Disclaimer: Don't own. Not up for debate.
AN: Because of the way that I've managed to write, I basically have two versions of canon and I feel like I should clarify about this before I go any further. Canon A follows all of the canon material up until the end of the game. The material designed/mentioned/planned for the second game is not considered. Canon B includes material that was considered for the second game on top of what was in the first game. I hope that this clears up any inconsistency in my fics. Fics like Hello Kalus and A Treatise on Trolls use Canon A and fics like The Wanderer are based off Canon B.
In what seemed like no time at all, the sun rose over the Buffer Zone and Itham was shaken awake. Groggily, he pulled himself out of bed and quickly dressed as he heard his cousin complaining about how early it was.
"Here's your new staff boy," his uncle said, thrusting a new quarterstaff into Itham's hands and Itham swallowed a gasp of surprise. Clearly his uncle expected them to succeed today after all.
He shifted the staff in his hands, gently feeling it's weight as he flipped it from side to side. It was a good, sturdy bit of wood.
"Hey cousin!" Folluin said excitedly as he clapped an arm around Itham. "We're going to be rich! We're going to go back to the Enchanted Kingdom as heroes!"
Itham frowned and said nothing. The idea of going to the Enchanted Kingdom held no sway with him, not really. It was like a dream older elves like his uncle and his parents had talked about. A home that he felt no kinship to and no real attachment to. His parents had been born there but…
The Buffer Zone felt like home.
"Aren't you worried that…" Itham paused and frowned slightly. "Do you think that…" He paused again. He really had no idea how to explain what he was thinking.
"Don't worry cousin," Folluin said, clapping his arm around Itham once more. "We're more than a match for some rogue mage. Especially some pampered princess."
Itham suppressed a snort. He very much doubted that The Wanderer was a pampered princess. Not anymore, if she ever was. If even half the stories about her were true, then she was no pushover. And...she had been around for longer than the Buffer Zone had even existed. She had been outside the Kingdom for longer than anyone out here. Still, thinking was hardly his cousin's strong point and Itham knew better than to try.
Electing to stay quiet, Itham quickly dressed. No doubt his uncle wouldn't be of any help and his aunt...well...there was a reason she avoided him.
Itham ate breakfast in silence as his uncle eagerly talked about what they were going to do.
"Itham here is going to tell us where this pampered princess went after rescuing him!" his uncle said enthusiastically, slapping an arm on Itham's shoulders. Itham said nothing. He doubted that his uncle would want to hear any objections to his description of pampered princess any more than his cousin did. And unlike Folluin, he was just as likely to back up his problems with his fists. "And when we find her,we'll surround her and take her in." He looked at Folluin. "I will keep her distracted. You will come up behind her and grab her from behind. She'll never see that coming!"
Itham kept eating in silence, feeling slightly uncomfortable. The Wanderer had saved his life. He owed her. This was wrong. (He also privately doubted that it would be that easy. But Uncle Vendi would listen to him. Probably hit him if he spoke up.)
"That's a great plan dad!" Folluin said excitedly, his eyes shining with excitement.
"This is our lucky break. We're going to be famous as the ones who captured the infamous criminal Princess Kalus! We're going to be heroes, no more scabbling in the dirt to gain the wealth that we deserve!"
Itham kept silent. He was beginning to wonder if he was going to go completely mute from all the words that he was holding back. And...he wanted time to think. There had to be a way out of this. Something that wouldn't get him killed by his uncle. (And he was certain that his uncle would kill him. Of that he had no doubt.)
"You aren't having any doubts, are you boy?" his uncle asked and Itham shook his head rapidly. "Good. Because if we don't find her, I WILL make the Glow Demons seem positively merciful."
"Of-of-of course uncle," Itham said nervously as he mentally discarded the idea of leading his uncle and cousin astray. Still, there had to be something. His uncle gave him what he supposed was meant to be a reassuring smile. It looked more like a grimace, but Itham said nothing.
"Don't worry boy. I am sure that we'll find her. Just how hard can it be to track some pampered princess?" his uncle said. Itham said nothing. Stories of The Lost Princess were not as common as stories of The Wanderer, but they still existed. Unlike tales of The Wanderer, they were more like ghost stories than anything else. A woman seen only in glimpses and who's tracks vanished before they could be found.
Still, his uncle was unlikely to listen to that.
"Yes Uncle," Itham said after a few moments and the slightly crazed look in his uncle's eyes faded.
"Good. Now finish eating boy. We're wasting time after all," his uncle said and Itham quickly finished his meal.
KEOPKEOPKEOPKEOPKEOPKEOPKEOPKEOPKEOPKEOPKEOPKEOP
In what felt like no time at all, they were standing in the field where The Wanderer had left him.
It was early. Far too early for other elves to be there and Itham wasn't sure if he should be grateful for the lack of witnesses or saddened by it.
"Now, where did you see her go? In which direction, boy?" Itham's uncle asked and Itham swallowed nervously. Maybe he could point them in a slightly wrong direction?
As if reading his mind, his uncle scowled at him.
"Don't you dare try pointing us in the wrong direction," he warned and Itham swallowed again.
"Now which way did she go boy?" his uncle barked and Itham swallowed nervously. On the ground, he could see the grass was…moving in a most peculiar way. As though it was moving like a living animal.
"Th-th-that way," Itham said, pointing in the direction she had gone. His uncle grinned and began walking…in a slightly different direction. It was almost like he was dazed or being led away…
"Well, keep up boy!" his uncle barked at him and Itham cautiously followed. Maybe there was a way out of this situation after all. He could hardly go against magic after all, could he? And maybe…maybe he could find a way to warn her?
