"Inventing the Future"
"Chapter 31: To Balance Valley!"
During the course of the next week, Jaming waffled back and forth between whether or not to 'let' Meredith come along with him to Balance Valley. He knew that there was little he could do to stop her, short of sneaking off on a day other than the one he'd had in mind, and for the briefest of moments he actually did consider that. Then he scolded himself for it, because not only would it be incredibly spineless and cowardly for him to do that, it would also damage her trust in him.
He finally decided not to fight her in this, because there was little point, and besides, he would miss her. It would be easier to leave Veniccio if he didn't have to leave her behind. And anyway, it wasn't as if they would be going into Starlight Canyon!
It was finally agreed that they would meet at the Veniccio Station on a Monday morning, and when that day came Jaming found himself sitting alone on one of the benches. The morning was a bit cooler than usual, and he welcomed the change. He wasn't really worried about whether or not Meredith would show up until he looked at his wristwatch and saw that it was getting late.
People were boarding the train now, and soon all of the good seats would be taken. What if Meredith didn't show up? That might almost be a relief, except that he would be too worried about whether or not she was ill to actually get on the train himself. It wasn't like her to just not show up!
Ten minutes to go. Jaming got up and paced, ignoring the annoyed looks from the few people who had to veer a whole half-foot to one side to walk around him.
'Maybe I should just go and check on her, and go to Balance Valley some other time. I'm not very keen to go there anyway.'
Five minutes. And, off in the distance, he spotted Meredith running full-tilt, her ponytail streaming behind her like a reddish-brown pennant. He walked down the ramp to meet her, and when she stumbled to a stop he braced her shoulders. "Whoa! You didn't have to run."
She fought to catch her breath, and she was smiling self-consciously as she adjusted her backpack. "Sorry! I overslept."
"Quite all right," he assured her, smiling as she kissed his cheek. "We have a few minutes. Is that all you're bringing?"
"Well, I usually travel light. We'll only be a couple days, according to you."
They boarded the train together, and Jaming frowned when he saw that she truly looked exhausted. She was doing a good job of hiding it, but the circles under her eyes spoke volumes.
"If all goes well, of course," he pointed out before asking, "Do you prefer aisle or window?"
"Window, if that's all right with you."
"It's fine," he replied, and he waited for her to be seated before sitting down himself. He frowned again when she opened the window a crack. "Are you all right?"
"I'm fine. I'm just tired. Which doesn't make any sense, because I slept straight through," She covered her mouth and yawned as if to demonstrate. "M'sorry. You don't mind if I take a nap, do you?"
"Mind? I envy you. These train rides are rumored to be boring, and you get to sleep right through it." He smirked and put an arm around her so that she could lean on him. She was out in a matter of minutes, and he looked over the top of her head and out the window.
A lady across the aisle who had just sat down watched them with some concern before asking, "Is your wife okay, sir?"
'Wife?'
Jaming glanced around to see who else the lady was talking to, then realized she was addressing him. "Oh! Yes...She didn't sleep well. Thank you for your concern."
This was a lie, but he was so flustered by the use of the word 'wife' that he needed a quick way to end the conversation. He didn't correct the lady, though, and he lapsed into deep thought as the woman took out a book and proceeded to ignore him.
'Hm. Wife. Yes, of course, someday I plan to ask her. But I would have expected to have to correct strangers from the opposite thought. Everyone who finds out we're together is rather insultingly surprised. This is a first! Being mistaken for man and wife. If she'd even say yes...It's a little too soon for that question, and the last thing I want to do is spook her!'
Jaming exited the train with Meredith, who now seemed much better. Balance Valley Station was odd in that the train tracks went through a cave, which was lit by torches and blessedly free of monsters. The passengers would have to cross a natural rock bridge. As much (or, rather, as little) as some of the tourists were paying attention to their own safety as they took in the scenery, Jaming thought that it was definitely a good thing that someone had put some thought into the station's design and added safety railings.
