"Leon..." Vuylay said one morning as Leon exited the house to wash his face in the water basin. Sharmin, who had been sitting at the picnic table having breakfast with Komugi and the two elves, turned beet red and stiffened in her seat as she looked at Leon, who was shirtless. Leon paused for a moment, his washcloth pressed to his cheek, to glance over his shoulder at Vuylay. She pressed herself against his arm lightly and traced a muscle in his shoulder with a long fingernail. "Take me out hunting today, won't you? We've been on this island nearly a week and I haven't gotten to see the northern side yet." She glanced at Sharmin sidelong, a pleased smile forming on her face as she saw how Sharmin was fuming. Next to her, Komugi hid her face with a hand, recognizing the flames of rivalry, and Narlafayn ate, accustomed to ignoring any mischief Vuylay attempted to cause.
"Well I suppose…." Leon began, sighing.
"Mmm...Thank you." Vuylay said in a sultry voice and leaned up to kiss him under his ear. Unable to take any more, Sharmin stood and slammed her hands down on the table, causing everyone's dishes to rattle. Both Vuylay and Leon turned to look at her, one face annoyed and the other surprised.
"Leon, would you kindly take me hunting as well?" Sharmin demanded more than asked. Her cheeks turned pink as he stared at her in surprise.
"Sure, why not?" Leon said good-naturedly, a smile forming. "The more the merrier. Let me go get dressed and I'll meet you guys back down here in a few minutes." With that he turned back towards the house and disappeared inside of it. Vuylay made a few tiny protesting noises before growling to herself and shooting an icy glare at Sharmin.
"Good going 'Min!" Komugi complimented as Sharmin sat back down. Narlafayn paused, her mouth open with her fork poised in front of it, as she glanced at Sharmin and Komugi.
"Did I miss something?" she asked, eyebrows raised. Komugi stared at her, her eyelids lowered in a familiar annoyed expression.
"Leon's rubbing off on you, isn't he?" Komugi asked, deadpan. She squeaked and jumped a moment later as Narlafayn's fork came down and lodged itself in the wood of the table, scarcely centimeters from her hand.
"I'm sorry; I thought I heard you say something unpleasant." Narlafayn said through clenched teeth, her hand still on the handle of the fork. "Would you care to repeat that?" she asked, squinting her eyes shut in a glare. Komugi shook her head rapidly, her eyes bulging out in fear. Her expression suddenly changing to pleasant, Narlafayn smiled sweetly and stood to take her dishes into the house. She left the fork where it was, and Komugi stared at it, her eyes still large.
A few hours later, Leon led the two girls through the northern part of the island to exterminate spiders. He reminisced along the way about his days at the Training Hall when Cedric took them out to kill spiders. The Blade Spiders where the strongest breed on the island, and Cedric had said that if one could destroy a set amount of this kind of arachnid, then he would deem them strong enough to take on the mainland. He then went on to explain the best way to first immobilize their venomous fangs, and then take them out methodically, a lecture that Vuylay sighed and grumbled through, but Sharmin absorbed with a renewed eagerness to learn.
Before they left to hunt, Leon had taken them to the Village and pulled a worn but still effective set of bronze armor from storage in the warehouse, and given it to Sharmin to replace her crumbling wooden set. She accepted the gift with a blush and had eagerly changed into the new armor. Now out on the field she found the new set extremely confining around the chest, and a bit too bare around her hips. The blacksmith had modified the armor for a woman, at Leon's request. The design left Sharmin in something akin to a bikini for the trousers, and she felt rather naked compared to the short skirt her wooden armor had.
"Dark Elves are rather comfortable in designs such as that." Vuylay smirked, amused at her discomfort.
"That's not saying much, I thought your race was comfortable being naked even." Leon said from behind her. Vuylay jumped and turned, unaware of his presence and he grinned at them, shutting his visible eye. "Is that too uncomfortable for you, Sharmin? I can get you a new set of wooden armor if that's what you feel better wearing." He offered. They had paused in their trek through the northern woods for a breather under a large tree near the path. Sharmin shook her head rapidly, her eyes large.
"I'll be fine." She said quickly, "I'll get used to it. I've heard armor for women is um…all kind of similar to this…." She said, fidgeting.
"Well, I have to say that's true." Leon chuckled as he stood. "Shall we continue?"
