A/N: Can anybody tell me if I'm going too fast with this? I was originally planning to make this a seven part story, but from the looks of this.... Anyway, any OOC-ness on Eriol's or Tomoyo's behalf is purely for plot purposes. Enjoy!
Disclaimer: Now look what you did!! You broke the legal jargon!!! Bad you! I no own! Happy?!
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Part II: Stranded: On the Road
Nakuru tossed and turned in his bed, the sleep evading him. Sighing frustratedly, the guardian removed the heavy comforters and stood up. Walking to the window, he noted that it was still a couple of hours until daybreak. Even though the sky outside was nothing but a dark mauve haze, Nakuru could see the sleeping forms of his two roommates snuggled comfortably in their beds. He envied them on a certain level.
Shrugging lightly with a smirk plastered on his face, he came to Tomoyo's bed and peered closely into the girl's face. Giggling slightly, he tucked the blanket firmer around the girl. She sure was pretty, and kind, and sweet; perfect for his master. Stifling back another giggle lest he wake up his slumbering roommates, Nakuru made his way to the next room, which belonged to Eriol and Hein.
Kneeling quietly beside his master's bed, Nakuru stared at him. Nakuru always marvelled at how peaceful Eriol looked when asleep. By looking at him you would not be able to tell that this lanky boy snoozing serenely was once the most powerful mage on earth. Nor would you be able to tell that the same boy suffered great hardships and heartache. Nakuru often wondered how he hid it so well.
The now sedate guardian reached a gentle hand to his master's forehead, brushing away the few stray strands. Nakuru loved his master. That was why he was so determined to make Eriol happy, even at the expense of his own well being. Exhaling and giving one last tender look to his master, Nakuru exited the small room.
Smirking brightly, Nakuru headed downstairs to the kitchen where tea and a lemon meringue (made by Eriol the previous day) waited beckoned him. While munching happily on his dessert, Nakuru went outside, letting the cool breeze seep through him. Spotting his unsuspecting target curled into a tight ball on a bench, Nakuru sauntered over with a devious grin. With a syrupy "Suppiiiii-chaaaan!" he cornered his barely awoken prey.
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The company, dressed in the same strange clothes they found themselves once they arrived in this world, was standing just outside the town limits, saying their goodbye. Just as Fate would have it, the day was cloudy and the air was thick with moisture, mirroring the foul mood this particular company was having.
Goodbyes were never easy and were usually followed by great sorrow, which was why Eriol hated goodbyes and refused to give into the sadness. Putting on a cheery front, he forced himself to bravely face the woman that gave them home for the past week and hug her tenderly.
During their time together, he came to know her as the mother figure he always craved for. Never having parents of his own, he could not help but feel slightly resentful towards those who did have loving families, despite all reason and self taught discipline. He wanted to have a father who would give him a wise advice to a problem; he wanted to have a mother who lovingly took him into his arms and cradled him when he was feeling like he was in the gutter. He hated Clow Reed for denying him that right. Now, the one person who came close to having that special place in his heart was disappearing out of his reach.
Eriol noted with a large degree of pity the sadness and the stinging tears in Tomoyo's eyes. She was like him, lacking a motherly touch, a proper family. He wanted to go over to her and comfort her, to smooth away her woe. All the impulsive parts of his psyche propelled him forward, but all the years of squeezing out his emotions and the logic he obtained forced him to stay away from her. He did neither. Eriol stood on neutral ground watching, his sapphire pools overflowing with compassion and self-control.
"We're going to miss you," Tomoyo presently said while giving crushing hugs to Nadia and Hein. She had come to think of them as the little siblings she never had. The two simply wailed into her hair.
Nakuru was nowhere to be found, and once he consulted with Spinel, Eriol determined that his guardian was saying his farewells to the village pretty boys. Always the flirt, he smirked. Spinel Sun was coiled into a fury ball in a patch of grass, apparently he didn't sleep well that night. He didn't know how his guardians took to going away, but it seemed they were coping just nicely.
He was pulled back to the present by Hanney's tug on his arm. Tomoyo beside him, they listened to her last words of wisdom.
"I've lived a long life; enough to know that good people are rarer than singing dogs. One thin' I'm certain, though, ye are good people; I'd 'ate to know that anythin' bad 'appened to ye." The woman said this a bit tearfully. "Look out for yourselves, and don't ya dare abandon each other when in need. We'll miss ya, too ya know."
Shifting closer to Tomoyo she whispered into the girl's ear, "Straighten 'im out, honey. 'E'll make a fine husband one day." This sentiment brought a bright crimson flush to the girl's cheeks and she began to back away with silly excuses.
Eriol on his side of the conversation wondered what happened to bring out such a change in his female companion. He had a feeling it was something about him, though he didn't question the guilty party. He learned from early on that women did strange things for even stranger reasons; he resolved to leave them to their own business.
Hanney, the ever-humble hostess, gave them each cloaks and spare clothes for the road. She also lent them two horses and some money (they refused, but Hanney was adamant about what she wanted), knowing full well that their journey would be long and treacherous. Their mounts laden with food and other things necessary for the journey, such as blankets and cooking utensils, the company gave their last farewells and headed on their way.
