Chapter 22

Finding Heldalf

The two fell asleep beside each other. And since it was already sunset, they started to sleep through the night. They were peaceful enough for the first several hours while Mikleo's human medicine was working. But only about halfway through the evening he started to wake up from the growing pain as the medicine started to wear off.

Sorey of course, woke when Mikleo woke. And finding his love's face and body tense, groans of misery barely suppressed, was not what he'd wanted to see in the twilight hour.

Mikleo attempted to heal himself, both he and Sorey hoping and praying that Symonne's curse had worn off by now. But it was to no avail. And after Mikleo's third desperate attempt, and after Sorey had to listen to him groan out "Oh Holy Fountain" for that third time, it became obvious what he needed.

Sorey at least already knew what to do. Lailah had shown him where the medicine was, and he'd seen how to help his love drink some when it was given to him earlier in the day, and so, he quickly got up and moved to the nightstand. Fetching the bottle, he came to Mikleo's side. Carefully, and filled with the same love and care as always, he helped him sit up. Holding him in his arms, he offered him more of the medication. Once done, he only had to wait twenty minutes or so, and then Mikleo fell back into a peaceful slumber.

Laying him back down, Sorey then climbed into bed and curled up beside him once more. But it became much harder to sleep the second time through, and instead, Sorey found himself wide awake, staring at the ceiling, a feeling of dread lodged in his chest.

Eventually morning came. Sorey, having been up half the night with worry, had finally fallen asleep near day break. As such, he of course started to sleep in, needing his missed hours of slumber. And so, it was Mikleo that actually woke first.

It wasn't until the sun was well risen in the sky, several hours later that Mikleo moved to Sorey's bedside. Fully healed, fully dressed (with exception of his missing cloak) and fresh from a bath, he stood at the side of the bed by his boyfriend. He appeared as normal as ever, and perhaps even more impeccable than usual. His skin was smooth and white again, his seraphic shimmer and glow back where it belonged. All the dirt, grime and blood had been washed clean, and each white and blue hair was in its perfect place. And perhaps best of all, was that his usual confidence and bit of cockiness was back in his lilac eyes.

"Sorey," he said to the sleeping shepherd. "Sorey, wake up. The others are probably waiting on us." Reaching out a hand, he touched it to his shoulder. For just a second, he rested it there kindly, allowing a bit of his worry to show through. But then that second was over, and he fell back into their usual playful routine by roughly jostling the brunet.

"Rise and shine sleepyhead! You can't save the world with bed head like that! Come on now, get up comb your hair! We'll get some breakfast into you! We'll get you into the bath! You smell like a piggy!"

Smiling brightly, it was clear Mikleo was more than happy to tease, tease, and tease some more.

Sorey didn't budge for the first couple of seconds, but eventually, he opened his tired green eyes.

"Whu?" he asked eloquently, blinking up at Mikleo in confusion. Once his brain registered that his lover was up, the shepherd felt a ball of dread well up inside of him. In his sleepy state, all he could think about was how Mikleo was hurt, and shouldn't be standing.

Then, his brain finally caught up with his mind, and Sorey was able to realize that not only was Mikleo okay and healed, but that he looked clean and spunky too.

Blinking a few more times, it took him just two more seconds for his lover's teasing to sink in, and that's when he started to protest.

"H-Hey!" he stuttered. "I'm not a piggy!" He forced himself to sit up, eyeing his companion once again. "You're healed!" he exclaimed, then reached forward and pulled Mikleo into his chest, not caring that he probably didn't smell that great compared to his freshly-showered lover. He was just so impossibly relieved that Mikleo was alright.

"You're okay..." he mumbled into the seraph's shoulder, keeping his arms around him, not wanting to let go.

Mikleo hadn't been expecting the sudden hug, although he should have been, and as such his cheeks quickly turned a bright pink when he found himself forcefully and desperately pulled into Sorey's chest.