A bit later, Sharmin ventured out into an open field overlooking the ocean to wait for a Blade Spider to venture out of the woods. She glared as Vuylay pressed herself close to Leon and spoke too softly for Sharmin to hear. Leon shrugged to whatever it was Vuylay said and shifted, as if uninterested in her. A spider suddenly came screeching out of the woods and made a beeline towards Sharmin, who blinked in confusion for a moment before remembering what she had come out to the field to do. The spider screeched at her and stabbed with two of its front legs, the claws bouncing off of the metal of the armor. It managed to open up cuts and scratches with each stab it took, and Sharmin winced in pain, determined to bear it. She recalled Leon's instructions-take out the mandibles first, and then focus on killing it quickly.
Glancing at Vuylay and Leon from the corner of her eye, she saw Vuylay press herself close to Leon in an attempt to kiss him. Her eyes widened as she turned her head to look at them fully, and her sword missed the spider's mandible and sliced into its mouth. It screeched as she sliced its poison sac, amber colored poison spraying from the arachnid's mouth and snapping her back to attention. She shielded herself from the spray, but before she could release her sword, the spider drove a mandible between the plates in her gloves, piercing her skin through the thick leather of the under glove and pumping poison into her bloodstream. Sharmin groaned in pain and pulled her sword free of the things mouth. She thought she heard Leon shout something, but her head had begun to pound from the poison and she couldn't really tell. Her vision swirling, she managed to stab the monster in the wound she'd already made and forced her sword down, opening up a large slice on its underside. It gurgled, the green slimy blood spurting out from it as it fell, immobilized and dying. Sharmin fell to her knees, the poison coursing through her body. She felt like lying down until her head would stop pounding. Her entire body began to hurt and she groaned again.
Sharmin heard Vuylay chant something in her Elven language, and a comfortable feeling swept over her. The pain from her head and body vanished in an instant and she blinked several times to clear the remnants from her vision as she sat up straighter. Vuylay chanted again, and a warm glow surrounded her, healing her wounds and revitalizing the strength the poison had taken away.
"Are you ok?" Leon asked, kneeling beside her. "Do you still feel ill? Are you hurting anywhere?" His concern caused Sharmin to blush for what felt like the millionth time since he'd arrived and she looked down at her hands.
"I'm ok now..." she mumbled, trying to mute the giddiness in her voice.
"That's what you get for not paying attention." Vuylay stated in annoyance. "You're lucky I could heal this poison, next time we might not be so lucky." Sharmin glared at her and thought; well you shouldn't have been so distracting in the first place. What's the big idea being so touchy-feely with Leon? Have you no self-control? She resisted the urge to put her thoughts into words, deciding it would be less embarrassing if she remained silent.
"In any case, I think that's a sign to call it a day." Leon decided, helping Sharmin to her feet. "I think we've done enough hunting, let's go back to town." He smiled at her and patted her head like a kids before walking in the direction of the village. "You did well today Sharmin. I think you're just about ready to head to the mainland yourself. You've come a long way from when I last saw you." He complimented. Sharmin's blush deepened, and she didn't bother to hide the smile that formed with his words.
"You realize he was complimenting you as a brother would to a little sister, don't you? Really he's quite-" Vuylay stated in an almost pitying tone. Sharmin turned her head slightly to glare in her direction.
"Don't ruin it for me." She commanded, interrupting the rest of Vuylay's sentence.
Sharmin lingered in town long enough to pick up a few groceries after they returned. Vuylay had gone straight to the house, claiming she wanted to take a bath before the children got home from school and took over the heated washbasin located in the basement. It was a device that one of the Sorcerers of the village had come up with, a heated indoor washbasin, and he was currently trying to market it across the continent. It was quite an ingenious design based off the hot springs in Elmore, and Vuylay's new favorite way of bathing.
As the trader wrapped up her purchases, Sharmin's eyes wandered over to the wall where wanted posters were pinned detailing to any traveling adventurer the fiends that were wanted for crimes on the Island and the reward that would be given if they brought the criminal's head in. She tilted her head in confusion and wandered over to the wall.
"Huh. It's not here anymore." She said to herself in thought.
"What's not there anymore?" Leon asked peering over her shoulder. Sharmin tensed up and a shiver that started at her feet traveled up through her at the close proximity Leon was in. She scooted, quite comically, a few feet away from him before whipping around and laughing nervously.