Nakuru insisted very earnestly that Tomoyo and Eriol share the larger of the two horses, a palomino mare, while the two guardians had the other, a dapple-grey mount. The two teens didn't object, though for the purpose of keeping up images, they appeared non-too pleased with the arrangement. Tomoyo had the privilege of naming the horses; her own was dubbed Vive Maria, while Nakuru's was christened Touya (on Nakuru's own insistence).
For most of the ride the company was silent, each of them keeping to their own thoughts. Nakuru occasionally broke into a jolly travel song, but was quickly shut up by Spinel Sun. The morning's gloom did not dissipate, but seemed to worsen until it was difficult to see much beyond their own horses' reigns. Spinel was sent to scout ahead for any signs of breaks in the earth or any forks in the road. Sighing indignantly, the feline went about his task.
"Where do you think we need to go?" Asked Tomoyo.
"I don't know. I guess we'll stop at the first place that has a roof and four walls." Answered Eriol a bit hopelessly. He sincerely didn't have a clue on exactly where they were going and how long it would take to get them there. All that he was told by Hanney was that he would know the place once he got there. It didn't help the situation any that Eriol had no idea what to look for.
Eriol was startled out of his little reverie by a panting Spinel. The little stuffed-animal-like-creature was flying towards them as fast as his tiny wings could carry him. Eriol motioned for the horses to stop; his little guardian landed on the mare's head.
"What's wrong?" Eriol asked his still winded guardian.
"T-there's a man u-up ahead." The winged creature answered, a bit breathless.
"Oh Suppi-chan! Don't tell me you got scared of some vagabond of a man! I thought you braver then that." Nakuru smirked playfully.
"When was the last time you looked in the mirror?! You're a man wearing girl's dresses and hitting on poor bystanders!" Retorted Spinel.
"What *is* so special about this particular stranger, Spinel?" Tomoyo asked from her seat in front of Eriol.
"I reckon it is best if you simply saw for yourself," the guardian replied.
Looking at each other quizzically, the company set off forward. They had been thoroughly warned by Hanney to watch out for strangers, in case they were the enemy spies. Sure enough, further up the road, underneath a sweeping oak tree, was a very outlandish looking man.
The man was wearing a long navy robe under a very shabby looking cloak. He had snow-while hair that was in a very peculiar shape; it stood out at the sides and fell haphazardly in the eyes. Almost like a mushroom, Eriol thought. Under the silvery main protruded a long, slightly crooked nose and a lengthy, pointed moustache. He was sitting on what appeared to be a tree stump, but Eriol wouldn't be too surprised if it was actually a chest. The man's luggage and cane were off to the side.
Paying no heed to his visitors, the old man took out a long wooden pipe from some unidentifiable place in his garments. Taking long swings at his pipe, the man broke into an odd song that didn't match any of the languages that Eriol knew.
Clearing his throat, Eriol gained the attention of the man.
"Good day, your Lordship. Are you in need of something?" The man asked in a rich tenor, his vibrant eyes scanning over the group.
"Actually, we were about to ask you the same question," Eriol replied.
The man looked intensely at Eriol, as if trying to look through the boy's psyche and straight to his. After a moment of silence, the man said cryptically, "Do not seek knowledge, embrace it, live it, love it and with it. An apple doesn't fall far from a tree." Eriol looked inanely at the man before him. The man, in turn, took another swing at his pipe and continued his merry song in the strange tongue.
Without much hesitation, the group set off on the road again, only too glad to leave the uncanny man's company. Nakuru was later head saying "Tch! Fine, who would ever want to talk to that old geezer!?"
The rest of the day passed without major incident. There was a little scuffle between his two guardians over the food (Nakuru was ravaging all their food supplies and Spinel was adamant about tying the berserked guardian to a nearby tree). Later on they were faced with a problem of crossing a river. A wet Spinel and some bickering after, it was determined that the river was shallow and easy to cross.
Eriol, for his part, could not stop thinking about the old man and his peculiar little speech. It felt as if the man was talking directly to him, about something only he had seen and something that made sense only to him. The problem was, Eriol couldn't make heads or tales of what was said and why it had such relevance to him. A small part of Eriol screamed for him to follow as the man said (how ever ridiculous that may be), but that was the more daring and spontaneous part of the boy. His logic dictated that he avoid any strange looking men from now on.
"What do you think that old man meant?" He suddenly asked his riding partner.
Tomoyo looked up at him a bit startled, apparently she was having a mental discussion of her own. Looking quizzically at him, Eriol found her pose to be very endearing and cute. The reached his right hand and playfully taped her elven nose. Seeming even more puzzled now, it was all poor Tomoyo could do to not pout childishly.
"I asked what you thought the old man meant." He informed her.
"Oh. I don't know. But if I were you, I wouldn't take it to be more than a bunch of really bad clichés." She answered.
"What do you think he was doing on that road?" He asked, his curiosity seemingly perpetual.
