"Alright! We'll be arriving at the next town in the hour," Meliodas announced.
Gelda held up a finger and signed. "Where?"
Meliodas was positively beaming. "Bernia Village!"
Zeldris choked on the water he was drinking, while Gelda joined her brother-in-law in grinning. Elizabeth, Hawk, and Ban shared a confused look.
"Bernia?" Zeldris repeated.
"Yep!"
The younger brother groaned, letting his head drop to the counter. Gelda patted his head, but her grin was unwavering.
"What's wrong with Bernia?" Elizabeth asked.
"Absolutely nothing!"
Ban's face scrunched up slightly. "Wait, didn't you mention something happening in Bernia a few years before the Sins were formed?" He glanced at the blonde. "I vaguely remember Merlin having a similar reaction."
"No you don't."
Zeldris huffed, pushing himself up. "He absolutely does, because while Bernia has the most amazing alcohol to ever grace this world, Merlin very much does not like what happened there fifteen years ago anymore than I do."
Gelda's grin faltered, and she let her hand fall to Zeldris', giving it a squeeze.
"What happened in Bernia?" Hawk asked. "You've never looked this miserable to go anywhere!"
Meliodas waved his hand dismissively, his own smile faded. "Nothing too bad-" Gelda whacked him upside the head, "-okay so it was a small incident, but most of the people there forgave and forgot about it!" Meliodas rubbed the back of his head, and glared lightly at Gelda.
"That explains nothing!" huffed Hawk.
"Meliodas here, gave us all heart attacks, by drinking all of Bernia's ale - almost fifty barrels I think, maybe more - and almost died of alcohol poisoning," Zeldris explained, glaring with much more force at Meliodas. Meliodas shrunk under his gaze, looking a mix of sheepish and guilty.
All heads turned to the blonde, eyes wide except for the only other two people who had been there, one of which looked annoyed and the other offering a slightly apologetic expression - to whom she was directing it none of them had a clue.
The silence was suffocating for about an entire minute before Ban clapped his hands together.
"O-kay," he said slowly, "we'll keep a close eye on the captain's drinks." He grinned. "Frankly, I didn't think the captain could get drunk. It took fifty barrels?"
Gelda huffed silently, a fond smile slowly forming on her face as she nodded.
"Truly, a wonder it only took that much," Zeldris muttered, to which Gelda appeared to chuckle and Meliodas rubbed his neck, truly sheepish this time.
"Anyways, what matters is we can restock on Bernia ale here, and get Elizabeth some new clothes!" Meliodas was once again grinning.
"You didn't have a spare uniform?" Hawk asked, for what is the dozenth time since he spotted Elizabeth in Meliodas' clothes, the oversized baggy white shirt and equally baggy but short on her green pants making Elizabeth look a mix of smaller and taller than she really was. It had taken almost an hour to calm Hawk down.
"Not in Elizabeth's size. Gelda's, yes, but…" Meliodas trailed off.
"But what?"
"But do you really want Elizabeth in oversized clothes that are far more revealing than what she has on now?" Zeldris finished Meliodas' train of thought.
Hawk faltered, huffed again, but conceded that it was probably a bad idea.
"Exactly! We can get fabric for new uniforms for her, and she can pick out some other clothes that she may want as well."
Ban raised a brow. "We're not all going to shop for dresses though, right? Cause Captain, don't think it really fits some of us."
Meliodas rolled his eyes. "We're going to restock supplies, along with Hawk and Zel, while Gelda goes with Elizabeth." He glanced around, smiling confidently. "That sound good?"
Elizabeth and Gelda glanced at each other, and Gelda shrugged, though offered a small smile and held up her notepad. Elizabeth smiled as well and nodded. "All good to us."
It didn't take much longer to get to Bernia Village. Mama Hawk dug into the ground as she always did, the tavern rocking. Elizabeth prided herself on not completely losing her balance and only stumbling, especially when the shaking sent Ban lurching into one of the tables.
