Chapter 07 – Blessed Traits and Goodbyes

Capital Town, Melromarc, Raphtalia's World

6 Zinat, Springtime

After the charming walk in the park, Eiku and Naofumi had found an inn nearby to eat dinner. While they ate in a quiet corner, Naofumi expressed to Eiku his desire to take their relationship slowly. "I don't want anything… physical... to happen between us for at least two years," he said, expression and voice serious.

Eiku nodded agreeably. "That's fine. Physical actions – anything more than handholding and courtly hand-kissing – between courting partners is highly improper anyway. A courtship that lasts longer than a year is unusual but not unheard of. If you want our courtship to last at least two years, that is all right with me."

"Courtship?" Naofumi asked curiously.

"Yes. That is if you want us to start a courtship now. We can wait on that too." Eiku briefly looked down at his plate and then back up, his face unusually serious. "I will not engage in a physical relationship with anyone without a proper courtship and bonding ceremony first." Now that he had a soulmate, his childhood dreams of having the same loving relationship his parents had had could finally be a reality. He smiled a little wryly. "I guess I am capable of being a little selfish after all."

Naofumi shook his head. "That is not selfish. It's good we are having this conversation and setting boundaries." Naofumi looked at Eiku with bright green eyes. "To have you in my life as my partner and husband, I am more than willing to engage in a two-year-long platonic courtship with you. Complete with hand-holding and chaperoned walks in the park at night.

"I just was a little surprised," Naofumi admitted. "I was not thinking of starting anything with you for at least two years. However, I like the sound of a slow courtship if such a thing is possible." Naofumi smiled slightly and Eiku was again reminded of how attractive the Shield Hero was. "How are courtships initiated here?" Naofumi asked.

"Interested parties start by getting to know each other. They go on walks and may attend attractions or functions together. Time can also be spent getting to know each other's families. Both individuals are either attended at all times by a chaperone or permitted to go without in areas where there are plenty of other people in attendance. Official courtship starts with one party expressing to the intended's family the desire to start a suit and then gifting the intended with a gift to mark the start of the courtship."

Eiku paused to take a drink of water and then continued. "The courtship then progresses in much the same manner after that. Frequent small gifts from both parties are presented to each other. Chaperoned meetings and family engagements continue. Engagement is marked by another larger, more extravagant gift to the intended and again during the bonding ceremony. The culmination of the courtship, from start to finish, typically takes a year."

"What about gifts for the intended's family?" Naofumi asked.

"Those are permitted, although they are more common amongst the nobility who have more money to spend on such things," Eiku answered. Naofumi nodded and Eiku could see he was thinking of something but did not know what of.

"What kinds of gifts are common?"

"Oh, any number of things!" Eiku exclaimed. "Favors, such as handkerchiefs and ribbons, for the other party to wear. Handmade tokens such as hats, beads, candles, paper, pillows, socks, etcetera. Simple things such as flowers," Eiku said as he reached up to touch the purple one still tucked behind his ear. "More extravagant gifts are items such as brooches, belt buckles, daggers, rings, and sweets."

"That's quite the forgiving list," Naofumi commented as he scrapped the last bite of food off his plate.

Eiku nodded excitedly. "It has to be. The gifts are not as important as spending time with each other though." He glanced aside and his eye caught on the view outside the nearest window. The light outside had turned to nautical twilight and the shadows in the inn had lengthened without him noticing. He sighed and looked back to Naofumi. "It has gotten late. I need to get back to the barracks so I can get ready for tomorrow."

Naofumi gestured to Eiku's plate. "Finish your meal and I will walk you back."

Eiku blushed at the gentlemanly offer and picked up his fork to continue eating. When he had finished, the two of them left the inn and walked back towards the barracks Eiku was assigned to. They did not hold hands, although Eiku itched to do just that. Naofumi had expressed a desire to go slow and Eiku was going to honour those wishes.

The walk was quiet and peaceful. The insects had come out for the night and their soft music filled the air around the two of them. Others were walking the streets through the city, but most people were already inside for the night. They had been walking for ten minutes in silence, enjoying each other's company when Naofumi spoke up.

"The weaponsmith mentioned something called a 'Maturity Day'. What is that?"

"That is the day someone turns sixteen and becomes a legal adult," Eiku explained. "They can then drink (though many do so before then), marry, and own their own property." He bounced a little in excitement. "Mine is a little more than a month away, on the twelfth of Vaisis."

"Would you," Naofumi asked hesitantly, "like to spend it with me if I am in town?"

Eiku looked at him and smiled gently. "Of course I would."

The rest of the walk was spent in silence and when they reached the door to the barracks Eiku stayed in, they turned and faced each other.

"Thank you for walking me back," Eiku said as he looked up into Naofumi's face. His black hair looked even darker in the astronomical twilight and his eyes glowed faintly.

Naofumi shifted awkwardly and looked unsure for a breath before he reached out and took Eiku's hand. He lifted it and bowed over it slightly as he pressed a soft, dry kiss to the back. Eiku's eyes widened and he felt his cheeks flare with heat at the unexpected gesture. Naofumi carefully released Eiku's hand and with a soft, "Sleep well," turned with a swirl of his long green cloak and walked away into the deepening night.

Eiku took a few breaths and pressed his hands to his warm cheeks for several seconds as he smiled uncontrollably. When he felt he had calmed down enough, he turned and opened the door to the barracks and walked in.

Obito looked up from where he was reading by the fire, dressed casually for the night in his long, white nightshirt. He took one look at Eiku and asked with a smirk, "So, how did it go?"

Eiku smiled widely, unable to contain the force of it. "Like a dream," he replied.

BREAK

When Eiku had finally escaped Obito and Ryuu's questions, Eiku had gone up to his bunk and changed for the night. As he lay in bed, he mentally reviewed everything that had happened that day.

He had spent the day with his soulmate! Inside his chest, the soulbond hummed with joyful warmth, protectiveness, wonder and tinges of affection. Eiku smiled at the feelings he could feel in the bond. He knew that those were the feelings Naofumi felt for him and was not at all surprised that the feeling of protectiveness was the strongest. 'Naofumi returns the soulmate bond after all,' he thought gleefully as he looked up at the shadowed ceiling. 'It was never one-sided. My friends had been right once again.' Even after four days, he still felt awed that his soulmate was the Shield Hero. He mentally poked that feeling of protectiveness and it curled around him like a warm blanket. To finally feel something other than joy and warmth was such a relief for it was undeniable proof that the connection had been completed successfully.

'I wonder what feelings he gets from me through our bond?' Eiku watched the shadows twist about in the corners of the ceiling and listened to the faint sounds of conversation drifting up from the floor below. The soft, lulling conversation was soothing and he shut his eyes and turned onto his side.

It still felt almost unbelievable that the Shield Hero was also the Hero of Fortitude. That part of the Church of the Shield's doctrine had always seemed the most fanciful to him. Yet after seeing Naofumi's abilities for himself that afternoon, he could not deny that it was true. 'Since Naofumi is the Hero of Fortitude, the Church of the Three Heroes' doctrine must also be correct. I wonder which attribute goes with each of the other three heroes.' He did not know any of them well enough to get a read on their characters or personality. All he knew from the few times he had been sent out to work with them, was that they weren't similar to Naofumi at all.

He mentally ran through the other three characteristics the Church of the Three Heroes claimed the Three Holy Heroes possessed, and what he could remember learning about them. As he did, he tried to connect them to each of the Three Weapon Heroes.

Temperance dealt with a variety of characteristics, one of which was forgiveness. As he did not know enough about the heroes' love lives, (a thought that made him blush in embarrassment to even think about), he could not determine if any of them met the qualities of chastity or abstinence. He did know they did not meet the one for forgiveness, however. Otherwise, they would not have continued to shun the Shield Hero – even if Naofumi was guilty. Likewise, Naofumi did not seem willing to forgive them for shunning him or nearly killing him either.

