went up to her subordinate. "I thought you were more intelligent." She whispered in her ear. The pinkette felt the shiver passing through her neck. The queen turned her eyes. "You will to kill every single one of those creatures that is found in our area. I do not want to see any of their lousy faces."
"I... I understand, Your Majesty."
"Oh, and one more thing. Go to Yuuma, he will give you a sword. After you finish the quest, bring it back to me. I want to see the blood of that wretched race." said Meiko as if it was the most ordinary thing in the world.
"Yes, Your Highness."
"You can go now. Tell Lily to bring me a bottle of wine."
Luka nodded, bowed and closed the door. She sighed against the wall.
Kill an elf? It wasn't too difficult considering that they were not very brave creatures. At least that was what humans were taught. Apparently, the elves took land belonging to the queen and set up a village there. They allegedly killed several hundred innocent people. Now the queen wants to do the same.
She looked at her hands. She never saw these creatures in person, although she has been taught how to fight them since she was a child. The knighthood candidates received considerable remuneration for their achievements. The talented adepts of this craft got the fortune that most of the town residents working in the field or buying goods dreamed of. That's why Luka's parents wanted their five-year-old daughter to become a knight. The young woman hasn't seen them since that time. She only sent them the gold she had earned, occasionally attaching a letter describing her current life. A life in which parents were replaced by teachers throughout her childhood. Now that she was looking at the world through the eyes of a twenty-two-year-old woman, she understood that her parents were probably not ready to raise a baby.
"Hey, Luka!"
A voice came from an open room Luka had just past. A girl dressed in light armor came to the doorway to greet the pinkette. She looked to be the same age as Luka. Her long blond hair surrounded her smiling face.
"Ah, there you are, Lily. The Queen wants you to bring her wine."
Blonde came up and lowered her voice. "I heard everything!"
"What? How?"
"That's something you don't need to know. But I heard you have to kill an elf. Or many elves!" She said, her eyes flickering with excitement.
"I really don't know why you are so excited." Luka folded her arms. "It had to happen eventually."
Lily shrugged. "It doesn't impress you? Don't you care that the queen appreciated you?"
"I don't think a murder order is a reason to be proud."
"Luka..." The blonde made a serious face and picked up two bottles of wine from the shelf hanging in the corner of the room. "Aren't you wondering why you were the only one asked to do this quest?"
"I was the only one?" Luka asked.
"Yes, you were. No one else have been asked to kill the elves. You want to know why? Because queen knows what you can do, and she has confidence that you have what it takes to complete her quest. Now all you have to do is to prove it to her."
The blonde girl smiled farewell and walked towards the queen's chamber.
Luka was not here to get noticed by the queen. Her job was simply to help her family live well. No money or recognition was worth somebody's suffering. Nevertheless, she stood there, motionless, and her own conscience was not prepared for this quest.
A quest too late to back out.
Luka walked swiftly across the path. She was passing people who were busy doing their business. Most of them were engaged in conversation or trading. There were also laughing children running across the grass. The whole town was full of life, a smile could be seen in every corner of the realm. Artreia was famous for its hot climate and the most beautiful mountains within a few hundred miles, which separated the kingdom from the elves' village. Although conflict with the elves has been around for many years, most of the Artarians only knew these creatures only from books and have never seen one in person. Yet, people still went about their daily routine, knowing that a war was hanging over kingdom like a rainy cloud. Fortunately, it did not affect the quality of their existence at all, except for warriors and knights, whose task was to take the land back from the elves. Only a few of the warriors could see with their own eyes those creatures who had begun to come out of hiding.
"Hey, hey, lady!"
The sharp and deep voice broke through the conversations of the civilians. Differentiating between individual words has become more and more difficult in this bustle.
"Hey, you!" The man with light pink hair broke through the crowd hastily and pulled Luka by the sleeve. She observed his face for a few seconds, thinking about something else.
"You are Megurine Luka, right?" He said, a smirk plastered on his face.
"Yes, why are you... You're Yuuma, right?" She said, observing his attire. This type of clothes was characteristic of blacksmiths in the realm.
"Indeed, Miss Megurine."
"Call me just Luka."
"Right, Luka. Let's go somewhere where it's quieter and we'll be able to talk, okay?"
The woman nodded and followed Yuuma. They walked for a while without saying a word before Yuuma stopped.
