Chapter 2 –
Living in, or rather, just outside of Tusk Town was not as bad as I originally thought. Bella and Rosk were a simple couple, working to make a living. They had been married for six years when they took me in.
In the beginning, I was in shock over losing my parents. I would not speak, and it took lots of encouragement from Bella to get me to eat. Sleep was the hardest part. I often woke during the night, screaming or crying from the nightmares of the past. Bella and Rosk both came to my bedside to comfort me.
Months passed in this manner until I began to notice my surroundings and the daily activities Bella and Rosk busied themselves with. Rosk was a carpenter. He would go into the surrounding forest and chop down a tree, drag it back to the house, and then carve and whittle it into whatever fashion he wished. He crafted for nobles and children alike. His workshop was littered with furniture, cabinetry, toys, utensils, tools. He would occasionally allow me to practice his craft with him, carving the wood into something spectacular. I made a cabinetry with matching table and chairs for a kitchen that an Archosaur noble paid what Rosk claimed to be a handsome price.
However, Bella's work suited my interests more. She weaved and sewed dresses and cloth for the women in town as well as tending a garden of flowers to make bouquets in the summer. After I finally started eating on my own and sleeping better at night, I would find myself watching Bella either sew a dress or weave a sash, or tend her flowers. Sewing and tending plants helped to sooth my aching heart and take my mind off of my loss.
It was through Bella's work that I grew closer to my Human foster parents. I weaved and sewed them both new clothes for the day that elves celebrated parents; Tuiste Day. From that day on, I helped them with whatever work I could.
I began to feel as though I was part of a family but, it was different from my first family. Humans did things differently from Elves. They ate three meals a day, had to bath daily, worked more than relaxed, and had relatively different beliefs from what I was used to.
Despite the peace treaties between the three races, everyone was said to still be hostile towards one another. Each race kept to their own lands except for the warriors being sent to Archosaur. It seemed Archosaur and on the battlefield were the only places the differences were set aside.
But here, in this little house outside of Tusk Town, I was treated as an equal. They loved me despite knowing nothing of me, or where I came from.
Not even a year after I started living with Bella and Tusk, they took me into the town to start school. That was where my troubles began. The Human children and town members were wary of me from the start. It was disconcerting, being looked at as though I were some beast or Wraith. I felt that I didn't belong there, but Bella and Rosk insisted that I start my studies so that I could grow up understanding our world.
I tried to fit in, I really did. The girls in class kept to themselves and walked away every time I drew near for conversation. The boys would pick on me. One boy was brave enough to stop and speak to me.
"What are those things on your head," he asked me. I replied that they were wings. He and the rest of the class scoffed and laughed. "Those are the elven wings we hear so much about? Kinda small for flyin', ain't they," they called. I shook my head and told them these weren't the wings I was to fly with. "So where are those wings? The ones you fly with?" I stated that they hadn't set in yet. An elf didn't get their wings at birth, but when they reached a certain age and found their calling in life.
"Then what are the wings on your head for?" At this, I was stumped. I had never been told what they were for. I didn't believe they even had a purpose. I mumbled this to them. They all laughed. "I hope they aren't supposed to be for looks, like a peacock's feathers 'cause those things are ugly!" He drew out the word 'ugly' to emphasis his point. Everyone laughed again. My face flushed red.
"They look like tiny bull horns! What're ya goin' ta do? Ram them through us until we're all dead? Is that how the great Winged Elves have been killin' our families and the Wraiths? Ramming 'em with tiny wings?"
I stared at him in silence. I wasn't sure what to do or say. I had never been scoffed at or made fun of. My wings were a symbol of pride and grace my mother had told me. She and father had said to wear them proudly.
One girl walked up behind me and reached a hand into my hair. A gasp escaped my lips when she tugged on a feather from my left wing and yanked it out. It stung for only a second but as the class laughed at her jokes of conquering an elf, I began to cry. My precious wings were a joke to these people. Did they not understand that this was all I had left of my parents?