"H-hey!" He stumbled, his bare feet almost leaving the carpet seeing as he had been standing beside the bed and Sorey was still seated on it. Grabbing onto Sorey's shoulder's he caught himself before he fell. His knees against the mattress, he found a position (albeit an awkward one) that allowed Sorey to cling to him for a moment without him falling. There, Mikleo stayed still, knowing perfectly well that Sorey needed to hold onto him for a second or two. And of course, it was during those few seconds that Mikleo felt how harshly the shepherd's heart was pounding against his chest. And in feeling it, and how tightly he was holding him, Mikleo also felt how frightened Sorey had truly been.

Sympathy and guilt filled him, and as he felt Sorey's heart beat against him, he lifted his own arms, wrapping them up around Sorey's back. There, he held him tenderly.

"I'm sorry…" he said softly. "I'm sorry I scared you…I scared everyone. I tried my very best…"

Relief filled Sorey as he felt Mikleo's lean arms encircling him, and he closed his eyes, letting his heartbeat slow back down as they embraced.

"No, it's okay," he reassured, taking in a deep breath, inhaling his lover's sweet scent as he breathed. That too was calming and comforting in its familiarity. "You were wonderful. You didn't do anything wrong. I..." And Sorey choked up, a sharp and sudden pain flooding his heart, along with a good dose of guilt.

"I almost-" but he couldn't finish his sentence. He felt so awful, so terribly awful, that he had let Symonne's plan get to him. But how could he not? They'd been torturing Mikleo. They'd pressed the very button they needed to, to get Sorey exactly where they wanted. Had Nadia not intervened, things could've been so much worse.

Sorey forced himself to calm down, inhaling deeply several times, before trying to start up again. "I'm just so glad you're alright. I was so scared." And he never admitted that. Sorey never, ever said things like that. He always did his best to be strong and positive, but never in a million years would he hide anything from Mikleo. That included his true feelings about everything that happened.

Mikleo unwrapped his arms from around Sorey. Then, carefully, he knelt down in front of him so he could gaze into his face. Once their eyes were locked, he reached out, taking his hands in his own.

"I was scared too," he admitted. "More than I ever have been before about anything."

Mikleo thought about telling Sorey about how painful it truly was to have his worst fears come true. Being used as a pawn to wound Sorey had been a nightmare he'd had since the beginning of their journey together. Having their enemies use the love they had for one another against them had been the most agonizing thing he'd ever had to endure. But…Sorey already knew this. He knew what he feared the most. After all, that fight they'd had back in Ladylake had made that very clear. And so, when he felt himself choke up as he tried to mention it, he didn't fret. He knew Sorey already understood.

"We're both feeling hurt and guilty. And we're both feeling like we failed somehow. But…it's not true." He squeezed Sorey's hands tightly. "We did all we could. And nothing that happened was your fault. And it wasn't mine either. The only people to blame are Symonne and Lunnare. They trapped us and put us in an impossible situation that no one could have gotten out of. And so…we can't let these negative feelings hold us back."

Still holding onto Sorey's hands, he allowed a smile to come light up his face.

"We should just be our typical brilliant selves. And you should be as silly and as dense as usual, Sorey. That's what I want to see the most."

Sorey didn't know how he always did it, but Mikleo somehow managed to make him feel so much better with just a few short sentences. He'd felt a tear or two well up as he'd listened to the seraph speak, but at the end, all he could do was laugh.

The shepherd blinked back the tears, and smiled back at his love.

"Y-yeah," he agreed, locking gazes with Mikleo. "You're right," he said. "You're always right." Sorey took a deep breath, allowing himself to feel a little bit of relief. He knew he and Mikleo would both probably feel guilty over what had happened the day before, for at least a little while...but his boyfriend was right. They needed to move forward.

"Thanks, Mikleo," he said, and flashed his boyfriend an ever-brightening smile.

Mikleo retained his smile.

"Of course I'm always right," he teased as he rose back up to his feet. "And no thanks are needed. It's my job to keep the shepherd in line. Somebody has too." Leaning in, he planted a kiss onto Sorey's forehead lovingly. "Now come on. We have to get you cleaned up. You're not exactly smelling like a daisy. After, we should meet the others."

Sorey was actually happy to hear Mikleo's comeback. It was further proof that he was alright. And so, he nodded in agreement, looking fairly upset that he smelled.