"I have something for you." The man held out a sheath he had been holding. Yuuma took out a decorated silver sword and handed it to the pinkette. The young woman began to look at the weapon carefully, examining at how precisely it was made.
"You've done a really awesome job..." She nodded in satisfaction, sliding the sword back into the sheath. "How much gold do I owe you for this work?"
"I've already gotten paid from the queen. Just use it wisely and take care of it. Now forgive me, but I have to go. Time is pressing me, and I can't talk with you any longer."
"I understand, thank you for the sword. I will definitely need it."
"Have a safe journey, young lady!" He shouted, waving goodbye, then disappearing into the crowd of people in the market.
Yuuma seemed to Luka in some way familiar. She had a feeling that she knows him from somewhere, perhaps she had seen him before, but she had no idea where. However, this was not the time to think about that. She was starving, and she was a few miles away from her house.
A young woman sat in a cozy room made of wood. Her white hair glowed in a bright pink hue. Next to her, a small flame flickered in the fireplace. Over it dried some mushrooms. The girl lazily slapped a spoon in her thick soup, occasionally picking up vegetables from it. The light from the hearth lit the figure and most of the furniture in the chamber.
Luka came home with a grimace on her face. She looked around the room.
"What the hell is that smell?"
"Oh, here you are. I made soup, you want to try?" Asked the white-haired girl. She had a strange accent.
"No, Maika. I told you not to cook anything after you... nevermind." The pinkette went to the pot with still bubbly soup, sniffing the strange substance. "So we have an offender of the stinking here."
Maika chuckled and stood up. "Maybe soups aren't my specialty. However, at least you know what is in that dish. My own hand-made delicious food!"
"Thank you, but I won't be trying that." Luka sat down on the bed and stretched. "The queen called me today."
"Queen Meiko? What did she want?" Maika asked, hoping for new topics for gossip.
"She told me to kill the elves I'd find in the town."
"Re... Really?" The surprised girl put a hand over her mouth "You think you can handle this kind of quest?"
The pinkette looked at her friend. She lowered her head. "I really don't know. I mean... I know that I have no choice, but..."
"You can always ask for advice from the local hunters. They are already experienced in all this killing stuff."
"Maika!" Luka raised her voice. "I would not kill anyone in cold blood. I'm not like them. And I think that's the problem." She whispered, her hands shaking.
"You know, imagine that instead of an elf stands a mannequin. Like those exercises you've been doing for years. You are already well trained. An elf is probably a piece of cake for you."
"Mannequin, mannequin... It's not that simple at all. Even though I learned to fight most of my life, I don't think I can slay somebody."
"Times are rushing forward, Luka. You have to accept that life is not all easy peasy. Adults have to do this kind of stuff."
The girl went to a large library full of books of different sizes. Some of them seemed to be completely new and others were time-worn. One of the older books was taken by Maika. She wiped the leather cover with her sleeve and threw the book at her roommate.
"You might need it."
She cocked her head to the side. "Elves and other magical creatures? What is it supposed to be?"
"My father brought me this book from Spain when I was ten years old." The white-haired woman said. "It was a year before we moved to Artreia."
The faded manuscript looked like it was about to fall apart in woman's hands. Wandering through the beige pages, Luka could hardly read some of the sentences. However, one paragraph particularly drew her attention. Luka read it aloud.
Elves do not attack anyone. The only exception to this rule is self-defense needed. But even then, they have a significantly lower chance of winning the fight. They do not use the magic that most of them possess because of historical and cultural conditions.
"You see, I said it would be easy." Maika tried to comfort her friend.
"How can you believe this book?"
"As much as you believe fifteen-year-old Spanish manuscripts." Maika shrugged. "Well, my dear. We are a long way from these creatures described in this book. Our culture is completely different from what I know from Europe, so there is a high probability that these elves behave differently in our country."
The pinkette sighed deeply. "I'm going for a walk to get some fresh air. From all this new information, I'm going to get migraines."
"Oh, can you get some fruit for me from the orchard while you're out?"
"If you pay for it, maybe." Luka smirked.
Maika ran up and laughed, hugging her friend. "Could this be my payment?" She answered in a muffled voice.
"Okay, fine." Luka smiled under her breath and returned the hug.