I couldn't stand to see their faces anymore. I ran from the school, back to Bella's arms. I told her what had happened, how I felt, everything. Rosk immediately went to town and spoke to the teacher. The children were reprimanded for their behavior but I was never apologized to nor was I anymore accepted after that. To be honest, I was ostracized even more so.
I learned to sit alone and go through life with just Bella and Rosk. It wasn't that bad I suppose. It really wasn't all that different from before the Wraith attack. But either fate or Pan Gu himself has a way of working with our world.
I was eleven and class had let out for the day and most of the children headed straight home, avoiding me as was usual. I began following the path that would lead down to home. However, I noticed that today, three of the boys, one being the boy that had initially made fun of my wings, were following and laughing amongst themselves. I decided to ignore them even after I stepped out of the town, expecting them to be too scared to follow me beyond the safety they had always known.
However, they didn't stop. Actually, where I followed the path south-east, I noticed they had turned left off the path. They were headed toward some of the lower hills. I could faintly hear them joking about not being afraid of the Wraiths and checking out the little house north-east of the village where an old hermit lived.
As they walked further and further away, I considered just leaving them alone and heading home. Human boys could be so stupid. They knew they weren't supposed to leave the town. I could have gone for an adult, but who would listen to me? After all, I was an elf. And they had shown that listening to me was never high on their priority list. What would going after them myself gain? Still, it could be dangerous for them to leave the village. I decided to go after them myself and bring them back, even if I had to drag them.
I tried dragging my feet going back after them, but something urged me on after the boys. It didn't take me long to reach the top of the hill and by then, I was moving at a brisk walk. Below me, I saw the boys inching towards the cabin they had been discussing.
What they didn't see in their excitement was a dark viper rising from the ground behind them. Their hurried whispers blinded them to their surroundings. All they could focus on was shoving one boy toward the cabin.
I shouted a warning at them, but a moment too late. One boy was bitten on the leg as they turned toward me. I hurried down the hill as the viper reared to strike again. By fate again, I noticed a stick laying on the ground and picked it up, still running toward the boys. I watched them shriek and fall back in fear; the bitten boy had already fallen to the ground in shock, each narrowly missed by the viper's second attack.
The viper made for a third strike, but I had finally reached them by then and swung the stick into the snake. I watched it fly to one side and hit the ground on its side. It took a moment to flip back onto its belly and rear up, slithering toward us again. I pointed the end of the stick at it, praying to Pan Gu and my parents souls that they would guide me and protect me from harm.
The viper seemed to stare me down as it swayed back and forth. I couldn't help but follow its movements, as if the snake and I were one. It was in that moment that I saw it rear back again and knew my opening. It happened so fast, I didn't even realize I had pulled back and snapped my wrist at the viper. All I saw was it soaring through the air and hitting the ground yards away from us. It writhed in pain on the ground before slithering away, back into the ground somewhere.
All my years among humans had changed my elven habits. Instead of hiding my emotion like my mother and father would have, I had to smile. Bella or Rosk would have grinned like fools if they had just experienced what I had. But I wasn't left with much time to celebrate. Behind me, the boys were starting to shout.
I turned to face them, wondering what could be the problem now. The boy that was bitten, the one that had made fun of my wings, was lying on the ground, curled up and quickly turning a pale shade of green. Poison.
The other boys just stared in shock, as if they couldn't believe anything that had just happened. They didn't move until I yelled at them. But then they just stared at me, dumbfounded. I hit them both and shouted at them, ordering them to pick their friend up and help me get him back to town. It took them a while, precious time wasted with their shock, before I finally got them moving up the hill and heading back to town.
It seemed to take forever for us to get back to town but after shouting a bit, I quickly got the attention of the adults. Bella happened to be making a flower delivery to one of the ladies when we arrived. I directed the boys to set their friend down and get the apothecary.
I watched him run off and turned back to the ill boy. His face had turned a sickly shade of green in such a short time. I could tell he didn't have long before the poison would claim him. Moments passed before I heard the apothecary rush around the corner, carrying multiple potions of varying colors.
