Although there was still dark, a light orange hue on the horizon was announcing the upcoming down. A gentle drizzle descended from the navy blue clouds, rejuvenating the area. The rain should last until about an hour after sunrise, but Yuuri preferred to oversee it this time. This was definitely the only reason why he was standing now at the tower of his palace, observing the forest. Or so he wanted to convince himself that it was.
The dark body of the palace faded into the night darkness; only silver ornamentation would allow outsiders to see it in such weather. The black night sky was the time when the fairies under his rule had the most power, so the forest belonged to them now. It should also be all black during this night, but fluorescent plants and mushrooms lit it up in mystical green and blue.
Yuuri leaned against the stone railing, closing his eyes and listening to the soft sound of rain. It was like music to his ears, a gentle lullaby reminding him that bedtime was approaching.
"We had visitors from the moon palace again." Murata approached him, his steps so quiet that Yuuri noticed his presence only when he spoke up.
"If they have a complaint that we have obscured the moon for them, you can send them away," Yuuri answered without opening his eyes. He had his responsibility to keep the forest and area around it alive and didn't care that some fairies wanted to play in the moonlight.
"I think it was that fan of yours."
"In that case, all the more reason to send him away." Moon fairies usually were obsessed with the moonlight, but this Gunter, for some reason, became obsessed with Yuuri and all that is black. To the point, it was becoming creepy, and he was getting shivers at the even sound of that man's voice. Can't he just leave him alone?
"You're not getting ready for sleep?"
"When the rain stops."
"I thought you always get to bed before the sun starts showing up." Murata leaned against the railing beside him, gazing at the brightening sky to the east.
"I want to make sure that the earth was properly watered. When I wake up, everything is already dry."
"The sun fairies don't like to get wet, so they do a good job with drying everything. But the earth will draw in all the water it needs, so there is nothing to worry about."
Yuuri only muttered something indistinctly and looked toward the horizon. At this time of year, the nights were short, and sunrise came quickly. He usually took it with a reluctant acceptance of reality, but now he looked forward to the morning with mild excitement.
"You were eager to see the rainbow?" Murata seemed to read in his mind. " When I told you about it yesterday, you didn't seem so interested."
"I changed my mind," he answered evasively.
Later that day, Wolfram bragged that he had created it. He was so proud of it that Yuuri decided he would see if it was actually such an amazing sight. Because of his lifestyle, he had never yet had the opportunity to see a rainbow and only knew about it from stories. But he was unable to imagine himself seeing such colors in the sky. Should he clear the clouds before it appears? Will it be visible in the rain?
He met with Wolfram again earlier in the afternoon. The prince told him that he was willing to forgive him for his comment if Yuuri showed him the real dragons. How merciful of him. He was already about to refuse him, but then Wolfram did something that Yuuri thought was definitely a dirty trick.
He put on a face of innocence, with big, shining eyes like a little deer's, and stared at him like a baby begging for candy. There was no way he could refuse something like that. And on top of that, when Yuuri agreed, Wolfram's face lit up even brighter, giving him such a dreamy smile that his heart started to beat faster. Such a brat. With a face like that, he would get everything he wanted.
So, now he had plans for that day. He needed to wake up earlier if they wanted to go there and come back before sunset, so he should go to bed earlier. But the desire to see the rainbow was stronger.
The sun began to be visible on the horizon, an orange ball floating slowly upward. In the spreading, warm light, the palace of the night sky began to glow, and the forest around it quieted, suspended in brief moments of peace as the fairy of the night domains went to sleep and the domains of the day slowly rose.
When the darkness was almost chased away, something strange appeared in the sky. Not in the actual sky, on the clouds, but on the raindrops close above. As the sun's rays pointed directly at them, colors began to dance on the droplets of water. A colorful arch appeared, announcing the beginning of a sunny day. Indeed, it was an extraordinary sight, something he had not expected to see there. Maybe even better than the silver light of the moon because looking at it somehow filled him with new energy, despite the fact that he was tired after a long day and night.
He wanted to stare at it even longer, but Murata drew his attention back to himself with a quiet snort.
"I didn't expect you to be so enthralled by it. Your jaw dropped almost to the floor," he laughed, not even making an effort to cover his mouth with his hand. "I didn't realize you were such a fan of bright colors. If you want, I can help you get new clothes."
Yuuri communicated to him only using his glance what he thought of his friend's comment. He moved away from the railing, floated up slightly, then flew straight to his chambers, figuring it would be faster.
Wolfram found a suitable leather bag that would be just right for the expedition, but now he was having trouble figuring out what he should pack in it. They would leave at noon and return late in the evening, so he should definitely take something to eat with him. It would also be a good idea to take fire fruits so that he could regenerate his powers if necessary.