He and Meredith climbed the stairs, which had been cut directly into the rocky floor, and they shielded their eyes against the sunlight as they emerged from the cave. Jaming was very uncomfortable to be there, more so than he thought he would be. He felt like a gargoyle that had come down from the roof of a dilapidated church to walk among the people who had a right to be there, and for once it had nothing to do with how different he looked.
Meredith stared out over the plateaus, still shading her eyes from the sun. "It's beautiful here."
'You should have seen it before,' he thought as he stood beside her with his hands grasping the straps of his backpack, 'It was nothing grand, but it wasn't as pathetic as this.'
She looked over at him when he remained silent, and she saw at once how grim he looked. Knowing the reason why, she didn't ask him if he was okay. "We should find a place to stay before we do anything else."
"Or somebody who can direct us to one," he agreed, seeming to snap out of it. "Look, there's a little house over there. Let's try there first."
The voice that answered Jaming's knock was grumpy and less than welcoming. "Hoo! Hoo! I told you before, Lin is isn't here! Go away!"
"Hmph, rude..." Jaming muttered, folding his arms.
"Sorry for disturbing you," Meredith called through the door, "but we're not looking for anyone named Lin. We just want to-"
"Bah, you'll have to come in and say it. I can't hear you clearly."
Meredith raised an eyebrow and whispered to Jaming, "I could hear him plain as day..."
"Yes," Jaming whispered back, "He does sound rather elderly, though. Perhaps his ears are going bad."
"Are you coming in, or not?" the voice demanded crossly.
Jaming opened the door and he and Meredith walked in, expecting to see an older gentleman sitting inside. Instead, the house was empty of inhabitants, save for a large owl who sat on a perch near an empty bed.
Jaming frowned in confusion and stood a little bit in front of Meredith, holding up a hand for her to wait as his eyes scanned the room for signs of an ambush. The house seemed to be deserted, save for that owl, whose eerily intelligent eyes glared at them with what could only be called disapproval.
Meredith didn't seem surprised at all, however, and gently pushed Jaming's hand down. "I think it's okay. Um...Mr. Owl, are you the one who was talking to us before?"
Jaming gave her an odd sort of look, but this expression was replaced with one of pure shock when the owl ruffled its feathers and actually answered her. Not in hoots, but with words.
"I am called Argo, young woman. And I would appreciate it if you got straight to the point. You've disturbed my afternoon nap, and you are the third party to do so today." Argo the owl sounded marginally less annoyed, as if her respectful mode of speaking had mollified him somewhat.
"We're terribly sorry about that, Argo. We won't take long. We were just hoping that you might know where we could find a room for a few nights."
"Hoo, certainly. There is an inn on the fourth plateau. If that is full, you might try the church. Aren't you going to introduce yourselves, then?" Argo gave his wings a soft flap.
Jaming cleared his throat, finally having gotten over the shock of seeing a talking owl. "How rude of us. I am called Jaming. And this is Meredith. I might have some questions for you later, if you are willing to answer them. When would be a good time for me to stop by?"
"After dark is best," replied the owl, "I often wonder how you humans would like it if I tapped on your windows while you slept at night."
Jaming knew exactly how he would react. He would most likely open his window and throw one of his shoes at Argo for disturbing his rest! Put into perspective like that, Argo's unfriendly conduct made perfect sense. "In that case, you were far more polite than I would have been. We'll let you get back to sleep now."
As soon as they were outside, Jaming demanded in a whisper, "How did you know?"
"Know what? That he could talk?" Meredith smiled when Jaming nodded, and explained. "There's an owl in Palm Brinks who looks just like him. That one actually judges the Fishing Contest, and I think he also judges the Finny Frenzy. I don't think I've ever seen you jump that high."
"Oh, be quiet..."
Note: Okay, I know that there are no inns in Balance Valley, or anywhere else in the game. However, I decided to take a bit of creative license here.