He knew he did. At least, compared to the seraphs he did. And he knew very good and well the others wouldn't tolerate his natural 'human smell' as much as his lover did.

"Yeah, I'll go get cleaned up," he said, standing up and stretching his arms over his head, enjoying the sensation for a moment, before letting his arms fall back down to his sides with a swing. "I take it the bath's nice?" he asked, even as he headed towards their private bathroom. It would be nice to get all cleaned up. He just wished he had another set of clothes.

After Sorey had bathed, the pair finished getting dressed. Sorey looked fresh and ready to go in his usual Shepherd ensemble. Complete with boots, gloves and of course the famous cloak, he certainly looked the part of the shepherd. And Mikleo, as usual, helped him to straighten his feathered earrings once they were on.

"There," he said proudly to his boyfriend. "Ready to face the day?"

Mikleo inspected Sorey for a second, then came forward once more in order to brush his hand briskly over his shoulder to get off a bit of fuzz. When he finished, he grabbed the collar of his cloak and readjusted it. Perhaps he was being a bit more fussy than usual, but he just couldn't help it. They'd had such a bad scare the other day after all, and this was one of his ways of showing he cared.

That…and standing beside Sorey in his full attire, Mikleo was feeling suddenly very underdressed. Without his cloak, he appeared even smaller than usual. And without the protection it usually offered him, he felt vulnerable. And what was perhaps worst of all…he felt ordinary.

He was in nothing but his white pants, black boots and black undershirt. Without the blue cloak of his usual ensemble he was feeling awfully incomplete. And standing beside Sorey, he looked it too.

Grabbing at the feathers that hung from either end of the shoulders on Sorey's cloak, Mikleo carefully laid them so that they were even across his chest. At the very least he could make Sorey look good, even if he was unable to perform his own usual morning routine. Unable to take the pride in his appearance that he normally did, this was the next best thing.

Sorey seemed to understand on some level, even if he didn't completely get why Mikleo needed to fuss over him. And he was kind as always not to say anything. He simply smiled, and let Mikleo do what he wanted.

Eventually, Mikleo was satisfied with how Sorey looked and the pair left their room. And as was their routine, they met the other's down in the dining hall for breakfast. But of course, this morning was different from most others. And as soon as they entered, both Zaveid and Edna looked up.

"Mikky!"

"Meebo!" They both got to their feet. Forgetting their table, they ran over to Sorey and Mikleo. And once they reached the water seraph, they weren't shy. Zaveid reached out an arm, hooking his elbow around Mikleo's neck. Then, pulling him in to his chest in a sort of hug, he reached out his other hand and started to give a completely terrible noogie as he held him captive.

"Thank God you're healed Mikky! We were so worried about you little guy!"

"Hey hey! OW!" Mikleo cried. "And don't call me little!"

Zaveid, apparently swimming with affection for his fellow seraph, didn't let him go. Instead, he stopped giving his noogies in order to wrap both arms around his slender form. Once he had him, he practically crushed him as he squeezed tightly.

"Ugh!" But still not done, Zaveid then used his strength to lift Mikleo up and into the air, making his feet leave the ground.

"Grrah!" he cried, grinning and flashing his teeth all the while.

"Stop it! Put me down!" Mikleo demanded, his purple eyes huge with indignation. Zaveid listened, but only because he seemed to be done, not because Mikleo had asked. Putting him back on his feet, he gave him one more, giant, bear hug. Then, after crushing his ribs, he released his hostage.

"Ugh…" Mikleo groaned as he lifted his hands in order to start brushing himself off. "Can't you show your happiness in a less…obtrusive way?"

"Nope!" Zaveid replied loudly and proudly.

Mikleo had grabbed at the bottom of his shirt and had been tugging it down to try and get the wrinkles out of it. But that was when Edna clearly saw her opening. Stepping forward, she didn't hesitate either. Lifting her umbrella by its handle, she quickly and swiftly brought it down on top of Mikleo's white locks with a crack!