But he didn't want to take only food. He also wanted to carry something useful. Maybe bandages? Dragons breathe fire, so he should also bring something for burns. And a map so he would know where he was. A compass won't be necessary since he knows exactly how to determine directions based on the sun's position. He should also pack something to repel insects. They are not a problem in the fairy forest, but he had heard that they are a real nuisance in ordinary woods.
That should be all. Still, before setting off, he will ask Conrad if he should take something else.
Now there remains the question of what to wear. Definitely something comfortable and durable. The best thing that came to mind was his training outfit. It was fire-resistant, so it would be perfect for such an expedition.
He put his packed bag down on the floor next to the door and changed, then sat down on a chair next to the window. He still had a few hours to go. He got up exceptionally early today and was too excited to go back to sleep. And since he had bragged so much about his rainbow yesterday, he decided that he would prepare even more for the one created today. So he made it bigger and even clearer. He couldn't wait for people in the town next to the forest to start talking about it.
Should he go outside and find some activity to kill time? But then he might miss the meeting. Maybe, in that case, he'll go into town right now and hang around the meeting place. It's right next to the market, so he'll be able to look at what interesting things are being sold there.
He took his bag and went out onto the balcony, looking around to see if Gwendal or one of his subordinates was watching the area. He wasn't going to risk being forbidden to go. He flew quickly toward the city and landed at the edge of the forest, tucking his wings and covering himself with a light cloak. Maybe the people in the town were aware that there were fairies among them, but it wasn't the best idea for them to know who they were specifically. His brothers always told him it was too dangerous. Therefore, he walked the remaining distance on foot.
The city wasn't surrounded by any walls, and its buildings just started at some point. A combination of stone and poplar wood that the fairies allowed people to cut down in their forest. It had no special qualities and grew back quickly, so the edges of the woods were full of these trees. For cutting down other trees, the green vegetation fairies punished humans accordingly, depending on the type of tree. One could even contract a serious disease by cutting down a willow or oak tree.
The main street he walked was so crowded that it was hard for him to squeeze through the mass of people at times, and after he felt someone trying to pull on his bag, he pressed it to his chest and guarded it carefully. In addition to money, he also had a lot of valuable fruits there. The fire fruits are especially hard to obtain, so Wolfram always gathers them on his own. The ones he had now were his last; after this expedition, he would need to go for more.
He ducked into a side street to get some rest from the crowd. Already here, stalls were beginning to appear on the road, although it was still quite a distance from the market, so the noise of the people was joined by the shouts of the vendors. And strange smells. Occasionally Wolfram would pass by something smelling appetizing, and at a stall right next to it, someone was selling weirdly prepared animal parts, claiming they were a cure for all diseases. And the stench, of course, only increased the effect.
He leaned against the wall and looked at the sea of people waving on the main street. Here where he was, was also full of them, but at least one could breathe freely. He didn't recall the previous time there had been such crowds here. Was there an important event happening today?
A sweet smell caught his attention. He looked toward its source and saw a tea house nearby. A perfect place to wait. As long as he could find his way to the meeting place later. In such a crowd, he was beginning to have concerns that the mass of people would carry him off somewhere, or he wouldn't be able to find Yuuri. Let's just hope he doesn't make excuses later that he couldn't find him and decide to go home. Wolfram would then personally go for him and get him out of there. Conrad probably knew where he lived.
"Wolfram." Standing in his way to the sweet smell was someone's hand and a figure in a guard's uniform imprisoning him between them and the wall. Conrad smiled softly, but his brow furrowed in an expression of concern. "Are you so early?" he asked, not getting out of his way. He had accompanied them yesterday and helped them arrange everything, so of course, he knew where Wolfram was going. Let's just hope he didn't tell Gwendal about it.
"I didn't have anything other to do, so I decided to wait here," he answered, still gazing longingly at the teahouse. The sweet, fruity smell testified that they had something good there. Maybe even cakes. That was one of the things he liked about humans cooking. Sweet cakes, made of flour and sugar, often with fruit. Fairies usually ate directly what they picked in the forest, but the idea of processing it in some way sounded good to him. He even considered trying to make jam. Maybe then his fire fruits would last longer. He'll think about it later. The important thing now was the cake. Eating some before the trip to the mountains would be ideal.
"In that case, let's find some more peaceful place to wait." Conrad took his hand, and the way to the cake became clear. Wolfram made a step in that direction.
"I've already found such a place." Just a little closer and the smell intensified. Now he could definitely smell the cake. Strawberry one.
"That's not where we're going. It's not a good place for fairies."
Wolfram looked at his brother in disbelief. What did he mean it's not a good place for fairies? What could be bad for fairies? After all, there is cake there. With strawberries! And now he even could smell fruity tea. Rose, he was sure it was rose. Perfect for the cake.
"But I just want cake," he said quietly, looking his brother straight in the eye and making a pained face. After all, he won't forbid him to eat a slice, right?
