It was the third day of their journey to Edas Village.
After the rain at night the weather was nice again, the path began to climb steeper, the mountains loomed before them.
If they held their speed, they might reach the village before evening.
And here was the problem, closer they got the more nervous Ryuu looked.
Bell knew her for quite a while now and had seen a few sides of Ryuu, serious, angry, emotional and so on. But never had he seen her like this.
At first they walked at their normal speed, then he noticed that she was getting faster, Ryuu almost started running before she calmed down again and returned to her normal speed.
This had been repeated for an hour now, Bell was unsure whether or what to say. For now he followed her and adjusted his speed when necessary.
The path was getting stony and winding up, right when Bell thought about changing into his travel coat, Ryuu came to a hold.
"I can´t do it..." She sounded insecure.
Bell waited next to her. "Ryuu ?"
"Bell I...why are we standing around ? Hurry !" Ryuu sounded frustrated and practically rushed forward.
This was something new that no one ever teached Bell about, his grandfather shared his wisdom how do make woman happy. Over his time in Orario he even learned how to deal with angry woman...
well most of the time. He had learned how to comfort a crying girl or that one time, the hopeless Ryuu.
But he was never in a situation like this, her mood changed by leaps and bounds. Sometimes insecure, then again frustrated or angry.
Is there something I can do ?
Once his grandpa had told him. Listen Bell...when a woman is stressed, just listen, she needs something to relieve her stress.
Was this a situation like he was told ? He was pretty sure that Ryuu felt stress.
He saw how she shook her head. "Bell...I´m sorry for yelling at you."
"It´s okay."
"No, I shouldn't take my anger out on you..."
They continued walking in silence, it was a good thing they had their Falna, without it walking a mountain path as fast as they did, Bell was sure his legs would cramp.
The terrain became sloping, what lay in front of them was like a small valley filled with rocks, some distance away they could see a sign with a red magic stone lantern, maybe it was to show people the right direction.
"Guess we have to climb."
Ryuu didn´t answer him, she just half slid, half went down the slope.
Bell had no other choice than to follow her, they were lucky that it didn´t rain.
The went around smaller rocks or jumped over them, always following the direction. When a rock as big as a house blocked their way, Ryuu started to climb wordless.
At first Bell wanted to follow her, but when he looked up he realized, that the wind pushed her cape to the side. Ryuu wore her green pants, and leather boots like always.
She could move around in these clothes very well but Bell´s problem was, it showed her body line...very well. He tried not to look at her rear, but he just had to look up to climb.
Over him Ryuu looked down. "Bell what are you waiting for ?"
She´s so defensless right now !
"Ah eh..sorry...I´m comming !"
He climbed faster, while doing his best not to look. For a boy as innocent as Bell, the situation was like torture.
Arriving on top right next to Ryuu, Bell´s face was red and he looked to the side.
"Bell, are you okay ?"
"Ah..Yes...Don´t worry !"
"Hm.." Ryuu watched him from the corner of her eyes.
The rocks before them were smaller than the one they were standing on right now.
"We should be able to jump from rock to rock, that would be more efficient."
"Go on, I will follow you."
Soon they reached the sign at the end of the valley and continued their way.
Even if the path wasn't a problem, the following hours weren´t easy for Bell.
Somewhere deep in the mountains.
Howling in fear a group of monsters ran as fast as they could through the mountains. Normally these specific monsters were the nightmare of every traveler, having a humanoid like build, around two and a half meters tall, with thick fur and horns on their head. They were called Wendigo´s and could rip a human in half with just one swing of their claws. It was said that their origin was a curse and they were by all means evil creatures, waiting for travelers, they ambushed them, surrounded them and enjoyed the screams of fear. Often they didn´t kill for hunger or to defend their territory, just for an dark joy inside them.
They feared nothing in the mountains, not even the wyvern or the dragons...their only fear dashed behind them right now.
The king had rose from his slumber, he was hungry...and angry.
The ground trembled under the footsteps, a scream could be heard when the rearmost one was pulled back...a scream that quickly broke off.
Sheer panic filled the Wendigo´s as one after another was killed off, until only the alpha male was left. When he came into a dead end, he whirled around looking for a way out.
"Rrrrrr..."
The wendigo froze...he was here...somewhere...
His head shot back and forth, pressing himself against the wall.
Drip...drip...drip...