Mama Hawk settled, Gelda surrounded herself once again in a veil of darkness - Elizabeth was definitely curious as to both how she could do that and why, and made a mental note to ask sometime - and Meliodas distributed some money for everyone to buy what they'd need. Elizabeth was about to protest, noticing that Meliodas definitely gave her and Gelda more than he gave everyone else, but Gelda held a finger to her lips, smiling, and she winked at Elizabeth. Elizabeth huffed a laugh but listened, stuffing her hands into the pockets on her shirt.
Any plans of shopping disappeared once they actually got into town.
"Where is everyone?" Hawk asked. "It's like a ghost town!"
Zeldris' brow furrowed. "Not exactly, Hawk."
"It is pretty quiet…" Elizabeth mumbled.
"Would people live in a place with no more water?" Ban gestured to what once was a river, frowning. "This was their main source, right?"
"It was." Meliodas began walking quicker, further into town. "But there may still be someone to explain things."
"Don't know Capt'n, looks and sounds like an empty-" Ban cut himself off, his own brows furrowing. Elizabeth was about to question him, too, when just like in Dalmary she finally started to hear some sort of commotion.
"Oh great," she mumbled as the brothers and Ban began to run towards the commotion. Elizabeth glanced at Hawk. "Hasn't even been a day and we're doing this all over again."
Gelda seemed to laugh, shaking her head and signing before lifting up the ground to catch up with the others. Elizabeth glanced at Hawk.
"She says hopefully without the bugs."
Elizabeth chuckled, silently agreeing, and took a deep breath. She chased after them, with Hawk hot on her tail.
They both slowed once they reached the others, standing outside a mass of people in what Elizabeth could only assume to be the town square. She leaned onto Hawk, catching her breath. She frowned, unable to really hear anything other than people arguing. She flinched as curses were spat into the air as though they were a mantra.
"Can you see what's going on?" Elizabeth asked, glancing between the ex-Holy Knights, Zeldris, and Gelda. Well, mostly Ban and Gelda - they had a better chance at seeing over the crowd.
Gelda shook her head, floating just a bit higher and squinting. Elizabeth's frown deepened. She realized Gelda might not be able to see too clearly with the darkness around her, and probably didn't want to risk sun exposure to see more clearly.
Zeldris huffed and tapped someone on the shoulder. The person who turned was an old man, with shoulders hunched and one of the most resigned faces Elizabeth had ever seen.
"What's going on here?" Zeldris asked.
"Ah… a… a Holy Knight… he struck his sword into the ground, he was angered and struck his sword in the ground."
Elizabeth's breath caught in her throat.
Meliodas leaned on Zeldris, shoving his brother down slightly. "A Holy Knight?" He spared a glance to Elizabeth.
The old man hummed quietly. "You might wish to take a look for yourself, if you don't believe me." He sighed heavily. "I wouldn't blame you."
Zeldris pushed Meliodas off him. "We can take a look. Not sure what we can do. But no one can pull out the sword?" The man shook his head.
"I am afraid not." He pointed towards where the crowd was thickest. "The sword is in the center of town. It's uh, it's stopped our water. People have begun packing, intending to move since no one knows how to remove the sword." He took a deep breath. "If you need anything, please feel free to find me."
"Your name…?" Zeldris asked.
"Just ask anyone for the Headman."
"Alright, thank you sir," Meliodas flashed the man a small smile. The Headman nodded before wandering away. "Alright! Let's go see this sword."
Before anyone could protest, Meliodas had grabbed Zeldris' shoulders and started to make their way through the crowd, Meliodas using his younger brother almost as a shield to nudge people out of the way. The others followed, worming their way through the increasing number of arguing townspeople.
They finally broke through, Zeldris once again shoving Meliodas away from him with a huff. Elizabeth glanced around, watching some people trying to pull the sword out. The sword didn't move an inch.
It felt weird, though Elizabeth couldn't place why.
"Wonder what got a Holy Knight so huffy that he did this," Hawk said. Ban hummed lowly, and rolled his eyes.
