Chapter 6: FANG (part 1)

"In Spine, we would just crush the skulls of our enemies," Tong grumbled, leaning back on the stool he was sitting on and crossing his arms across his immense chest.

By nightfall Namaari would be back in her homeland and they still had yet to develop a feasible plan to acquire the last gem piece from her mother. As the sun began to set and the sky turned various shades of pinks and purples, the gang huddled around Raya's map of Kumandra at the Shrimporium's table once more, this time with Namaari joining the conversation.

Namaari was stood, her hands planted on the table as she glanced around at her new comrades. Boun had taken a break from pushing the boat, allowing the current and their momentum to do some of the work while he sat at the table across from her. Noi and the ongis were perched up on the table itself and, despite the fact that they were a crew of three animals and a baby, they seemed to be taking in everything she was saying, their eyes narrowed with focus. To their right sat the hulking frame of Tong, frustrated but still studying the map with his one uncovered eye. Chaiya and TukTuk were taking the rare opportunity while the ongis and Noi were distracted to eat uninterrupted and Sisu was in her dragon form lounging behind her, paws crossed. That just left Raya.

The Heart princess sat to Namaari's left, elbows resting on her knees and looking over to meet her eyes every so often. Raya hadn't said much since they returned from her homeland but Namaari assumed it was because the trip had dredged up a lot of painful memories. Regardless, Namaari missed the sound of her voice, her laughter, even her sharp quips. However, the others filled the void she left, apparently unaware of the subtle change in Raya.

"Okay, how about this…," Boun began and proceeded to go through an epic, though unlikely scenario, where he fought off the first wave of Fang soldiers. Namaari had to suppress a snort of laughter at this considering he was an eight-year-old chef and these Fang warriors were trained assassins from birth in the art of fighting to kill. Next, he imagined Tong coming in and taking down the others with his "giant axe of bad axery." Again, highly unlikely. Then, finally, Noi and the ongis would steal the gem from Chief Virana and pass it to Sisu who would "boom the Druun away" and as he said, "bye bye, binturis."

Namaari shared a glance with Raya, who offered her an eye roll in response before breaking her silence, "Yeaaaa, I don't think that will work, Captain Boun," Raya replied dryly, her tone turning firm as she continued. "Plus, we agreed. No one from Fang gets hurt. These people have families just like you. They are not responsible for the choices of a few."

A wave of affection washed over Namaari at Raya's defense of Fang. It meant a lot to her that the Heart princess would say that despite everything Fang had taken from her. All Namaari could manage was a grateful nod to the woman, feeling the edges of her lips curving upwards slightly as she smiled to herself before turning back to the map. She cleared her throat and directed their attention back to a more realistic analysis of the situation.

"Fang will be heavily guarded with soldiers everywhere. Even more so since my mother will be expecting us to come for her piece of the dragon gem next," Namaari cautioned them. "Not only that, but the gem is located on a staff that my mother carries around with her everywhere."

The others gave a collective groan at what sounded like an impossible task, and maybe it was, but Namaari was going to find a way to get her mother's gem piece one way or another. The fate of the world depended on it.

"So, here's my plan…," Undeterred, Sisu began to run through her idea of basically just offering her mother cats with knives (or was it knives with little cats on them?) as a gift for the last gem piece. Namaari realized after the mighty dragon was done speaking that she was pretty sure she had a grimace on her face the entire time she was speaking.

No, they needed a real plan. And Namaari had one but they weren't going to like it.

"I think the only way is if I go in alone," Namaari suggested, ignoring Sisu entirely, not willing to even humor the dragon's idea. "I'm the only one who can get in and take it without alerting the entire Royal Army. Sisu remains safe and my mother won't be able to steal the other gem pieces."

Namaari crossed her arms over her chest, straightening up as she glanced around at each of them to gauge their reactions. She saw no argument in Boun, Tong, or Noi as they mulled it over, some of them nodding slightly in agreement. Sisu's wide expressive eyes looked troubled and Raya's were narrowed in concentration until all of a sudden her brow cleared.

"Okay, but what if we just gave her the gem pieces?"