"You know... Lu... You don't have to worry too much. We both know that after all, you are a good person." The white-haired woman put her hand to Luka's chest, where her heart was pounding loudly. "You help your parents, even if you get absolutely nothing in return. Sometimes, it seems to me that if I were more like you, maybe my own parents would be alive today." She added in a low voice.
"Don't think like that." Luka replied, moving away from the girl. "You did what you could and that what's important."
"Yes, you're right." Maika decided to drop the topic about her past. "You see, you do your work because you have to. Apparently, no job is beneath you." She thought for a moment. "So now go and get me those plums!"
Luka rolled her eyes. She left, throwing Maika a goodbye smile.
The weather was starting to get cooler outside.
The pinkette walked through the orchard slowly, picking and putting fruits into the basket. Behind her house, grass separating her from the forest was lazily flowing. It was an old grove where ivy-covered trees grew. Luka left the basket at the edge of the house. She took out a sharp knife and began to pave her way to the forest.
The deeper Luka went into the forest, the fewer bushes she passed. Now the girl was staring at large spruces and pines. She was sure she also saw several chirping birds and a small thrush.
Sometimes, Luka really wanted to get away from the hustle of her work and spend all her life in the forest. She hid behind a tree looking at the deer standing near the creek. The dignified animal drank water in the rays of the setting sun.
Since Luka was so focused on the deer, she almost would have not noticed a teal ray of light moving deep in the woods. The color was definitely too bright to be any animal. Light falling on the bushes? Luka didn't know what that glimmer was. She was too far away to see anything more than a sparkling color. There was no trace of the sparkle after the light. Maybe she was imagining things? Probably stress was the reason for the hallucinations.
Luka sighed and left the forest in silence. This whole situation started to overwhelm her. In her thoughts appeared various scenarios about her quest. She wanted to pass the quest that Meiko set before her and still focus on everyday life. However, would she still be the same after killing an elf in cold blood?
Luka walked quietly into the house, where Maika was a bit calmer and sitting on the chair. She often behaved this way. She was way too impulsive.
Maika noticed Luka come in but didn't say anything. Instead they stared at the space in front of them in the silence before Luka spoke up.
"I was thinking about it all while walking." She began. "And I came to the conclusion that I don't want to disappoint myself."
"What do you mean?"
"My heart. I want to behave the way I feel. I won't do quests that contradict what I think."
"But Luka, if you don't kill the elves, the queen will kill you. I won't be safe either. Do you want to sacrifice everything for elves? Creatures you know nothing about?"
"I...I think I got a chance. If Lily took this quest, she would have killed the innocent without thinking."
"You also have to kill them. Elves are not innocent. They are devious and took our lands from us and killed our people!"
"How do you know it was our lands?"
"Everyone knows it. Before you go betraying your own kind, think about the consequences and our safety." The white-haired woman ran out the house, slamming the door.
"Maika!" Luka shouted at her, but only silence answered her.
It was not until Luka realized that she was completely alone with that situation. Maika's words brought her back down to earth. In fact, every choice will end up miserable for either party. And Luka has this misfortune to manage it.
Luka went to the mirror that stood in the corner of the room. Her tired eyes searched nervously. The woman brushed the strands of her hair with her fingers and corrected her long linen dress with a leather corset. In fact, she liked herself. She had a feminine body shape and curves that could envy other ladies. But yet, she was missing something. She took a deep breath.
Behind the window, it was beginning to dazzle. The sun disappeared behind the clouds in golden light. Luka took out the sword she had brought home from Yuuma and began to sharpen it. She also put on her light armor and made a tall pony with her long pink hair. She looked again in the mirror.
It's just some elves, Luka... Just some elves.
She repeated to herself quietly, looking at her own reflection. She put out the only candle in the room.
On the bench in front of the house was Maika eating plums. When she noticed Luka walking out of the house, Maika looked away.
"Listen to me..."
"You will do what you think. I will not lead you through life like a baby. Damn, you are a warrior! A knight!" Maika threw her fruit into the forest with all her strength and looked at the pinkette standing next to her. "What are you doing? Go, rescue those elves, or whatever."
Luka forced a smile and walked out the gateway. Suddenly, she felt something hit her head. Luka turned around and saw a plum on the ground. She looked questioningly at Maika.
"If you get hungry!" Maika said, waving goodbye. Luka smiled, picking up the fruit. The pinkette waved goodbye to her friend as she left.