"OW!" Mikleo cried, lifting a hand to his skull. But even as he turned to face Edna, she suddenly thrust her umbrella forward, jabbing him in the side. Then mercilessly, even as Mikleo cried out, she hit him on his shoulder. "OW! OW! Edna! Stop it!"

"That's what stupid Meebos get!" she cried. "How could you possibly mistake that horrible woman for me? And how could you let yourself get lured away like that? I expected more from you!"

Mikleo rubbed at the spot on his skull which was still throbbing, then with his other hand, he rubbed at his side. But even as he was preparing to holler something awful at Edna, he finally had a chance to turn and face her. And when he did, his insult got caught in his throat. For her little face was twisted into an angry frown, and even with her pout, there were still barely held off tears in the corners of her eyes. It was clear she was working hard to put up a front to hide how terrified she'd been.

Zaveid stepped up to her side, resting a hand on her small shoulder. Then, facing Mikleo he said,

"She was really upset last night," he explained. "She was crying for quite a while. She was really worried about you Mikky."

Edna suddenly and cruelly jabbed her umbrella tip into Zaveid's side, and she'd done it much more harshly than she ever had to Mikleo. Zaveid let out a curse, then stepped away from Edna as he hunched over to hold the tender spot she'd created.

"I did not cry!" she snarled. "And I certainly wasn't up all night worrying about stupid Meebo!"

Mikleo suppressed a chuckle. It was obvious, even to someone who didn't know Edna, that she was lying. And that warmed a spot in his heart for her. After all, it was only since yesterday's incident that he finally started to begin to understand her a little.

Smile still on his face, he stepped forward. And no one was prepared when Mikleo reached out his arms, taking Edna up and into them. Edna herself seemed to be in shock, her turquoise eyes widening as the water seraph hugged her.

"Thank you Edna," he said affectionately to her. "I'm glad I have you as a friend…"

She didn't say a word back to him, and she seemed like she couldn't, and after only a few seconds it was over. Mikleo stood back up and released her.

Sorey allowed himself to quietly watch all of the interactions between Mikleo, Zaveid, and Edna. He knew very good and well that the other two had been worried about Mikleo too, and he knew it was important that they have their moments with his boyfriend without him interrupting.

Watching Edna, the brunet was once again struck by the thought that Edna, for all of her toughness and harsh exterior, probably cared very deeply about the people she was close to. It must have been hard for her, he knew, to lose Eizen. She probably kept up her defenses so she wouldn't have to experience the pain of losing anyone else important to her.

But he'd seen clear as day that she really did care about Mikleo, even with all of the poking and the jabbing.

Zaveid's reaction was sweet, too. That was another person they hadn't initially seen eye to eye with, back when he'd been determined to take out the hellions without giving them a chance of purification. But now, the much-older seraph had become an important part of their family, and Sorey couldn't imagine having ever made their journey together without him.

Once all was said and done, and Sorey felt like he wouldn't be interrupting, he stepped forward, smiling softly at his companions.

"Good morning," he offered the two of them. "I see we're all lively as usual." And he grinned with that statement.

It was such a precious treasure to have things back to normal. He would've never thought yesterday morning at breakfast that they'd have a scare like they did later on in the afternoon...and while he was still feeling a little raw and shaken, Sorey knew one of the things that could help him was a sense of routine, a sense of normalcy. Mikleo had said much the same back up in their room. He needed things to be normal.

But...that required someone else to be around. "Where's Lailah?" he asked. "Is she still up in her room?" The last he remembered, she'd had an idea about how to fix Mikleo's cloak. Sorey just knew that the water seraph missed it. Maybe she'd been able to restore it, with whatever idea she'd been so excited about the night before.

"Yeah," Zaveid confirmed, facing Sorey. "She had a long night. After she left your room she went out into town to do something. Then when she came back, she started working on a…a project of sorts. She made us promise not to tell you what she was doing. But it's a good thing. She's working on a surprise."

Mikleo frowned. It was obvious they were talking about his cloak. And no matter how skilled a seamstress might have been, he knew there was no saving it.