Some red drops landed on his fur.
The wendigo looked up and...
His head was ripped from his body in a movement too fast to see, he didn´t even had time to scream. A fountain of blood gushed out as the body collapsed, twitching.
With a thump the king landed nearby, blood dripping from his teeth. He was not statisfied...
He reared his body and filled his lungs.
"WWWRRRRYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY !"
In a certain village.
A woman paused in her work and looked up. Her indigo colored eyes wandered over the mountains while she tucked a strand of her long brown hair behind her ear.
A nearby man stopped in his work. "Mylady, is everything alright ?"
She turned to the man and showed him a short smile. "Yes, don´t worry Lars."
Noon was long gone when Bell and Ryuu finally saw their destination. The path ran over a mountainside, the village below them, about a kilometer away. They had been standing here for half an hour.
It was not because they were tired, but because Ryuu didn´t move at all. In the moment the village came into view, she stopped.
Bell had expected to see even more rocks, but the village was way more green than he thought. He could see many trees surrounding the village like a forest, all of them conifers. Grass grew between the houses.
There was even a stream flowing on one side. Bell counted twenty-one houses of different size. Some with one or two floors, they all had pitched roofs with shingles in brown, except one that had red ones. The walls of the first floor were made of stone, those of the higher ones of wood. He could see a fenced area with a herd of goats. The houses were not close together, each had something like its own garden, they were spread out over a wide area. Bell saw fields on the edge.
"It looks peacefull."
"..." Ryuu said nothing.
When Bell looked at her, he could see her tremble lightly.
"Ryuu..? Shall we go ?"
She only nodded slowly.
Slowly they followed the path. The residents of the village noticed them. As Bell saw not the whole village was encircled by trees. The path led directly into the village, maybe the residents had cut the trees here. When they reached the entrance, some curious villagers were waiting for them, Bell noticed, that some of them had weapons at their belts.
Since there are monsters in the mountains it seemed reasonable.
A tall man greeted them. "Welcome travelers."
Bell returned the greeting. "Ah thank you." He bowed his head politely.
"It´s rare that we have travelers here, what brings you to our lovely village ?" The man smiled friendly.
"I've been assigned a quest, to check the road from Orario to the village, if something happened and she accompanies me."
It was no lie of course, Bell wasn´t the type to lie, some even guessed he wasn´t able to lie. He had a quest to check up the road, be he thought that Ryuu´s reason was way to personal to tell it to the whole village.
"Then you are welcome, you didn't have any problems on the trip, did you?"
"No, we didn´t see a single monster."
Bell and Ryuu followed them inside the village, it was really peaceful here.
"Your village looks so nice."
"Thank you young man, you should go and take a look, come talk to me before it gets dark so we will find you a place to sleep."
"Oh thank you." Bell bowed his head thankful.
"The red shingles..." Ryuu quietly spoke her first words since entering the village.
"Oh right, we saw one house had other shingles than the others, is that a special house ?" Bell did his best not to seem too curious.
The man smiled. "A the Lady lives there, she is a wonderful person, something like our new village elder."
Bell noticed how Ryuu was trembling more.
"M-maybe we should go and greet her."
"A good idea but excuse me I still have work to do, enjoy our village." The man left waving.
They followed the path through the village, greeted the villagers and Bell looked around, Ryuu had her head lowered.
Ryu walked close behind him, Bell could feel the unease in her.
A few minutes passed before they arrived at the house with the red shingles, it stood on a small hill.
The garden door was open but no one in sight.
"Maybe she is inside." Bell walked carefully down the garden path until he arrived at the door.
Bell turned to Ryuu, she was shaking with her head still lowered.
"Ryuu ?.." He sounded worried, he had a guess what happened, something that happened to him often enough.
"B-Bell...I can´t..."
"I have no right..." Her body shuddered.
"Ryuu...calm down." He stood in front of her.
"I...I..."
"Ryuu..." Bell placed his hands slowly on her trembling shoulders.
Ryuu just shook her head, she had clasped her hands in her cloak, she panicked.
Bell remembered something she had done for him.
"Ryuu...breath slowly in and out."
He let go of her left shoulder and reached down with his hand, her left hand came up as if she wanted to fend him off. But Bell was faster and put his thumb and forefinger around her little finger.