"Easy to rile up Holy Knights nowadays, really. Testy bastards."
Hawk glanced up at him. "Weren't you one before?"
Ban grinned. "Yep!"
Zeldris nodded. "He has a point." Meliodas huffed, and Zeldris raised a brow at him. "Oh, I'm sorry, Mr. Sin of Wrath," he whispered, voice dripping with sarcasm, "are you going to disagree?"
Meliodas looked like he was about to retort, but decided against it, though that didn't stop him from grumbling slightly.
Hawk rolled his eyes. "That still doesn't explain what happened, though."
Before anything else could be done, however, a little kid stood proudly - well, Elizabeth assumed it was proudly, with how the kid puffed out his chest with a hand on his hip, voice booming over the crowd of angered adults - and his words made them all pause in any attempt to continue finding out what happened.
"What's with all this groaning? So some Holy Knight's sword is stuck in the ground, this is nothing! It'd be a piece of cake for my buddies, the Seven Deadly Sins!"
"Have you ever seen that pipsqueak, Capt'n?" Ban mumbled, leaning down to the blonde's height. Meliodas shook his head, frowning only just slightly.
The kid jumped as an older woman stepped forward, almost scowling at him. "That's enough, Mead! Whose fault is it that we're in this fix? Of all the things you could say, and you bring up those criminals?!"
Elizabeth flinched at her words, glancing around nervously. Gelda stepped closer, Elizabeth being slightly covered by the veil of shadow, and gently clasped Elizabeth's shoulder, giving it a small squeeze. Zeldris crossed his arms, glancing at Meliodas before turning back to the boy, a small but almost nonexistent frown on his face.
Others were quick to join in scolding the boy.
"She's right! Don't make the Holy Knight any angrier!"
"Do you hate us that much?!"
The boy - Mead - faltered, hands balling at his sides, and Elizabeth felt her heart squeeze. "That- that's not why I did it!" His clenched fists trembled as he looked around.
"We can only take so much of your mischief and lies!"
"You're a jerk, Mead!"
The last one, spat by another kid who couldn't be any older than Mead, was accompanied by a poorly aimed rock.
Elizabeth's hands flew to her mouth as it collided with Meliodas' face - though it would have hit Zeldris, had he not pulled his elder brother in the way. Hawk tensed, Ban failed to hide his snicker in a cough, and Gelda squeezed Elizabeth's shoulder just that little bit tighter.
Mead's face scrunched up. "I hate you guys!" he screamed.
"Well we hate you more!" cried some other kid, yet another rock in hand. Meliodas, with a face tinged red from the first rock, grabbed Mead by the shoulders and began pushing the boy back through the crowd, and only moved faster as more rocks were thrown. Zeldris muttered a curse as Meliodas dashed at what couldn't be a human speed, stiffening and face contorting slightly as though he'd just been slapped, then ran after the blonde as fast as he could.
Ban watched the two go before looking at the others, a brow raised. Gelda offered a half-hearted shrug. She signed to him, finally releasing Elizabeth to do so.
"You should go too."
He gave a soft hum before nodding and jogging back to the tavern.
Hawk sighed, watching Ban leave as well. "I guess we picked a lousy time to come."
The Headman was there again, and sighed heavily as the torrent of rocks subsided. "He's an honest, earnest lad, deep down."
Elizabeth startled, brows creasing and turning to the Headman. "What do you mean?"
"Well, that sucked…" Meliodas sighed, crossing his arms. Mead's head rested on a table, staring blankly ahead. Zeldris sat on a different table, Ban having retreated into the kitchen. The black-haired brother huffed a laugh.
"You think?"
Meliodas ignored him. "What was all that about, kiddo?"
"You're a kid, too!"
"I'm really not."
"He really isn't," Zeldris agreed.
Mead took a better look around. "What is this place? A tavern?"
"My place - the Boar Hat."
Mead frowned, sitting up a little more. "I'm hungry."