"Zaveid…if she's working on my cloak, you ought to tell her to stop. There's no way she can salvage it. And if she's doing something else like trying to make me a new one…you can tell her to stop that too. I appreciate the gesture, but it just won't be the same. Maybe next time we're in Elysia I'll ask Gramps if he can make me another. But for now…I'd rather you didn't get my hopes up. I'll find something in town in the meantime."

It was Zaveid's turn to frown. He was quiet for a second, but then nodded.

"Ok. I'll tell her after breakfast. She's sleeping right now. She said she'd be down later."

Sorey hummed quietly to himself in response. What if Lailah really was able to fix Mikleo's cloak?

He probably just doesn't want to get his hopes up, in case it really is unsalvageable, Sorey thought to himself. He knew what he needed to do, though, in order to be a good support.

"Well," he said with a smile at his boyfriend. "Maybe she can fix it. Lailah's talented in a lot of different areas. But if not, I'm sure Tolrin has something that will make you look and feel just as fantastic as the cloak." He wanted to add in the fact that Mikleo would look good in just about anything, no matter what he chose to wear, but didn't want to get Zaveid riled up with the perverted comments. He never could tell when the seraph would start in with his raunchy jokes, and he felt like now wasn't the time for that.

"Anyway. Let's eat!" he said, casually taking a seat at the table where Edna and Zaveid had been waiting. "We'll go get Lailah later on."

They all sat down to eat. And with Sorey ordering for them and with them all chatting casually, things started to feel normal again. And when the food came, it was even more normal still. Mikleo was put at ease, and he was eager to forget the previous day. It was easy to do so in such good company, and with Zaveid spouting perverted comments and jokes, and with Edna kicking his shin from under the table, it felt good to focus on his friends. Eating their food, and laughing with one another, he felt the stress and pain from the attack start to fade.

Eventually, Lailah joined them. Awake, but looking tired, she had Sorey order her food for her. And no one minded much when they had to wait around for her to finish. They were all fairly happy just to be together in a familiar setting once again. And with Lailah seated around the table with them, their team felt complete and whole.

But of course, after a while, and after all the food was done, they had to get down to business. No matter what may have taken place the day before, they had responsibilities as the shepherd and his party, and they already felt like they were behind on schedule since the attack yesterday and date day the day before.

"So then we already have half of our battle with Heldalf planned out," Mikleo was saying to the party. "We know how to defeat him. The issue now is what we're going to do about Maotelus. And of course, we still don't know where Heldalf is located."

"His location should be easy enough to figure out," Zaveid said, his arms crossed on top of his dark chest. "This is…or was, his home town after all. I know you geeks like the history books and think they have all the answers, but I'm betting if we just asked around town the old fashioned way, we'd get what we needed."

"I'm inclined to agree," Lailah said. "If anyone anywhere would know about him, it would be the remaining connections he has in Tolrin. Even if everyone he knew is dead, since he's now immortal, I bet descendants of descendants would know something."

"That sounds like a decent plan," Mikleo agreed. And then, like always, he turned to look to Sorey.

"What do you think Sorey? Any ideas on what to do about Maotelus? And do you like Zaveid's plan of asking around town?"

Well, Sorey definitely had an idea about Maotelus. At least, the beginnings of his plan were solid in his mind. But this was not the time nor the place to be talking about it. As such, he made the deliberate decision to not divulge what he was thinking. He needed to speak to Mikleo in private before anything else. His love deserved that. After all...it was a big risk, and he didn't even know if it was possible or not. For all he knew, he was grasping at straws, and his efforts would be pointless. And more than that, the shepherd knew it wouldn't be easy to talk about. It wasn't even easy to think about. So now definitely wasn't the time. Not when Mikleo had just been through such a horrendous ordeal the night before. Not when he was trying to recover.

Sorey knew the time for their talk would come. But for now, they could at least do as Zaveid suggested, and ask around town for more information.

"I haven't come up with anything solid yet about Maotelus," he lied, "But I do think we should ask around town. It's a solid plan, and I know you guys aren't crazy about the library like me and Mikleo," he admitted, rubbing the back of his head in an awkward, embarrassed way. They were always teasing him about being a nerd, and well, he knew it was true.