"The wanted poster of that Gladiator that killed the Einhovant's Headmaster is gone now." She said, trying to recover her lost composure. Leon tilted his head and glanced over the wall, putting a hand to his chin in thought.
"You're right, it is gone. I haven't heard anything about charges being dropped…how odd." He said to himself. His face darkened after a moment and he excused himself, hurrying out of the store. Sharmin stared at him dumbly as the trader called her name several times to pick up her packages. He didn't return to the house that night, and in the morning Sharmin and Vuylay found he and Narlafayn had gone.
"I can't believe they left me…." Vuylay grumbled several months after Leon and Narlafayn disappeared. Sharmin sighed and inspected her sword as she polished it. There hadn't been a day that had gone by when Vuylay didn't complain about being left behind. "Of all the nerve, they left ME, BEHIND." She grumbled louder, irritated when Sharmin didn't respond.
"Nobody's asking you to stay here. You could've left a long time ago." Komugi said as she exited the house.
"Nobody asked YOU for your opinion." Vuylay stated, sticking her nose in the air. "This conversation is for us adults, not underdeveloped runts like you."
There was a moment of silence, and Sharmin braced herself for the acidic comeback that she was sure Komugi would fire. She never expected Komugi to clamp her mouth shut to stifle a laugh, the resulting noise sounding similar to an explosive snort.
"Sharmin? An adult? Boy where have I been?" Komugi finally let out, laughing. She turned and retreated back into the house, Vuylay glaring at the back of her head. She made a disgusted noise and folded her arms underneath her breasts. Sharmin shut her eyes in annoyance, trying to control her temper.
Help me.
Sharmin lifted her head quickly, hearing the whispery plea, trying to find its source. Vuylay noticed her movement and quirked an eyebrow.
She'll kill me soon, please! Somebody!
"Who is that?" Sharmin asked, alarmed. Vuylay frowned at her
"Who is what?" she asked. Sharmin motioned for her to be silent.
Hurry! Please!
"Can't you hear that?" Sharmin turned towards Vuylay who regarded her skeptically.
"Are those blows to the head the goblins gave you that one day finally showing some lasting damage?" Vuylay asked, deadpan. Sharmin glared at her and then strained to listen again, but the voice was gone. Her ears perked as she heard the distant tolling of a ship bell, signaling the arrival of a ship to the harbor. Sharmin stood, as if in a trance, and took a few steps towards the gate of the fence surrounding the house. It was strange; the tolling of the bell stirred a feeling inside of her. Somewhere, in the back of her mind, she thought she could hear music. Later she would recall that feeling and muse if she had gone mad at that moment, but now she only had one thing on her mind.
"Komugi..." Sharmin said as her sister exited the house once again. Komugi made an answering noise, a spoon in her mouth from the dish of iced milk she had been eating. "Get anything you need together, we're going to the mainland. It's time."
The spoon was then heard clattering to the porch as Komugi's mouth dropped open in shock. Even Vuylay's lips had parted in surprise, as these were words people had begun to think would never be uttered by Sharmin.
Their send-off was a calm one, only the lady of the house, a few children, and a flock of Komugi's admirers and exes bid them farewell from the harbor. Sharmin began to feel the weight of her sudden decision as the boat sailed away from the island, and nervous shivers threatened to set in. Sharmin seated herself near the back of the boat, hugging her knees, as Komugi flitted this way and that, excited like a child about their trip. Vuylay plopped herself beside Sharmin, noticing her discomfort, but not teasing her about it.
"The mainland's not so bad." She offered, smiling. Sharmin lifted her head a bit from where she had buried it in her arms to glance at her. "There are so many places to see and different kinds of people..."
"Including those that would kill you upon first glance?" Sharmin muttered, hugging her knees tighter. Vuylay pursed her lips.
"Well…. yes, there will be people like that there." She began carefully. "But the key is to stick together with a few friends at all times! You're less likely to get hurt that way." She finished quickly, seeing the dark shadow cross Sharmin's face. "Besides…. Leon is on the mainland." She added slyly. Sharmin's eyes widened and her cheeks, although half-hidden by her arms, were most definitely pink.