The blonde glanced towards the kitchen. "If you answer my questions, you'll get food." Mead grinned, and Meliodas narrowed his eyes at him as the kid leaned back.
"Food, then I'll talk."
Meliodas groaned softly, before also retreating to the kitchen. Zeldris watched with a tilted head and a small frown, and both he and Mead flinched as there was the unmistakable sound of dozens of culinary tools clattering to the floor, along with someone smacking against a wall not at all gently. Mead looked at Zeldris with wide eyes, though Zeldris just huffed again and leaned back.
"You fix what you break!" Zeldris yelled, and that seemed to quiet whatever was going on in the back.
Well, quiet for Mead. Zeldris could still hear Meliodas and Ban arguing in whispers about if it was alright to feed him Meliodas' cooking. Zeldris didn't pay enough attention to hear what conclusion they came up with.
Soon enough though, food was being placed in front of Mead. Zeldris looked at it skeptically, while Mead's eyes were wide and mouth watering at the sight. Ban didn't look all that happy stepping out of the kitchen, either, placing a different plate on the other side of the table. Meliodas had gone to the bar to pour himself a drink, smiling.
Sure enough, after the first bite from the one in front of him, Mead's eyes widened even further and he spat out whatever horror was assaulting his tongue.
Meliodas' grin widened. "Didn't say I'd give you good food! Now," Meliodas returned to Mead's table and sat across from him, not touching the food Ban had placed, "was that true, you being friends with the Seven Deadly Sins?"
Mead looked absolutely miserable, and Ban took a rare pity on the boy, changing out whatever Meliodas had given him with something that was most definitely edible. Mead looked at it warily, looking between the three strange men with a lot less trust. Zeldris smiled reassuringly.
"That one will taste better, give it a try and answer as you eat."
He did just that, relaxing and practically melting into his seat at Ban's food. Mead ate for a little while, Meliodas pouting slightly and hiding it behind his tankard since his little "prank" (Zeldris would consider it attempted poisoning) didn't have much of an impact, though before he could answer, the bell above the door rang.
Elizabeth, Hawk, and Gelda walked in - Gelda's darkness evaporating around her once in the tavern. She exchanged a look with Zeldris, and he gave her a thumbs up. She may or may not have shoved Meliodas a tiny bit as she passed him, though, just enough to get him to almost spill his Bernia Ale. As Hawk closed the door, Elizabeth made her way over to the boy.
"Mead," she said, leaning down with hands on her hips and what could have possibly been her attempt at a stern expression on her face, "I've heard you're quite a prankster. The Headman told me all about you."
Mead's anxious face fell into a mix of confusion, annoyance, and disappointment. "What's with you, lady? Who do you think you are?" he grumbled.
The princess smiled gently, settling onto her knees. "I played many pranks when I was little as well, and often found my father scolding me for them." Mead held his head higher, practically rolling his eyes.
"So?"
Elizabeth tilted her head, expression softening even more. "I did it to get his attention. He isn't my real father, you see. I tried to scare him once, and climbed a really tall tree… he turned so pale, and climbed up after me. He'd never climbed one in his life… He got hurt, not seriously, but… I still remember it, as though it were yesterday. If Father had died that day… I…" Elizabeth trailed off, staring at the ground with a sad smile.
Meliodas' breath had hitched, and he pretended to be more interested in his beer than the story Elizabeth had just finished. Goddesses above, he remembered that day too, hearing from some knight what had happened… Meliodas took a swig of the ale to hide his frown.
Mead had turned back to the table, lip wobbling and eyes wide. "I don't lie just to get a rise out of people either…"
Elizabeth stood and placed a gentle hand on his back, her small smile never wavering. "Will you tell me about it?"
He took a deep breath, and began explaining his story. His eyes watered throughout, though Elizabeth, Hawk, and Ban seemed to be the only ones paying attention. Not that the others were meaning to ignore him, though.
Gelda was frowning deeply, listening to the boy, and looked between her husband and in-law carefully. