Chapter 3
Journey
He'd woken up on his own this time and somewhat thankfully in his home and not the guildhall after being splashed with ice cold water. Still, his whole body was drenched in sweat and he shivered. Whispers had followed him from his nightmare as he looked around quickly trying to pinpoint where they were coming from. Fear had been seeded deeply in him and made him tremble uncontrollably to the point of his teeth clacking together. The whispers seemed to come from behind him suddenly and instinctually he turned to attack. When his eyes adjusted to the darkness of his room and revealed that the only thing he succeeded in destroying was his bed's headboard. His heart was pounding a loud beat in his chest as he tried to calm his breathing. That damn woman. He thought of the card mage he met with during The Games a few months prior. Some help she was. He stood up and after slipping into his shoes went to splash his face with some water.
The moon was full enough to illuminate his way to the basin he kept in the far corner of his room. A small mirror was hanging on the wall behind it. Reluctantly he looked at himself, noting the bags beginning to worsen under his eyes and the black dots that reminded him of his nightmare. Tenderly, he touched them and gave a bitter grin. Bacchus grunted and splashed more water onto his face, reaching for the washcloth he kept on the table next to it only to touch a bare surface. He felt around some and jumped back when he felt something familiar. His eyes confirmed what his hands felt and the fear he thought had disappeared returned in an instant. He'd forgotten he'd left it there. Trying once more to steady his breathing, he picked up the ornate comb that was sitting in place of his face towel. Gently he touched it, running his fingers over every ridge and curve. Even in the darkness he knew the immeasurable detail of it from memory. The delicate golden teeth, the small round pearls embedded in the delicate red flowers… and then the blood that dripped from it. Her face suddenly flashed in his memory. Tried as he might, there was no stopping the rest of that moment from coming as he recalled the rest of her. The inhuman way her broken and mangled body lay there on the floor and how her still open eyes looked up at him made him sick. He felt as if he were that scared child again, standing over her with her comb drenched in her blood in his hands. It had been so long since he recollected that night. There had been a fire in the background, but he wasn't sure how it happened or how he got there. It was always the foggiest part of his childhood. All he could ever remember was this woman he did not know and the sticky blood on his hands and feet. Bacchus was shocked when a tear dropped onto his hand and quickly wiped his eyes. Damnit. His whole body shook again and found it was difficult to keep from breaking the item in his palms. Why now? Who was that woman? He'd often ask himself, but knew there was no way he could answer it. The only way was to… No. Quickly the idea was shut down. He knew the consequences he and other would face if he even tried returning.
Gingerly he placed the comb back onto the side table and picked the washcloth up from the floor where it must have fallen. Morning was still a few hours off, but Bacchus already knew he wouldn't be able to fall back asleep. Even if he could, would he even want to? Before, he would have turned to drinking, which used to give him a dreamless sleep. But now it only made the nightmares worse. Still, he found he wanted something strong.
The only thing was, he was out of any kind of drink, strong or otherwise, and knew that not a single shop was open for him to find some. So he sat there in the dark on the edge of his bed, his head in his hands. Maybe I ought to have told her the dream. Probably would have helped. After a while he gave a frustrated groan as he stood and pulled his hair back into its typical style securing the white cloth over it. His armor felt heavier as he fastened that on as well. Must be from the lack of sleep he decided. Now in routine, he gathered up his usual items into a sack and slung it over his shoulder. A second thought made him search for a piece of paper and scribble a note onto it. There was a detour he had to take now. No matter, he would still be early.
The streets were hardly lit as he made way toward the station. He usually wasn't one to travel by train. He'd always enjoyed walking where he needed to go if he had the time to spare. It gave him the chance to meet the locals, hear their side of the story and their tales (both the true and exaggerated), and experience their lives if only briefly. He could relate with them, these working people. He understood their complaints about how hard they work for the little that they're paid. Many of them, he's found, complain and gripe, but it would be a lie if they said they didn't love their work. Some were not so lucky. Even those people he enjoyed listening to. Either way, nothing was better than having a drink or two or more with them. It reminded him of the good there was in this life. He felt at home sitting with them, knowing that they couldn't give a damn about who he was or where he came from. Most of the time the only thing they seemed to care about was who was taking care of the tab. Just like the boys at the guild. He couldn't help but laugh thinking about them.