Justice dealt with one's relationship with others. This one was even more unlikely to connect to one of the Three Heroes. None of them were physically capable of working with each other while levelling, it was said, because they would not be able to grow stronger if they were near each other. However, they should still be willing to work together by sharing information with each other. Something that undoubtedly was not happening based on the severe lack of knowledge Naofumi had had before Eiku had explained some things to him that morning. 'Likely there is still a lot more that he does not know,' Eiku thought as he rolled back over onto his back. 'I wonder if Naofumi would be willing to work with them even after the way they have treated him. Is it possible for him to unlock a second Blessed trait? Can more than one hero have the same trait?'

Then there was prudence. This one was the hardest to connect to one of the Three Weapon Heroes. Not because he did not think they had the capability of possessing the trait, but because he did not know their characters well enough. Prudence dealt with self-restraint and reason. However, from all the rumours he had heard, as well as the actions of the Three Weapon Heroes towards the Shield Hero, he did not believe they possessed the quality of reason at all. If they had, they would have argued to provide the Shield Hero with a proper trial to determine his innocence or guilt. They would have used all the information available to them to figure out what was going on. Just as Eiku, his friends, Commander Sazama and Erhard had done.

If the Blessed abilities were able to be shared amongst all the heroes, then prudence was the one that would be most likely to apply to all four of the heroes. 'Everyone possesses the ability to self-govern and reason,' Eiku thought as rolled back over onto his side once more. 'Even me. Although I do not use it unlock new abilities to defeat the Waves of Calamity.' He frowned in thought. 'Could both churches be wrong about the characteristics only applying to one hero at a time? After all, even the Weapon Heroes need courage and fortitude to stand up in battle against foes. They too have to face danger and endure pain. Naofumi has indeed shown more moral courage than the other three heroes just by being willing to help those that have scorned him. Such as Captain Ishida. However, the Three Weapon Heroes would not have been chosen as heroes if they were cowards.'

That is when a quelling thought gripped him and his eyes opened wide to stare through the dark at the empty bunk beside his.

'Did the three Holy Weapons choose wrong?

'Do not be ridiculous,' he told himself. 'Keep an open mind. Maybe they just need more time to realize their potential.' He had a hard time believing that as he finally drifted off to sleep.

BREAK

7 Zinat, Springtime

The next morning found Eiku back in armour and on the training ground with the other juvenile knights in his unit. Commander Sazama had them running laps and doing exercises earlier in the morning. Now, Eiku was in the sparing area with the others, working on his swordsmanship. Unlike the other knights in his unit, however, Eiku was not sparing against one of them. Instead, his sparring partner was an elderly man with a long white beard and matching long white hair that was pulled back in a long tail. Despite his distinctly advanced age, his steps were sure and light upon the ground. When he moved, his white robes flowed around his form and his long, sheathed sabre barely moved as he blocked Eiku's strikes.

Sparing against this new weapons master highlighted to Eiku just how inadequate he himself was with a blade. He had worked up a sizable sweat despite the early hour and was quickly exhausting himself and his opponent was not even winded. Eiku had not even gotten close to landing a blow either. Unlike his new instructor. Eiku suspected he was going to be covered in bruises tomorrow from Master Hikaru's sheathed blade.

Eiku stood for a moment and panted for breath. His arms and chest burned from exertion and he was ready to fall into bed after a nice long soak in the tub. As he studied his opponent for signs of weakness, he recalled the conversation he had had with Commander Sazama.

"You are getting additional training from now on, Knight Takara," Commander Sazama had told him that morning when he had arrived for training. He kept his voice low as they stood away from the other knights and his expression was serious and uncompromising. "The Shield Hero is your soulmate. You will likely be called upon to either fight with him or defend him one day. You need to be a better fighter and magic-user to shoulder such a responsibility as the one Fate has granted you."

Eiku had looked at him in concern and had replied in a whisper. "The other knights will notice I am getting special attention. Some of them may not take it well."