"Maybe he decided that by sitting on the road and singing silly songs would attract a huge crowd and eventually make him a millionaire." She answered jokingly, turning back to the road.
"What language do you think that song of his was?" He asked. Eriol wasn't satisfied with her previous response, but figured that she knew as much as he did.
"You don't know?" She seemed genuinely surprised. "You mean there's a language out there you DON'T know?"
He scowled at her darkly; he didn't like his intelligence insulted. He moved on to his next question. "Do you think he's an enemy spy?"
"If he's a spy then half the people of Vergel were spies as well. They wore weird looking clothes, too." She answered, though by his reckoning she didn't answer anything at all. He frowned at the back of her head; he could tell that she enjoyed mocking him.
"Weren't we the outsiders? And if we are the outsiders, then aren't we the ones with the weird clothes and suspicious background?" He questioned cunningly.
"I suppose so. But we are not the ones who sit aimlessly on road sides and sing outlandish songs. He had a reason to sit there and sing, so it wasn't our place to ask who exactly he was. Otherwise, why not ask everyone we meet on the way whether they were sent to capture and torture us." Tomoyo answered and he all but pouted at her. It seemed that the girl had a sharp mind and a sharp tongue. He grinned; it'd be fun to do this more often with her.
"Do you think --"
"By the amount of time you spend talking about that man, I could swear, you were infatuated with him." The girl cut him off. Trying to suppress a girlish giggle, she declared the topic over.
"Are we there yet?" Whined Nakuru from somewhere behind them. He had been doing so for about half an hour now.
"Oh shut up, you boy fawning, boil-brained harpy (1)!" Spinel snapped not for the first time that day.
"O-oh yeah! Well, you...you are just jealous that they aren't paying attention to you!" Nakuru retorted earnestly, he really didn't know half the terms Spinel called him.
It was beginning to grow dark. The heavy clouds still did not disperse and the haze was now acquiring a bright scarlet hue. The clouds also seemed to be growing in volume; they had to find shelter before it poured. Eriol could swear he heard the distinct rumbling of thunder hot on their trail and gulped. He didn't like the prospect of being soaked that night and he didn't even have dinner yet.
The Deities were on his side that day, or it was just plain, foolish luck. Not twenty feet ahead from them was an old, nearly dilapidated shed beneath a sweeping willow. After a little of investigation, they found that the shack was abandoned and housed mounds and mounds of straw. Eriol could almost feel giddy at their newfound luck if he wasn't so tired. 'Lord, do I need a bath,' he thought.
Letting their steeds roam the meadow surrounding the shed, they moved their entire luggage into the hut, to keep it from the rain. Eriol lighted a small fire underneath the willow, where he was certain the rain and wind wouldn't extinguish it. Just as the rain was beginning to pelt the worn out walls of the shed, the company was inside, savouring eggs and sausages.
After their meal, they curled into their cloaks, their blankets over them; the group was preparing to sleep. It wasn't luxury (as Nakuru pointed out) but it was either this or the rain, and no one preferred the latter. Eriol listened as the tiny droplets drummed on the grimy window and the wind that howled thought he cracks in the walls. He couldn't fall asleep, he was wary of some unseen nemesis. After he heard the relaxed breathing of his companions, he determined that nothing would go wrong. He was beginning to drift asleep, 'Finally,' he thought.
"Olives."
Startled, he sat up in his makeshift bed. "What?" He asked dubiously.
"I said 'olives'. I want some olives." Tomoyo, whom the interruption came from also sat up in her bed and looked at him.
He looked at her silhouette in the dark. "Why would you ever want olives, especially here and now?"
"I just never had them before." The girl replied a bit timidly.
"Tell ya what, once we get out of this place, I'll take you to the best restaurant in Tokyo, you can order as much olives as you want, and then pig out on them like there's no tomorrow." He said sleepily.
Giggling Tomoyo settled down. A minute later, Eriol was asking her whether she ever had any Yorkshire pie; she didn't. He promised to make some for her once they got back. He then asked if she ever tasted haggis; she hadn't, but declined the offer. Their conversation eventually moved on to other topics, and that went well into the night.
Outside in the rain, perched on a high branch of the willow tree, something was silently observing the shack. The creature stayed unmoving even after the two teens finally fell asleep; it's eyes occasionally blinking unsimultaneously. At one time it thought it was being watched, but that was not possible so the creature dismissed that possibility.
At the crack of dawn, the rain had ceased. 'Aa. It stopped raining. Finally,' the creature thought. It slithered up to the highest branch, letting the wing dry it's slightly wet scales. Giving a last glance at the shed and the unsuspecting foursome inside, the creature leaped and was carried by the strong gusts towards its master. 'Yes,' the creature thought, 'Master would be pleased.'
.....Thus ends the second part: Stranded. And this note heralds the beginning of a
new part: Trials....
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(1) A Shakespearian version of 'you boy crazy, pus brained, harpy' ^______^
Well, that makes my life easier... Oh, there's absolutely NOTHING goin' on with Nakuru and Eriol, it is merely creation-creator affection. Tell me if I should speed up the romance between ExT.