All eyes snapped to the Princess of Heart, Namaari's included. Had she just heard her correctly? Boun was the only one able to find his voice and blurt, "what?"

"What if we gave her our gem pieces?" Raya repeated, the idea forming as the words spilled out of her. She turned to Namaari, "What do you think your mother would do if we all just walked right up to her with a dragon and offered her our gem pieces?"

The idea was ludicrous. But for Raya's sake, Namaari played the scenario in her head. What would her mother do?

She wanted to believe her mother would help them. Namaari imagined her mother's reaction to laying eyes on Sisu, a real, live dragon. Would she be in awe? Possibly. Would she be afraid? Doubtful. Or at least she wouldn't show it. Would she feel hope? Her mother's primary objective was to protect her people. At any cost. Would she be able to see that they weren't a threat and that bringing Kumandra together was in Fang's best interest? Could she trust her mother to do the right thing?

After playing it out in her mind, Namaari could only answer honestly, "I… don't know."

"I bet that deep down your mother wants to save the world as much as we do. If we can just get through to her then maybe she'll help us." Namaari looked up to see Raya's eyes on her, warm and gentle. And hopeful.

Namaari wasn't sure it would work but she trusted Raya.

"Okay. We'll go with your plan," Namaari relented, eliciting a smile from Raya, which in turn caused the familiar flutter in her stomach. She gave the caveat, "But I still think I should go first and speak to her to make sure it's safe before you all follow."

The Heart princess' smile widened at her and Namaari could feel her heart begin to race, her own lips curling into a smile. To see Raya happy- and especially to be the cause of that happiness- was something Namaari had only dreamed of up until this point.

"I like this plan," Sisu interjected with finality. "Now, who's hungry?"

Rushing water. That was the sound that alerted Namaari that they had arrived in Fang before anything else.

A line of waterfalls stood across the river from her homeland causing a steady roar in the background of life in Fang. Growing up she loved to swim out and explore the caves hidden behind them, but now, the noise pounded in her ears, reminding her of the difficult task ahead.

The sun's light had long faded from the sky, leaving the only illumination shining down from the moon and the stars. Namaari instructed Boun to dock the boat a little ways away on the other side of the river behind an outcropping of trees where she was confident a passing guard doing a regular perimeter check wouldn't be able to spot them.

Once he had finished tying off the boat Boun got to work preparing a meal for all of them, clearly passionate about his craft, banging a beat on the pots and pans. Namaari couldn't help but think this could be their last meal if they failed but she did her best to push that thought out of her head.

As the meal was about to be served the boy from Tail and the warrior from Spine got into a heated debate about ingredients but Raya was able to solve it in quick order with a dash of palm sugar. Boun dipped the ladle into the pot and lifted it to his lips, slurping. His eyes went wide in surprise.

"Whoa! That's good!"

"It's just a little something my Ba taught me," Raya replied fondly.

"Did he also show you how to make that delicious jerky?" Sisu asked, trying to keep the sarcasm out of her voice and failing.

"No, that was all me," Raya laughed, settling down onto one of the stools next to Namaari before turning nostalgic again, "it'll be nice to share a meal with him again."

Of its own accord, Namaari's hand reached out to cover Raya's on the table, giving her fingers a gentle squeeze. The other woman looked up at her and gave her a grateful smile. She released her and they began filling their plates with the delicious smelling food.

"I know what you mean," Boun piped up, a similar bittersweet air about him. "I have this really obnoxious sister who always tousles my hair. I can't wait to see her most."

"After we win the day, I look forward to filling my eyeball with the joytastic image of my village full again," Tong's gruff voice turned soft, "and holding my wife and son again."

"Mama!" Noi babbled while the ongis chittered next to her excitedly.

While they ate the conversation was relaxed and everyone seemed to open up, talking about their families and what they were most excited about when everyone was brought back. Namaari felt she had no right to participate. After all, she hadn't lost anyone to the Druun. There wasn't anyone who would be coming back to her. So she ate in silence, content to listen to their stories and sharing in their laughter.

As they sat around the table, sharing this meal together, Namaari could feel the group giving themselves over to hope.