Luka wandered through winding paths leading to various places in the town. However, she never encountered an elf during her walk. At this time, there was no one except some guards, fireflies, and bats. Artreia looked like a sleeping kingdom.
Luka passed by the buildings made of dark stone and wood. The paths at night were like black ribbons spread over the hills of the rose bushes. The weak wind moved the shutters, which made quiet, unsettling sounds. The circular moon hung in the starry sky, illuminating the earth in a warm glow. Luka decided to move to a less populated part of the town, towards a large field of grain.
At this time of year, the grain was already high, which made it difficult for Luka to move. She came out with difficulty and reached the edge of the field. It was separated by an old wooden fence. The woman walked along it looking out for the entrances, or the slot through which she could cross the forest. After a few minutes of searching, she finally found a hole wide enough to pass through.
Behind the vast trees, Luka saw the meadow. At the edge of the path surrounded by tall spruces, she saw a bright, teal light, identical to what she had seen earlier that day. She ran in the direction of sparkling glow.
Then Luka saw her. A girl was lying with her eyes closed on moss and heather. The color of the light was the same as her long, teal hair, which was falling gently down to the ground. She was wearing a white dress with bare shoulders. She was quite small and petite, opposite of the pinkette.
Luka stood motionless, staring at the girl. She tried to remember every detail of her ethereal appearance. Her pink lips, porcelain skin, snub nose...
Luka was snapped away from the trance by the soft moan of a young woman. The young girl opened her eyes and sat up slowly. The light around her disappeared, leaving only the darkness.
"Who are you?" asked the tealette quietly, as though trying not to disturb the crickets singing in the grass.
She had a high, melodious voice that echoed in Luka's head. She ran her hand through her hair, revealing her pointed ears.
"I'm..."
Luka stood over the elf. The wind began to blow through her hair. She stopped paying attention to the cold air chilling her cheeks. She felt that the girl was staring at her. She took a step back. Luka didn't want to tell the real reason why she was here, it wasn't time for that conversation.
"I just wanted to gather some berries." She lied with self-confidence and stretched out a trembling hand towards the girl.
Luka felt the weight in her chest piercing her deeply. The elf grasped Luka's hand hesitantly and stood up.
"Berries don't grow in this part of the forest." She looked at the pinkette carefully. "Do all humans wear armor when gathering fruits?" She added, tilting her head curiously.
"Do all elves sleep in forests that aren't part of their territory?" Luka retorted, crossing arms across her chest.
The smaller girl looked around and sighed. "I don't see any other elves. It looks like I'm alone." She thought a moment. She looked at Luka, her eyes glinting at the new companion. "But you are here. Do you think I can go back to my village tonight?"
The pinkette looked at the girl in front of her with surprise. "You... Do you realize that we humans are currently in conflict with the elves?"
"It would be hard not to know something like that when half of my village is afraid to leave their homes, fear of losing their own lives." The tealette said quietly.
"Then what about you? Aren't you afraid to go out alone to the forest?"
"I belong to the other half." The elf replied with a playful grin. "Are there any guards at the entrance to the forest from the village? Previously, I managed to slip through, but I'm afraid I won't be able to do it again..."
Luka wondered how the girl crossed the entrance and bypassed the guards in the first place. She must have been exceptionally agile and fast.
"Passing that way now is impossible. The queen instructed the guards to watch the entrance more carefully than usual. Apparently, someone has seen an elf in our area." Luka bit her lip after what she said. The tealette noticed the confusion of the young woman and chuckled quietly.
"So it looks like someone saw me." The elf said, sitting down on the branch. She rubbed her head and took a breath. "You know how hard it is to get out of this village? Now everyone is just shaking with fear in those little houses. 'Don't go there because something will happen to you!'" She said mockingly and gesticulating lively. "Makes me not want to stay there anymore! I mean, of course, I love my village, I belong there... but the elves' home is here in the woods. Can you hear these chirping birds?" She asked, taking a serious look.
Luka nodded gently, still listening carefully to the the birds the elf mentioned.
"It's a skylark. Only skylarks sing before sunrise in this forest. I want to be free as a bird. I want to continue to believe that there are good people here too, that not everyone wants our death." The tealette said in a barely audible whisper.
"There are good people here." Luka repeated after her slowly. The tealette smiled and approached Luka. She stared carefully at the pinkette.