Still, there was every chance that his uncle wouldn't believe him and kill him. How far would they wander off course before his uncle decided that Itham was lying to them? How long?
He gripped his staff. If that happened, at least he had a weapon to defend himself with. It probably wouldn't stop his uncle, but maybe it would buy him enough time to escape?
"Get a move on boy! We haven't got all day!" his uncle bellowed and Itham quickly ran after them. He would have to figure out something as he went. Maybe he could use the strange, moving grass to find his way to escape? Would it confuse his uncle and cousin, or would it do nothing? There had to be something.
"Dad, won't she be moving like us?" Foullin asked as they continued to walk and Uncle Vendi laughed.
"She's just a pampered Princess. No, she can't keep up with us. We're the inhabitants of a hard land. We live here. She's used to the Palace, to living the good life." He paused and smirked. "Besides, she doesn't KNOW that we're coming for her. Every other person she's helped has hidden her, but," He grabbed Itham around the shoulders. "Itham here knows his duty to his family comes first. Don't you boy?"
"Yes Uncle," Itham answered quickly, trying to hide his doubts. His uncle was not keen on family when it came to him, or concerning himself. It only mattered when it benefited his uncle. Itham looked at his cousin, who was nodding in agreement. (He realised that it would NOT be a good idea to mention that she hadn't lived in the palace since before he was born.)
"Besides, she's a fool who just helps others as she passes." He puffed himself up. "WE are chasing her down. And she doesn't even know that we're coming."
Itham resisted the urge to point out that she had managed to stay free for twenty-six years. Besides, the strange grass (which he could still see out of the corner of his eye) would probably throw off any attempt by them to track her. It might even go some way to explaining why she had remained free for so long.
His uncle gestured and they continued walking. In the corner of his eye, Itham could see the strange grass still moving. Whatever it was (and he was pretty sure that it was some kind of protective magic.), neither his uncle, nor his cousin, could appear to see it. And that had to be a good thing. At least, he hoped that it was.
Nearby, he could see other goat herders with their herds. He wouldn't exactly call them friends exactly, but he would have preferred their company. Would they even care if he disappeared? Or would they simply mark it up to another unfortunate casualty of the Buffer Zone?
For the rest of the day, they kept moving, his uncle and cousin eagerly looking for traces of The Wanderer. They were, Itham would admit, capable trackers. They would be expecting to find something. And in the corner of his eye, Itham watched the strangely moving grass move further and further away. As the sun began to set, his uncle turned to glare at Itham.
"Have you been lying to me boy?" Uncle Vendi growled at him and Itham rapidly shook his head. He swallowed nervously.
"No Uncle," he said, his heart pounding wildly and his legs tensed, ready to run if necessary.
Folluin tapped Uncle Vendi's shoulder and whispered something in his ear and Uncle Vendi calmed down.
"Folluin is right. No doubt the princess has been hiding her tracks with magic. We'll find a trail in the morning no doubt."
Itham suppressed a gasp of surprise. It was definitely an...unexpected result to say the least. But not an unwelcome one. He glanced at his cousin, who was busy preparing the tents. Just what did he say to Uncle Vendi?
"Start a fire boy," his uncle said, throwing a bundle of firewood at him. Itham stood still for a moment, unsure of what had just happened. He glanced at his cousin. Just what had Foullin said to him? Setting the sticks on the ground, he began to set up the fire and soon a healthy blaze was underway.
"We'll find her tomorrow," his uncle said with a grin. He seemed to be in a surprisingly good mood, considering their lack of success so far. "I have a hunch that we're getting close to her trail. It's just a question of how soon."
"I'm sure we're going to find a new trail," Foullin added with a grin, before nodding at Itham. "She's just had a head start. But now, she's going to think that it's safe, she's going to stop hiding her trail."
Itham hid his wince. He hadn't thought of that. What if they were right? What if they found something that led them right to her?
He paused and gave himself a mental shake. They had been going in the wrong direction all day. There was no way that they would find her. In the corner of his eye, he could see the strange grass continuing to move.
"Uncle Vendi...the Wanderer is well liked... is it possible that we're not going to be able to catch her?" Itham tentatively asked and to his surprise, Uncle Vendi laughed.
"Don't be silly boy. It's a very flat part of the Zone out here and very empty. Who else would we see?"
"Don't be so pessimistic cousin," Foullin said with a grin. "Just think about the wealth and fame we're going to have when we catch her."
"Yeah," Itham said thoughtfully, although he suspected that his thoughts and what his cousin was thinking were two very different things.
He looked over towards the strangely moving grass that his uncle and cousin didn't appear see. If he...well it was going to be dangerous...
His uncle threw some more wood at Itham, breaking him out of his thoughts.
"You're on watch boy!" Uncle Vendi barked at him and Itham nodded. Of course his uncle would have him on watch. His uncle continued. "Keep an eye out for the princess. Maybe we'll get lucky."
Itham nodded again, his mind racing. His uncle and cousin hadn't seen the strange moving grass, he was sure of it. In fact, he was almost certain that they couldn't see it. But he could. Was it possible that it would lead him to the Wanderer? As his cousin and uncle settled down to sleep, Itham looked at the strangely moving grass. The fact that it was still doing that was a good sign, right? The Wanderer was powerful, but was she that powerful?
An hour passed and soon it was dark. In the starlight, Itham could see the strange grass. He glanced over at his uncle and cousin. They were fast asleep and dead to the world. If he was quick, he could be back before they even realised he was gone. Grabbing a burning torch, he began to follow the strangely moving grass. He had to warn her!