"Besides, I feel like it can't hurt to try things your way. We might find out what we need faster than delving into the books anyway. And time is of the essence."

Sorey had always been a terrible liar. In fact, he couldn't remember if he had actually ever attempted to legitimately lie before for that reason. On the very rare occasion that he did, the lie was always obvious, and blinding, like a flashing beacon. It always pointed out how truly pure and innocent the shepherd was.

But this time…Sorey's lie slipped out of his lips like butter. It was so smooth and so seamless that no one noticed. Not even Mikleo. And Sorey watched almost in awe as his boyfriend, the human lie detector, turned and started chatting with Zaveid on how he thought they should start the search. It flabbergasted him how easily it had come out of him. But then again…he knew the reason behind his success:

He'd needed to keep Mikleo safe. He'd needed to protect him. And he certainly couldn't hurt him. At least not right now. Not when it'd only been a few hours after he'd healed himself from Lunarre and Symonne's vicious attack. Not when his heart was still wounded from meeting and them immediately losing Nadia, a fellow water seraphim.

No…Sorey knew he'd need to pick both the time and place to divulge his plans to his love carefully. It would be difficult no matter when it was done, but at the very least, he could wait until they were alone.

After they all finished their meal and after they'd decided on a course of action, they all got up and left The Water Crest Inn. Stepping out into the sunlight and onto the cobblestone street, they all for once, followed Zaveid's lead.

"I read up on a bunch of names and addresses of people who might be related to Heldalf, or used to be friends with him the day before in the library," he said. "I wrote down a few, maybe they can help us." Pulling a list out of his pocket, he lead the team down the street. And eventually, they came to a person's home.

After knocking, and after the man opened the door, Sorey politely (with a water seraph hissing in his ear about manners) explained who he was. Because he was the shepherd, the man was happy to trust him and invite him inside. Only able to see Sorey and no one else, he offered him a seat. The other's lounged around, or looked at the items in the man's home. But after only a moment it became clear that the man had no idea who Heldalf was. He was unable to help them, and so they quickly said their goodbye's and left.

The team tried the next house. And then the next. But became aware quickly that their plan might have been more difficult to execute than they would have thought. Heldalf was thousands of years old. And as such, no one left alive remembered him or even knew they were related to him. But funnily enough, they started to get useful information not from the people they were interviewing, but the people who overheard.

Sorey had been talking to one of the street vendors when his wife approached them and said she'd heard from travelers that there was a ton of strange things going on at .

" ?" Sorey questioned. "That's the mountain Elysia's on top of. That's our home!"

"I'm not sure of any Elysia," the woman said. "But I heard people who were traveling through the forest at the base of the mountain were running into monsters and ghosts. It's become so dangerous that no one can pass through. Not a single soul has been able to get more than five feet into those woods. I've heard that some people have even died!"

Mikleo immediately reached out a hand, placing it on Sorey's shoulder. And when Sorey turned to look at him, he'd see the anxiety on the water seraph's face.

"That entire area should be under Gramp's protection," he reminded. "With his blessing and with as powerful as he is, no hellions should be able to enter."

And suddenly, it no longer mattered if the strange occurrences had anything to do with Heldalf's location or not. It was clear they needed to go home. They had to make sure their loved ones and their home village were safe before they did anything else.

"We have to go," Sorey said so softly, Lailah and the others weren't sure they'd heard. But Mikleo would've. A little louder, he continued. "Heldalf...probably went looking for me," he stated, doing everything he could to push back that little welt of worry that threatened to spill over and make him lose his calm.

He knew whatever was happening wasn't good. "The only thing we can hope for is that everyone's alright," he stated, squaring his shoulders and standing up straight. He and Mikleo had a responsibility to their family, to their village, to make sure they were ok. And so he knew leaving Tolrin and making the journey home was their top priority.

He turned to face the others. "We have to go," he said again, looking immediately to Lailah, who looked nearly as worried as both himself and Mikleo. "If something happened to Elysia..." But there was no need to finish his sentence. He was sure the others already knew.