"Don't try to trick me; you know it'll be nearly impossible to find him on that big continent." Sharmin said, sitting up a little straighter to glare.
"Oh, don't worry. I have a few ideas where they could've gone." Vuylay promised, her eyes lowering in annoyance at the memory of being left behind.
The ship was at sea nearly four days; during that time Komugi and Vuylay amused themselves by flirting with the sailors manning the ship or other passengers. Vuylay seemed to take the place of Koyori, and she and Komugi started up a silent competition to see who could flirt with the most men successfully. It was hard to say if they were really keeping tally, or if there were any benefits to being the winner. Sharmin spent most of her time watching them with a smile on her face.
"Long trip, eh?" a slurred voice suddenly came from beside her. Sharmin slowly raised her eyes up a set of armored legs to see the drunken face of the knight known as Montavious grinning down at her. She stiffened and scooted away from him a bit, trying to get away from the acrid stench of alcohol and unwashed body. Montavious was a plump knight, by far not her idea of what a true knight would be at all. Rumor had it that he had received a wound one day while training in the Partisan's Hideaway and it had not healed correctly, causing him pain. The result had left him unable to go out and fight as he used to, and instead he spent most of his days at the bar of the Inn, drinking himself to a stupor. He'd approached Sharmin before, not long after the raid on the Village, and attempted to 'woo' her in his drunken manner. She'd been nice to him, hoping that gentle refusal would put him down enough to leave her be, but it only seemed to make him more flirtatious with her. While Gatz had been there, he'd kept away from her, intimidated by the young Warrior.
"Yes…but we'll be there soon." Sharmin mumbled, trying to feign a half-smile although the odor around him made her want to screw up her face in disgust. To her dismay, this wasn't enough of a dismissal and he plopped himself down next to her, pulling out a flask.
"Wanner drink?" he asked, pushing the flask at her. Sharmin let the disgusted look come out fully now and she tilted her head away, pushing the flask back towards him.
"I don't drink." She stated flatly, trying to scoot a bit farther away from him.
"C'mon, don't be like that." Montavious insisted, putting his arm around her. "You've been so mean to me since we were in the Village, why dontcha be nice to me fer once?" Sharmin attempted to push him away as he leaned in closer to her. "I've done nothing but be nice to you, c'mon." he prodded.
"Hey!" Komugi shouted from the other end of the ship, seeing Montavious' advances on her sister. Sharmin pushed herself away from him to stand up.
"I said NO, Montavious. Now leave me be!" Sharmin shouted. Montavious stood and pushed her against the side of the ship, his face dark. He attempted to kiss her while one hand felt her breast. Although she was well protected by her armor, this motion was highly humiliating, and Sharmin put a stop to it immediately. She kneed him in that wonderfully pre-programmed stop button on men, and then punched him across the jaw. He cried out as he fell, holding himself.
"It'd be kind of you to respect the wishes of a lady." Vuylay said in a cold voice, lifting Montavious up by the collar of his under-tunic. She regarded him with an equally cold face, lifting him a few inches from the deck effortlessly. He gasped for air, his face turning purple.
"Hey now, stop that!" a voice came. Vuylay looked around Montavious' purpling face to the owner of the voice. A dark elf fighter of some sort with short hair stared back at her, taking on a challenging stance. Around them a crowd of passengers had begun to form, and the ships' captain forced his way between them.
"All right, enough!" the captain shouted in a gruff voice. "I don't care what you do on the mainland, but I won't have any killing on my ship, go it?" the captain shouted. "You put him down this instant!" he commanded, pointing at the ship deck. Vuylay made a 'tch' noise and dropped Montavious. He landed heavily and rolled to his side, coughing. Vuylay walked towards Sharmin, who was now being hugged by a glaring Komugi. She paused briefly and glanced over her shoulder quickly at the crowd, who jumped and then dispersed quickly, pretending they hadn't been watching. She turned back towards the girls with a satisfied smile.
On the deck near them, Montavious wiped at a splatter of blood on his mouth and glared at them. He spit once, and then stood, making his own way below deck to sleep off his hangover. The rest of the trip was made in uneasy silence, Komugi and Vuylay forgetting their competition with one another and staying near Sharmin's side. When the boat finally docked, they found lodging in the inn and rested after the long journey, thinking it finally over.
Unbeknownst to them at this time, it had just begun.