They stood there for five minutes, until Ryuu calmed down enough, she still shuddered but doesn´t seem to be on the verge of a panic.
To any villager that might see them, they would look like a hugging couple.
"T-thank you Bell..."
"Is it okay when I knock ?"
Ryuu only nodded.
Bell knocked lightly...no answer.
After waiting for a few moments he knocked again...no answer.
Slowly and carefully he opened the door and looked inside.
"Excuse me ? Is someone there ?"
A voice came from somewhere inside. "Yes come in, I will be there in a second."
Bell took a step inside and Ryuu followed him, they left their backpacks outside.
The room inside was quite spacey, the stone walls on the inside had a nearly white color, wooden rafters supported the ceiling. Small cupboards or dried herbs hung on the walls.
A white leather couch and three armchairs stood in the middle on a big carpet. Built into one of the walls was a fireplace, with a small fire burning. A plate, a vase, a mirror and a small casket were lined up on a shelf above it. Here and there stood some houseplants entirely to the taste of the resident. In the backround Bell saw a doorless passage.
He looked around, a very nice house but it didn't look like only one person lived here. It looked more like...the home of a familia.
"What can I do for you ?...Oh a traveler !" The voice was velvet soft.
Whatever her age, the woman appearing before him was at the height of her feminine beauty, her face even finer than Ryuu´s elven features. Her long, walnut-brown hair was tied elegantly back.
Her eyes were the indigo blue of the deep sea. In the white kirtle-an elegant long skirt-she wore, she seemed every bit a virtuous noblewoman. A faint aura of divinity around her made it clear in the first moment, that this was a goddess.
Bell was at a loss for words, she was one of the prettiest women he had ever seen.
"Young man ?" She looked at him smiling.
"Ah eh..good afternoon !" He bowed lightly.
The woman giggled lightly. "How can I help you ?"
Right now Bell noticed that Ryuu was hiding in his shadow. He didn´t saw it but the moment the woman's voice rang out, Ryuu froze.
Ryuu was shaking in fear from head to toe.
"I ahm...my companion is..."
"Hm ?" The woman leaned forward with a friendly smile.
"Come on. I won´t do anything...to...Ryuu ?" The woman spoke when Bell stepped to the side and her voice drifted off more and more.
Ryuu stood there like a lost child.
She looked so insecure and frightened it broke Bell´s heart.
"Ryuu ?" The woman came a tiny step closer.
Slowly...so slowly Ryuu raised her head until her blue eyes met the indigo colored of the woman.
The woman raised a hand to her mouth. "Ryuu !..." She was trembling.
Ryuu looked at her, her breath came in gusts, Bell could hear little sobs.
"Lady...Astrea..." her lower lip trembled, tears dwelled in the corner of her eyes.
"My child..." Astrea came a step closer but Ryuu backed away slightly.
"I...I..." Ryuu was trembling all over.
"Ryuu...I´s okay..." Astrea held her arms slightly spread out from her body.
"Lady Astrea...I..."
Bell could only stand there in silence.
Even in the eyes of the goddess tears appeared.
"I hoped so long for this day..." Astrea stood right in front of the trembling Ryuu.
"Hic...Lady Astrea...Hic...I..."
Finally, the goddess Astra came up to her child and put her arms around her lovingly.
"Welcome home...Ryuu."
"Hic...Hic...hic..." Her sobs came faster and faster.
Bell sneaked silently to the door and went outside, he should let those two alone right now.
Inside, the dam finally broke.
"Ah..Waaaaaaaah !" Ryuu put her arms around Astrea and bursted into tears that streamed unrestrained down her face.
The mask of the strong elven warrior cracked and shattered, leaving behind the crying young girl that was Ryuu´s true self.
"It´s okay...It´s okay..." Astra cried with her.
"I´m sorry...I´m so sorry !"
"You don´t have to Ryuu !"
"Please forgive me !...hic...For what I did to you !...hic"
"There is nothing that needs to be forgiven !"
"Waaaaaaah..." Ryuu cried uncontrollably.
All the uneasiness Ryuu felt, all the fear she had in her of being rejected by Astrea, all that and much more was washed away.
Finally she was reunited with the goddess she loved so much.
Goddess and mortal elf stood there and cried their hearts out.
Bell was sitting on the step that led to the house.
He looked up to the sky.
He smiled.
"I am happy for you Ryuu."