"I know that." The elf looked down. "I have been watching you humans for several years. Your behavior in some cases is... fascinating. I particularly like watching people placed in new situations. You're afraid of it, right?"
Luka didn't know what to say. She expected everything except for an elf who would be curious about the lives of humans. The girl was not afraid of Luka. The girl was excited, her voice resounding among the trees like a bell. Under normal circumstances, Luka could say that it is irresponsible for the elf to talk to humans. The pinkette did not know whether the tealette's behavior was normal in her country, or whether the girl was actually very reckless. Luka decided to ignore it though.
"If you want to go back to your village, come follow me." Luka said after a moment of hesitation.
"Will you really take me home? But... what if someone caught us?"
"I won't escort you to the village. Not now." Luka came out in the direction of the path with a quick step.
"Wait! So where are we going?" The elf said in hurry, running to the pink haired woman.
"To my house. You will probably have to stay there."
The elf smiled at Luka's words. After a moment, however, she became serious and followed the woman, raising her dress to avoid tripping over it. They walked for some time listening to the singing of a skylark and the sound of sand squealing under their boots.
"My name's Miku." The tealette broke the silence after several minutes.
Luka stopped and turned toward her, grimace on her face. "I didn't ask you for your name." She said harshly, looking around carefully.
"I thought that if I had to spend the night in your house, we could get to know each other better."
Luka sighed deeply. "The forest is full of guards, and I don't want to prematurely end up dead. Don't say anything right now, please."
Miku grabbed her hair, which was still falling on her face. She muttered a soft apology and walked a few feet behind the pinkette.
Luka was beginning to regret helping the elf. She had the impression that this whole situation would bring her more problems than she had expected. She only heard the girl's heavy breath behind her back.
"Can we wait a moment?" Miku said weakly, leaning against the tree.
"Are you feeling well?" Luka asked nervously, looking back at the elf.
"No! You're just very fast. I'm a bit tired, that's all." She smiled slightly.
"If we go slower, it will be more likely that someone will see us. My house is not far away." Luka walked over to the elf and pointed a finger at the hill to which they were approaching. She could feel the heat of the girl on her skin. "I live behind this hill. Come on, it's just a moment."
Miku nodded and followed the pinkette.
They walked in silence, trying not to make noise. They went to a more open area on the hill, from where the buildings in the kingdom were visible. In front of them stretched houses and streets. In the distance, they could see an outline of a large castle with several towers. By the middle of Artreia was flowing a river dividing the city, which at this time was deep asleep. In the cloudless sky, stars were the signposts for many wanderers. Miku looked up, mesmerized by the view.
"I never had the opportunity to see your kingdom so well." She said, delighted.
"You never been here?" Luka asked, taking a sip of water from the bottle she wore in her bag. "I thought that since you were fascinated with humans, you came to see how we live."
"No... I mean, I haven't been that close. I only watched the humans who were lost in the forest. Sometimes, they came to our village when I was younger and it was safer. I know a lot about humans from my grandparents' stories, too. Today... no one today speaks decently of humans anymore."
"You don't seem to be very responsible if you're entering our lands without a proper reason. Each human is different."
"I didn't think about it that way before." Miku scratched her chin nervously.
"Well, next time, be more careful." Luka handed her a leather bag of water. "Just around the corner is my home. My roommate is already asleep, so please be quiet."
"Thank you again." Miku was drinking greedily. "I don't know how to repay you."
"Drink and say nothing. We'll talk later." The pinkette threw her last glance before she opened the door of her house.
"I was waiting for you!" Maika cried as she threw herself around her friend's neck. "I couldn't sleep! Tell me quickly whether you've found the... elves."
The woman froze as she saw the figure standing in the doorway.
"I told you that you can do what you want to do, but... but that didn't mean you had to bring one with you!" Maika yelled.
"What else could I have done? I couldn't send her back to her village. There are guards everywhere!"
"You could have just left her there."
"Then I might have as well killed her, it wouldn't have changed her fate." Luka sighed as she looked at the elf shaking by the door. This time, she clearly saw the fear in her azure eyes. Miku looked like she was going to cry. Luka turned back to Maika. "Can you just understand that this was the only way to save her life?"
"By exposing our lives? Yeah, perfect choice." Maika said mockingly, rolling her eyes.
"I thought you already made up your mind."