"They won't," Commander Sazama had agreed. "You may find yourself outcasted from your peers and accused of being favoured. Your courage will surely be tested in the face of adversity. I believe that you getting additional training is necessary, however, or I would not put you through all of that." His steel-coloured eyes had looked intently into Eiku's own. "You were chosen as the Shield Hero's soulmate for a reason, Young Takara. If Sir Iwatani can face daily opposition from the ones that should be supporting him, then I believe you can too."

'Well then, no pressure,' Eiku thought as he moved in for another strike at Master Hikaru. Master Hikaru barely moved as he easily blocked Eiku's strike and Eiku leaped back to gather himself and try again.

He was thankful that Commander Sazama was being so supportive and thinking ahead and planning for possible eventualities. Being able to support Naofumi in any number of ways was important to Eiku. He did worry, however, about the shunning that was sure to come from the other knights. He knew that his four friends would remain loyal and stand by him through it all, but Commander Sazama was correct. Eiku was going to have to find the courage to stand strong in the face of the possible upcoming adversity.

It wasn't just additional blade training either. He was also getting supplementary archery and magic training. Eiku would not be surprised if everyone in his unit knew of Eiku's surplus workload before the week was done.

Eiku darted in, keeping low to the ground as he moved in behind his opponent and came up for a strike. His strike was, unsurprisingly, once again easily deflected and he was too slow to dodge his opponent's return strike to the shoulder. Eiku fell to the ground and rolled a few times before he stopped and was able to push himself up with a wince. The long blade may be sheathed but the strikes still hurt!

Eiku took a deep breath and tensed his muscles for another dash towards Master Hikaru. Before he moved, however, Hikaru raised one wrinkled and age-spotted hand. His voice when he spoke was still strong when he said, "That's enough for now, Takara. Come closer so we can talk."

Eiku sheathed his blade and approached the aged weapons instructor. He stopped three feet away and Master Hikaru's black eyes studied him for several long seconds. Eiku did his best not to fidget or look away.

Finally, Hikaru spoke. "You have potential, Young Takara. I will inform your commander that I will train you."

Hikaru turned to walk off and Eiku frowned. "Is that it?" he asked.

Hikaru looked back at him and raised one eyebrow. "Yes."

Eiku clenched one hand around his sword handle. "I just expected to receive some feedback on my technique. Or lack thereof."

Master Hikaru's lips quirked minutely upwards. "You need a lot of training. I will go over the ways we will work on your improvement tomorrow when we meet again."

Eiku sighed and wiped at his sweaty forehead. "Yes, Master."

Hikaru nodded and walked off to meet Commander Sazama who was already heading towards them. Together the two of them walked back to Eiku. Master Hikaru stopped further back but Sazama continued until he was standing close to Eiku. He leaned in slightly and pitched his voice low. "Sir Iwatani has asked to see you. He is waiting around the corner of Building Four, out of sight. Likely to draw less attention to you." Eiku looked behind him and spotted the building in question. "Return when your business is completed."

Eiku nodded. "Yes, sir," he said and turned smartly around. He headed for the building and around its side to find both Noafumi and Raphtalia waiting for him. Eiku quickly looked them over and noted their travelling gear on the ground beside their booted feet. He stopped before them and gave them both a smile in greeting but his attention was mainly on the Shield Hero. Naofumi looked well and well-rested. His black hair was slightly damp from his morning wash and it fell in glistening dark waves to rest upon the white fur collar of his cloak. In one arm he was holding three tomes securely against his side.

"You both are looking well this morning," he said. Truthfully, Naofumi was looking more than well. He looked stunning.

Naofumi's expression turned a little worried as he looked Eiku over in turn. "Much better than you, it seems. Are you all right?"

Eiku tilted his head slightly in question. "Yes. Why?"

"You are flushed and are covered in dirt. Did you fall?" Naofumi asked.