He asked for the type of snake that attacked the boy and despite me describing it in perfect detail, he turned to the other boys and asked them, wasting even more time. He gave the boy one sip of potion after another, checking for any sort of effect. The boy was getting worse.
By the seventh potion, I'd had enough. The boy was breathing so hard and such a sickly green, something had to be done rather than testing. I tried hard to remember my life in Bamboo Village and a single memory came to mind: my father mixing an herb potion for a very similar viper. As for the ingredients, I glanced up and noticed that Bella's bouquet had all the right plants: red tulips, white lilies, a sprig of fern and red berries.
But even if I did have the ingredients, I didn't have the time to make it. Too much time had been wasted. The boy probably only had a minute left before he was lost. Then I remembered father telling me about the most basic of cleric skills: Iron Heart.
The apothecary was fumbling with another potion, some lime-green color. I heaved a sigh and laid my hands on the boys shoulder, focusing my energy. I heard murmuring and discontent all around me. I even felt hands grab my shoulders to pull me away but I heard the two boys and Bella, yelling at everyone to back off.
I don't know how it happened but I heard a gasp from everyone around me and looked to see a blue light fading from in front of me. The boy seemed to recover a bit; his breathing relaxed slightly and his face recovered some color. I had bought him time.
I looked to Bella and her beaming smile. She was so proud of me. But it was not time to celebrate. I demanded a potion of the apothecary with the ingredients I needed. He snorted and stated there was no such potion. Bella quickly handed me the herbs she had and rushed to grab a bowl and water. She returned after I cast another Iron Heart on the boy. The world seemed to be spinning.
I took the ingredients and threw them together, crushing the herbs, mixing in water and letting it settle while casting another heal. By then, it was so hard to breathe, I could barely hold my head up. Trembling, I cast another heal on the boy and tilted the potion into his mouth, letting him sip at it. I waited for him to finish it all.
My vision was foggy and everything seemed to be spinning. My limbs were aching, and my heart pounding, but I cast a final heal on him, hoping it would be enough.
I woke up a few hours later to find myself in my bed. Bella and Rosk were at my side, Bella holding my hand tightly. I looked at them, worried about the boy despite all the ridicule I'd received at his expense. I learned that the potion I'd given him worked. The effects of the poison faded within moments and the Iron Heart had helped him recover some more before we both blacked out. They said word had come that the boy had woken up an hour ago and was fine; a bit startled, but otherwise, fine.
I was so relieved. I knew he had hurt me emotionally a great deal over the years, but to know that he had lived due to my efforts was a great relief. I was glad. I felt I could go back to sleep then and rest peacefully but we heard a knock at the front door. That boy had come to see if I had woken.
To be honest, I was nervous about him being there. I wasn't sure how he would react to me and my efforts to save his life. I was almost sure I'd be ridiculed and yelled at. But he proved me wrong. He took my hand and thanked me so many times, I honestly lost count.
Eventually, I managed to get him to stop. By then, I'd noticed his friends and all their parents had also come. They each took my hand and thanked me. The boys were grinning 'ear-to-ear', as Rosk said it. They begged to be friends with me. It wasn't until I agreed that they finally stopped pestering me about it.
The boy I had saved reached out for one of the wings on my head; I couldn't help but flinch, expecting him to yank a feather out. But he gentle stroked the feathers a bit and told me how he had lied about thinking they were ugly. He told me he and the other children had always found them beautiful, more beautiful than anything they had ever seen, and they had just been so jealous and scared.
I didn't like being so different, so alien to them that they felt they had to lie to mask their fear and fascination. But nothing could be done about it. I could not change who I was nor could they change who they were. All we could do was accept our differences and learn to live with one another. I told them my thoughts and they sort of nodded.
It was about another thirty minutes before they all thanked me again and allowed me to rest. I remember glancing out the window that evening and watching the sun set. I would need to remember that casting magic would use Chi, something I had very little of due to having no proper training.
After that day, my life changed once again. This time, I was accepted into the town I lived outside of. I had a home, a family. And finally, I belonged.
