Holy crap I'm uploading a chapter… Alert the media. The end is nigh.
Just kidding. I'm just awful with all my mental issues lately, but im slowly trudging through.
It took three days to get to Mountain Village by train.
Three.
Whole.
Days.
What was supposed to be only three hours on the train then three hours walking, turned into three whole days thanks to frequent stops due to repairs.
If Lahar wasn't completely silent, he was droning on and on about the mountain's historic background.
Her routine consisted of nap, read, zone out through the window of the train cart, and then be forced to pay attention to whatever it was that he was lecturing her on at the moment.
In a way, it pissed her off. But part of her seemed to understand something. He was spouting history.
It had to be something he loved, to continuously blab on and on about it.
So she reminded herself to be patient. Over and over again.
Normally, she would have flown off the handle about it and forced him to shut his damn mouth.
But the thing about Lahar was that he never ever talked about the things he liked, or was passionate about. And it was obvious to Lucy that he seemed to be passionate about historical facts.
So she kept her mouth shut.
If she was blathering on and on about the constellations and their possible respective keys, she would hope that someone would listen to her instead of become annoyed.
So the three days it took to arrive at Mountain Village, she remained polite and interested, even if it was boring her out of her mind.
Stepping off the train and on to the platform, the pair walked towards the center of town in silence.
Upon reaching the village's center square, they paused.
"So..." Lucy trailed off, feeling unsure of her own voice in the matter.
The dark green haired man turned towards her with a raised brow.
"Yes?"
Shifting her weight, feeling slightly nervous, Lucy spoke what was on her mind.
"We should find lodging first, then we should meet with the requester."
Lahar thought about it for a moment.
While starting directly at their employer would prove quicker, the blond beside him had a point.
A place of lodging would prove beneficial, allowing them a guaranteed place to sleep and store their belongings no matter the outcome.
With a nod he gestured forward. "Very well."
After all, this girl was far more familiar with how missions worked than he was.
He watched as she looked around for a moment before walking.
Lahar loathed to admit it, but the small woman in front of him knew far more about these things that he did. Sure, he knew some of the basics. He also knew how to clean up legal messes revolving around missions. It was his job. What he had been trained to become, learn, and achieve.
A delicate hand on his wrist pulled him, along with his thoughts to a stop.
"We're here." She stated simply.
A small nod told her that he heard what she had said, and without further prompting, she pushed open the door and strode inside.
It was a quaint place. Simple yet homey decorations, lit candles that gave off the fragrance of cinnamon and apples. It was one of those cheap places, but not the ones where you expect everything to be infested in bacteria and semen.
"Either two rooms with a bed, or one room with two beds, please." The blond beside him asked pleasantly once they had reached the front desk.
The stout redheaded woman behind the counter hummed to herself as her emerald eyes scanned the list.
Finally, she looked up at us with an apologetic frown. "I'm so sorry, dears. It seems like the only rooms we have available are single bed rooms. And the cheapest one available is a room with a full sized bed and a tub."
A protest formed on his lips, but before he could word his disapproval, his temporary partner spoke.
"That's fine. Thank you, Miss." She said sweetly.
The woman behind the counter beamed at the blonde young lady before nodding.
"Alrighty then! Your room is room 27, here is your key. Continental breakfast begins at six am sharp and ends at nine am. Checkout will be at around noon."
Taking the key and paper that no doubt stated all the things she just said, Lahar nodded and thanked the woman, before turning on his heel to the elevator.
Lucy jogged over to him seconds before the elevator doors closed.
"So… if you're uncomfortable sharing a bed with me, I have no problem sleeping on the floor, or the pull out if there is one."
The pair remained silent as they stood in the lacrima powered contraption, the taller of the two thinking things over.
While he would normally take her up on that, everything that he had been taught as a man rejected the idea. No matter how much he disliked the petite mage fidgeting beside him, or the situation he was in, he simply could not allow the woman to take the less comfortable option for sleeping arrangements.
The very short elevator ride to the second floor was brought to a halt, and the doors opened.
As the pair walked out and down the hall to their room, Lahar cleared his throat.
"No, that is quite alright. You may take the bed."
Lucy blinked at him in surprise, vaguely aware that she was going through the motions of unlocking their door and stepping inside.
She knew he could be courteous at times, but it always surprised her. Still, she felt guilty about him sleeping on the floor, seeing as there was no pull out in their tiny little room.
It was clean, thank Mavis. The walls were a faded red, the carpet a simple black. A small window with beige curtains was above a bed that took up most of the room. The smallest mini fridge she had ever seen was placed next to the door that led into the small bathroom, consisting of toilet, tub, and sink.
Lucy peered at the bed and gingerly peeled back the brown comforter, sighing in relief at finding no stains or critters.
Well… the bed was big enough.
"Lahar?" She asked, fiddling with her hands.
Lahar looked up from where he had been examining a list of eateries nearby that had been resting on top of the mini fridge, seeing the small woman had her brown eyes averted from his own. "Yes?"
"I was thinking, and hear me out before you say no. The bed is big enough, so if you feel comfortable with it, we could share it."
The tall mage arched a brow at her words, and for some reason he was mulling it over.
He really did not want to sleep on the floor. The carpet was old and quite thin, meaning he would wake up with a back ache if were to sleep on it. Not only that, but he knew that while the place appeared to be tidy, there was still an abundance of microorganisms from all the other travelers who had stayed here in the past just lingering in the fibers. The thought alone had him internally shuddering.
"If it makes you feel any better, we can put some pillows between us…" Lucy offered, suddenly feeling unsure about offering to share the bed in the first place.
It was by far more comfortable than the floor, and they were supposed to do a mission together. She couldn't have her partner stiff as a board the entire time. It was solid reasoning, and yet she was starting to feel embarrassed for even bringing it up.
"Alright." The man nodded, and Lucy nearly jumped out of her skin as she was broken from her thoughts.
"We will share the bed, as long as there is a pillow between us and you mention this to no one." He really did not need word getting out. In the short time he had been a part of the guild, he had seen Mira plot countless parings from even the tiniest inclination that they liked each other more than just platonically. If she heard that he and Lucy had willingly shared a bed, she would pounce on it and escape would be futile.
Now that he had agreed, Lucy was struck with the realization that they would be sharing a bed. Yes she was the one who had offered but she hadn't truly grasped what that meant.
They would need to store their things and head to the requester's house, get dinner, and then…well and then things would get awkward.
I am so sorry that I haven't updated anything, in like a year. The twins started preschool, so I have two days out of the week where it is just me and my youngest, making it easier to write and get other things done.
Bear with me, I'm slowly but surely coming back guys!