"Trust me, there are no cakes there." Conrad laughed, grabbed Wolfram's shoulder, turned him around, and pushed toward the mass of people. Before entering them, Wolfram reflexively held his air.
There was too much noise to say anything, but Wolfram did his best to convince with his glare what he thought about Conrad refusing him a cake.
They went into a quieter street again and stopped at a stand where something bun-like was being fried in oil. Conrad purchased the something from the vendor, brown and wrapped in greasy paper, then handed it to Wolfram.
"How about this?" he asked, leading him toward a low wall where they sat.
Wolfram looked at the item suspiciously. He saw the vendor pull it out of the vat of boiling oil and still felt the heat coming through the paper. It seemed to be some kind of fried dough. He smelled it first, then took a tiny bite. Of course, it was greasy, but it was also sweet. It may not have been a cake, but it wasn't that bad.
"You're forbidden for now," he said, taking another bite.
Today was market day, where not only traders from the city stood in the streets but also those who came from outside of it. And this attracted a mass of people from villages nearby, so the streets were extremely crowded. So it was fortunate that they heading out of town.
A trip to the mountains was not such a bad idea. He'll take a walk and maybe strengthen his condition a bit with it. Not that it was bad, but a little exercise will always be good.
He had already seen the fountain where they were going to meet with Wolfram and started looking for him among the people. With the prince's appearance, he shouldn't be hard to spot.
Conrad was standing next to him, thankfully. At last, Yuuri didn't need to worry that he got lost somewhere among that crowd.
He squeezed through the last cloud of people and approached them.
"Are you ready?" he asked.
Wolfram adjusted his bag strap and nodded with satisfaction.
"Keep an eye on him so he doesn't hurt himself." Conrad put his hand on his brother's shoulder.
"Don't worry. It isn't some unsafe place," Yuuri reassured him and looked at Wolfram, who seemed disgruntled with their exchange.
"I can take care of myself," he huffed, folding his hands and grimacing like a displeased five-year-old. "I only need a guide, not a nanny."
Conrad smiled at Yuuri in a communicative manner, which gave him a firm understanding that he would indeed be a nanny. Following the principle of not arguing with young children, he merely nodded and pointed in which direction they were going.
"Come back before night and avoid human villages in the mountains," Conrad warned them again before they left, and Wolfram rolled his eyes.
"Let's go," he said, moving among the people in the indicated direction, and Yuuri quickly followed him, grabbing his wrist to make sure he didn't get lost. Wolfram looked at him with an undefined expression on his face but said nothing nor pulled away from him.
Yuuri was surprised at how small his hand seemed to be. He was able to embrace his entire wrist with his palm and tried to hold it as lightly as he could, feeling that a little force would be enough to crush it.
Taking the lead, Yuuri led them through less crowded streets, and finally, they left the city. It would take them days to get to the mountains on foot, but they are faires, so they can fly there. First, they need to return to the edge of the forest and, from there, fly straight through it toward the mountains. This will take them a maximum of two hours.
Wolfram didn't say much during their journey but did everything Yuuri asked him to without a complaint. So, at least he's cooperative.
When they arrived at the forest, the prince took off his cloak, and his golden wings appeared, making Yuuri have great difficulty looking away. A light seemed to gather around him, enveloping him in a bright glow and making him look almost like the sun. Yuuri thought that, as a result, he should be blinded, but it was just the opposite; the light seemed to attract his gaze.
Only after a few moments did he realize what he was doing and looked away quickly in embarrassment. Wolfram, fortunately, didn't notice anything. It turned out that he was also busy looking at something over Yuuri's shoulder. He looked over, and it took him a while to realize what had caught his attention. Unlike Wolfram's wings, his own seemed to completely absorb the light around them, creating a black hole behind him. Definitely not as impressive.
"Let's go, don't waste time," he said, taking to the sky, and Wolfram flew right behind him. He was fast, making him look like a ray of sunshine.
It was a little strange, flying above the forest during the day. It was so bright and colorful. Thankfully faires rarely flew as high as they did, so they had clear skies. Before they knew it, the mountains appeared on the horizon, and Yuuri had the impression that Wolfram's wings began to shine even more at the sight of them. It's funny that you could see different emotions in fairies thanks to them. It was interesting to see if when he was sad, their light dimmed.
The mountains were just as green, covered with forest from the base to the very top. It was an ordinary forest without magical plants, so no colorful light broke through the branches.
He landed at the base of one of the mountains when he spotted the familiar surroundings and tucked his wing again.
"Cover with the cloak. We will go on foot from now."
"Can't we just fly?"
"Dragons don't like it when someone flies over their territory. You rather not want to upset them."
So Wolfram hid his golden wings and wore a cloak. Yuuri felt slightly disappointed for some reason, but he quickly shrugged it off and started walking the narrow path between the trees.
"We will go check the nearest cave and see if it is still inhabited," he said when they began to climb the mountain.