Once they had all eaten their fill of Boun's feast, each of them went off to their own corner of the boat to try and get some sleep before tomorrow. It was getting rather crowded on the small vessel but they still managed to find ways to get comfortable. Namaari had offered to take the first watch, knowing sleep would likely evade her again but Boun insisted he take it since he was going to be up a little bit cleaning up anyway, so she didn't argue.

Just as she was about to take up a position near the front of the boat, she heard light footsteps approaching. Glancing up, she saw Raya coming towards her, bandages in her hand and a small smile on her lips when their eyes met.

"Can I take one more look?" she asked, gesturing to Namaari's injured arm. She had almost forgotten about it truthfully. The pain had become a dull ache in the background but she would never pass up an opportunity to be close to the Heart princess so she nodded her acquiescence.

"Thank you," Namaari said softly. As Raya got to work, the Fang warrior watched her movements with rapt attention. The wound seemed to be healing well, no sign of infection from what Namaari could see.

Upon finishing the final knot, Raya's fingers rested over the bandage in a feather light touch. After doing this several times now, Raya had become quite efficient, and yet Namaari could be mistaken, but it felt as though Raya's touches were lingering a bit longer each time.

Chills ran up Namaari's spine as Raya's fingers slid slowly down her arm, over the band there, and seeming to trace the curve of her bicep. Down they continued, grazing the inside of her elbow and along her forearm to her hand. Intertwining their fingers, Raya's eyes remained focused on the trail her fingers had made and held her gaze on their joined hands, her thumb caressing the sensitive skin on the back of Namaari's hand.

A light tug signaled Namaari to follow Raya, not that she needed much convincing. She'd follow Raya to the ends of the world. Raya pulled her to the back of the boat where TukTuk had flopped down and was already snoring lightly. The other woman lowered herself onto the wooden floor, pulling Namaari gently down with her. She gave no resistance, settling herself next to the Raya.

Snaking her arm around Namaari's and hugging it to her chest, Raya tilted her head to rest on Namaari's left, uninjured shoulder, wisps of dark hair tickling the Fang warrior's bare skin. At first Namaari tensed up, surprised and unsure but her body quickly relaxed into the touch.

Her chest constricted at the idea that Raya felt safe enough to sleep on her shoulder like this. Namaari swore to herself right then and there that she would never do anything to betray this woman's trust or even make her question that her faith in Namaari was misplaced.

Across from her, Namaari could see Sisu, bright turquoise fur easy to spot in the semidarkness. The dragon had a big grin on her face, pointed teeth gleaming, and then she gave her an exaggerated wink before closing her own eyes.

At some point Namaari must have fallen asleep because one by one her senses began to return. She could feel a warm, comforting pressure against her entire left side. The scent of sandalwood drifting up to her nose. Straining her ears, Namaari could hear light, steady breathing close by. Eventually she was able to convince her eyelids to open and immediately her tired eyes were greeted with the beautiful sight of Raya cuddled into her side.

As much as it pained Namaari to leave her, she needed to get a head start on crossing the river into Fang. It would be too difficult to leave Raya when those piercing dark eyes were staring at her. So, Namaari pressed a gentle kiss on the top of the Heart princess's head. Then, carefully she adjusted the other woman so that way she was leaning more fully on TukTuk and Namaari could stand up. She paused a moment, just gazing down at the beautiful woman, her face relaxed in deep sleep.

Namaari would do anything to protect Raya. And as much as Namaari loved her mother, she couldn't guarantee how she would respond to all of them coming into Fang or seeing Raya again after betraying her. Likely she would just have her taken prisoner and try to take her gem pieces but if she fought back, which if she knew anything about Raya she knew she would, who knew what would happen. The plan was that if her mother did indeed agree to help them then Namaari would set off one of the fireworks Fang was known for signaling it was safe for them to come.

So, she left her there, going against everything in her body pulling her back to the woman she loved.

She gave TukTuk a small pat on the head and Chaiya jumped down, seeming to sense Namaari readying to leave. Namaari considered asking her to stay on the boat but she doubted she'd listen, fiercely loyal as she was, so she allowed the cat to join her.

But just as she had one leg over the edge of the boat and onto the shore, a voice made her freeze.

"I misjudged you, Warrior Princess."