"Yes, but I'm afraid of your decisions' consequences."
"If everything goes my way, everything will be all right. I just need time." Luka said, trying to comfort her friend.
"I really don't know what you came up with, but I hope you know what you're doing. Only remember that you aren't alone. Oh, and one more thing." Maika pointed her finger at the tealette. "She doesn't sleep in our bedroom."
After that, Maika turned on her heels and left, leaving Miku and Luka alone.
The pinkette sat down and looked at the elf still standing next to the door. The girl lowered her head and played with her hair trying to calm herself down.
"Sorry for her behavior. This whole situation... just seems to overwhelm us. Don't worry about it. And come sit, finally, and we can talk."
"No, I'm sorry. You have so much trouble because of me... Maybe it would be better if I actually leave." Miku added in a low voice.
"You're not going anywhere. Sit down." Luka pushed aside the wooden chair next to her, where the girl eventually sat.
The light of the candle fell on Miku's small figure and sad face. Being so close, Luka could feel the sweet smell of violets and lilac accompanying the elf. She closed her eyes and inhaled deeply. The last time she smelled that smell was a few months ago, in the spring.
"Umm... Are you hungry? I have the soup that Maika made. Maybe she isn't the best cook, but it's better than nothing." Luka tried to smile, pretending everything was okay.
Miku shook her head. "I shouldn't be here at all." The tealette said slowly. "I don't want to be a problem for the both of you."
"You brought enough trouble just by appearing in the forest." Luka sighed. "Now you have no choice. You'll have to stay here until the situation calms down." She looked down and stood up. "If you don't want to eat, then you should go to bed."
"Right... Where can I sleep?" Miku asked shakily.
Luka walked over to several furs lying by the window. Miku followed Luka and helped spread the furs across the floor. Being so close to the elf, made it harder for Luka to breathe. She felt a pleasing warmth spreading from her head through the spine to her hands and feet, and the feeling grew with every second she stood here.
Luka, calm down. Be calm, be...
"I... I will go now." Luka said with a shaky voice and walked away. Luka's hands trembled and her lips became dry. She threw Miku a forced smile and walked to the door leading to her bedroom.
"Wait!" Luka heard a high-pitched voice behind her. "What's your name?"
"Luka. I'm Luka." She said without turning around. "Good night."
Luka slammed the door behind her. The pinkette stood leaning against the wall. Her head was spinning, she felt a tingling in her stomach that she had never experienced. One look, a meaningful meeting of their eyes, was enough to take her breath away.
What was it supposed to be? Attraction? Magic? She was afraid to even think about it. It was only a few minutes before she picked up her thoughts and opened her eyes.
On the bed, covered with fur, Maika gazed at her in silence. "I feel like you're getting us into trouble again." She said after a moment. She opened her mouth, trying to say something else, but gave up.
Luka took off her armor and started dressing up in her pajamas. When she was wearing the more comfortable outfit, she let hair down which gently fell on her back. Without saying a word, she went under the blanket next to Maika. Luka lay there for a long time looking blankly at the ceiling above her. She couldn't close her eyes for a second, nor could she lie down comfortably. She was convinced that the white-haired woman was sleeping beside her until she heard her soft voice.
"Lu..."
Luka turned to her friend, who was now looking at her. She couldn't see her in the dark, but she felt her warm breath on the skin. "What's going on, Maika?" She whispered.
"You ate the plum I threw in you?"
"What do you mean?" Luka stared at her roommate with a shocked look.
"Answer me. Yes or no?"
"Uhm... No. I forgot about it. Probably it's still in my bag."
"Then you'll give it to the elf tomorrow." Maika said, hiding under the blankets and turning to the opposite direction.
Luka laid on her back with her eyes open. Had her friend changed her mind and wanted to help the girl?
Maika sometimes acted like a mother she didn't have. She was able to support Luka in difficult times. She was everywhere, and although she wasn't someone important in the kingdom, everyone knew her. The pinkette didn't know a person who didn't like Maika. She was so different from her and that's why she liked her. She was her dearest friend, she could trust her.
Luka smiled under her breath. She wanted to say something, but before she opened her mouth, she heard quiet snoring. Maika was already asleep.
Luka really hoped that her fears wouldn't come true. She wanted to protect everyone from the events that could be avoided.
She was far too good-hearted for hard times, in what she came to live.