Eiku felt his chest warm in response to the show of concern. "I'm fine. I am getting supplemental weapons training. My new weapons master is untouchable. It seems I have a lot to learn."

Naofumi nodded, accepting the explanation. "I wanted to come by and tell you that we are heading out."

Eiku felt his heart clench but he forced it to relax. He had known Naofumi would be gone a lot as he trained to save the world. Eiku was disappointed that they would not be able to spend much time together but he had to accept that they both had two very separate roles to play in the events ahead.

"Where are you headed?" Eiku asked.

"Southwest towards Riyute Village to start. I have business there. From there, wherever the road leads while trying to make our way southeast towards Shieldfreeden before the next Wave. I also wanted to show you these." Naofumi held out the tomes for Eiku to take. "I cannot read them. If you are still willing…"

Eiku took them and read the titles aloud. "A Journeyman's Guide to Potion Crafting, Definitive Compendium of Healing and Protection, and Transformations between the Light and Dark." He opened them one at a time to take a quick look inside. All three tomes were beautifully bound and their pages filled with intricate illustrations. "These are lovely!" he said with admiration. He looked back up at Naofumi and Raphtalia. "Unfortunately, I do not have time right now and it seems neither do you. My offer still stands whenever you are in town and there is time to learn," he assured Naofumi. "It seems that you both," he paused to look questioningly at Raphtalia who nodded to confirm that yes, she too would be learning how to read, "will have to do a lot of self-study while you are travelling." He handed the tomes back. "While you are in Riyute Village, seek out my mother, Takara Hina. She will help you get started and may even lend you the books I used when she started teaching me to read as a child. Just let her know who you are."

Naofumi bent down and carefully tucked the tomes away into his pack. He then shouldered it and Raphtalia did the same with hers. With his pack secured, Naofumi took a step closer and reached out one hand towards Eiku but then seemed to remember their audience and dropped his hand to grip his pack strap instead. "Stay safe while I am gone," he softly requested, his expression imploring.

Eiku affectionately looked up into Naofumi's eyes. "I will be safe. Commander Sazama is going to be keeping me busy all month. I will have no time to go out and find trouble."

Naofumi nodded, the movement slightly jerky. "Good. If you need anything…" He sighed and reached up to run one hand agitatedly through his hair. "Nevermind. It's not like you can call me to tell me you need help."

'Call?' Eiku wondered briefly but dismissed it to focus on the conversation. "No," he agreed. "However, if I know where you will be, I can send a messenger bird to you. If you have registered this city, as well as the location you were at, then you can jump here and back within the same candle mark."

"Candle mark…" Naofumi muttered in brief puzzlement before his expression cleared. "Right, an hour. All right then, whenever possible, I shall send you updates on my whereabouts so you may contact me effectively should you need assistance." Naofumi's green eyes were serious as he looked down at Eiku's face. "Anything at all, Eiku. No matter how trivial. Got it?"

The affection Eiku felt for Naofumi swelled strongly and he felt it melt into his soulbond and pulse with warmth. Naofumi's eyes widened, no doubt feeling the emotion clearly through his own bond, and his eyes softened slightly in response. "I promise," Eiku swore, his voice soft and affectionate. "You keep yourself and Raphtalia safe. Practice prudence and reason before charging into a dragon's den or something. I've heard what you adventurer hero types are like."

Naofumi's lips twitched in response to Eiku trying to lighten the mood. "I promise," he swore. "I'll see you in thirty-five days."

Eiku watched as Naofumi turned away. Raphtalia paused for a couple of seconds longer to look at Eiku, her crimson-coloured eyes and expression both unreadable, before she too turned away. Eiku watched them both until Raphtalia's bushy brown tail and Naofumi's green cloak disappeared around a corner.

It was not until Eiku was turning around to return to training that he realized the significance of Naofumi's parting words and his eyes widened. He pressed a hand to his chest and felt joy expand to fill his entire being with anticipation.

In thirty-five days it would be the twelfth of Vaisis and his Maturity Day.

~*~End of Chapter 07~*~