Chapter Nine
At night fall, Vulcan was sleeping in a huge tent, while Mars was in a tent so small it only covered his waist.
All was peaceful and quiet… suddenly Mars jerked awake and said "The peasant, at the diner! …He forgot his cherry fountain." He fell right back asleep, but then he jerked back up. "The peasant girl! It's the same redhead I saw who disappeared into the crowd with Nero on the back of her cart!" He gasped, both in realization and to regain energy. "She must have taken him back to her village, so if we find the village, we find her, we find her… we find Nero. Oh yeah, I love it when it's all comin' together." He got up and ran into Vulcan's tent. "Vulcan!"
"WHAT?!" said Vulcan sitting up with cucumbers on his eyes. He removed one cucumber so he can see. "I was having a pretty good dream."
"I think I know where to find him."
Hearing that made Vulcan smile sinisterly.
The next morning, Nero walked out of the woods and found a cave on a rocky hill. He looked at it's left side seeing a flock of sheep grazing at the grassy field. Since he can't go back to Rome and with his cousin hunting him down, he had no choice but to make the cave his new home. He walked in and laid down. But then, when he was about to cry, he heard a familiar voice making him leave the cave.
"So there we were standing on the cliff," said the voice coming from in the flock of sheep, "and the ground started to rumble. And just as it started to go, he grabbed me before I fell. Do you believe that? You know, call me crazy for following this guy all the way out here, but as much as he tries to deny it, I know there's some good in him. Besides, I couldn't just leave him out here all alone."
Nero followed the voice and discovered it's Pyrrha talking to the sheep. She turned to see him coming over, smiling for being happy to see her again. "You came back?"
"I never left you. I've just been one step behind since yesterday."
But Nero smiled faded away. "Look, Pyrrha…" said Nero, "I'm sorry. I guess I was a total jerk. Now I know why-"
Pyrrha motioned her hand to stop talking. She leaned down and petted him on the mane. She said "It's okay. You homesick?"
"Yeah."