It wasn't a long walk since his town wasn't very big, so by the time he arrived, the sun had not even begun to rise yet, though the sky at least was starting to lighten some. He found he was still too early for the first train much to his disappointment. Not even a single worker had come around yet. Part of him was stubborn enough to skip the ride and walk, but the limited supplies in his bag and the convenience of transportation called to him. Unwilling to weigh out the options, he simply sat on the empty bench outside the building and waited.
Though clearly he knew where he was headed and what he wanted to know, exactly how he would get his answers wasn't well defined. It wasn't as if they weren't on good terms the last they saw each other. In truth, he thought they'd gotten along well at the king's royal ball after the games. Why was it so difficult then to ask for a favor? Tch. I'll figure it out eventually. He crossed his arms and reclined into the bench some, thinking up ways to go about this personal quest of his.
He must have fallen asleep, despite it feeling as if he only blinked, because the sound of people and a train's horn startled him awake. Raising his head, he rubbed at his sore neck. With a quick glance at the time board, he was glad to see he had not missed the train. Slowly he stood and reached for his bag, only…
"Eh?" He opened it up, noting how much lighter his luggage was. His food was gone. It wasn't a lot, just some dried pieces of meat and fruit and a bit of old bread, but it was enough to annoy him. In vain he glanced about, trying to see if the culprit was stupid enough to be in the area still. Unsurprised, none of the people seemed to have a guilty enough face for him to approach. At least, not until he spied a gaunt, lonely boy with a heel of bread in his hand, walking in the exact opposite direction of where he sat. Quickly Bacchus stood and walked over to the little thief.
"Hey kid." He grabbed the boy's shoulder. The poor thing froze in his grasp and dropped the bread he'd taken a bite out of. When he turned him around, the boy flinched as if waiting to be struck. There was a small pang of pity he felt for the child. With a sigh, he reached into the purse tied at his waist. "Gimme your hand." That shocked the kid's eyes wide open. He tried frantically to break free, but the mage held fast to his arm and pulled it forward, giving it a squeeze to force the kid's hand open.
"Here." He said, placing an unknown amount into the boy's tiny extended hand and closing it. Bacchus only laughed at the wide-eyed and slack jawed expression on his face when he saw how much he'd been given. "Get something better to eat." He smiled. "And stop stealing." The boy nodded as he was scolded, still probably in shock as his arm was relinquished. Just then a train whistled, signaling its arrival. "Time to go. Look for the mage guild on the other side of town. Tell them Bacchus sent you and they'll take care of you." The palm mage patted him on the head and stood up, heading over to the platform.
His stomach growled halfway through the trip, but he only smiled. He hoped that the kid would go to the guild and be there when he got back. It's about time I had a pupil of my own. Some of the anxiety left him then as he smiled out the window at the passing landscape. He dreamed then, but for once of a good memory.
A bandaged and beaten young man stood before a strange building next to a man in black. Within it, he could hear a rowdy bunch possibly in the middle of a bar fight.
"Don't worry. They're just a little… enthusiastic." The man in black said.
"Wild sounds more appropriate." He answered. To that, the man laughed heartily, throwing his head back.
"Wild indeed!"
Bacchus subconsciously noticed when the train started to slow. A conductor walked down the aisle announcing that he had reached his destination. In a way he felt nervous as he stepped off the car, but upon seeing the easy-going people in the station felt a calm spread through him. It had probably been the calmest he'd been for a while now. It was now or never. And since he was already here, now seemed like the best option. So he continued on.
A/N: Technically Friday again! Decided I couldn't wait to upload this one for you guys so here you have it. I'm not really sure just how long this story will end up being. I know where I want it to go and have written several chapters and have about six pages of bulleted plot points to cover still. I just keep getting ideas. I will do my best to stay on track and publish a new chapter a week. If I can, I might even go with the flow of the Anime world and publish two chapters a week. That is, if I can stop writing future chapters and focus on the current one. Thanks again for the views, reviews and follows! Until Next week, Betty B.
Edit: Thanks to Ilovecherrypie for letting me know how much I fail at previewing my chapters after posting them, haha. Enjoy guys!