Namaari's head snapped towards the sound and her eyes landed on the huge shadow of Tong sitting at table, sharpening his axe, the day's first light illuminating his blade which in turn reflected up onto his grizzled face. He must have taken up watch some time in the night.

She weighed her options. Her eyes scanned the rest of the boat and by the looks of it no one else had awoken. She could just ignore him and keep going. She opted to reply though, keeping her volume low.

"How so?"

He paused his movements to look over at her while he spoke. "I mistook you as a spineless Fang cretin with no honor. But...to protect the ones you love at all costs is the way of a truly honorable warrior," he said gruffly, but the look in his uncovered eye was soft.

Namaari didn't know what to say but she was glad it was dark out so he couldn't see the blush coloring her cheeks. She couldn't even be offended by his comment about Fang because she was wondering how her feelings for Raya were so obvious. Before she could formulate a response, he spoke again.

"I'd follow you into battle any day, Princess of Fang," he stopped what he was doing and formed his hands in the traditional circle, bowing his head slightly before returning to his task without another word.

Humbled by this mighty warrior's words, Namaari merely managed a nod in response before stepping onto the shore.

After trekking the relatively short distance to an overlook, Namaari paused, looking out over her homeland across the river. Even from this distance she could just make out the first movements below as her people began their day. From fishermen readying their nets to palace guards changing shifts, they went about their lives, safe from the Druun but isolated from the rest of the world.

This is how Raya found her. She hadn't realized she had been standing there that long but the Heart princess must have noticed her absence and caught up to her.

"Thought you could just sneak away unnoticed, Princess Undercut?"

Namaari could hear that she was trying to sound nonchalant but there was a slight edge to her voice that gave away her emotions. Throwing a glance over her shoulder, Namaari gave her a small smile but withheld a response, not trusting her voice quite yet. She assumed Tong must have told her where she had gone.

Raya's skin seemed to glow against the light reflecting from the morning mist. Her dark hair was still slightly mussed from sleep and her crimson cape looked as though it had been thrown on haphazardly.

"Hey," Raya's voice was soft, all humor gone. Namaari had watched her approach and yet she was still surprised when Raya was so close. The Heart princess reached out a hand to Namaari's shoulder, gently guiding her to face her and causing a jolt of electricity to run through her at the simple touch.

"You don't have to carry the weight of the world on your shoulders," Raya told her, sensing correctly the increasing pressure she had put on herself. When no response was forthcoming Raya continued to speak.

"Namaari," Raya then lifted that same hand to Namaari's cheek, the pad of her thumb grazing the arch of her cheekbone. Her palm was warm on Namaari's skin and unconsciously her eyes slid closed at the intimate contact. "That day. Six years ago. It changed my life in a lot of ways. Not all of them bad. I had never met anyone like you and I think that's why it hurt so much. I thought about you every single day since then. And I'll admit that I blamed you for a long time for what happened to me and my Ba."

Namaari kept her eyes closed, her chest tightening as she listened to Raya's words.

"But I was wrong," Namaari's eyes slid open at her firm tone of voice and she forced herself to not look away from Raya's intense stare. "These last few days… There's no doubt in my mind that you are not responsible. You are not responsible for your mother's choices and you are certainly not responsible for fixing the world."

Namaari was having a hard time getting her mind to work much less able to formulate a coherent response. But Raya wasn't done yet.

"You've shown me that I don't have to be alone anymore. And neither do you."

If Namaari hadn't been a coward she would have kissed Raya right then and there. They were about to embark on probably the riskiest part of this whole journey and if they failed, she may never know what Raya's lips felt like against hers.

But she wouldn't allow herself to think like that.

Instead, Namaari swore that when they succeeded Raya would never have to question the depth of Namaari's feelings for her. If the princess would allow it, Namaari would spend the rest of her days doing everything in her power to make Raya feel safe and loved.

So, she simply said quietly, "Thank you, Raya." Meanwhile, her heart was screaming, I love you, Raya.

With that, she reached her own hand up to cover the other woman's, bringing it to her lips and pressing a soft kiss to her palm. Giving Raya's hand one last squeeze, Namaari turned her back on the Heart princess and walked away.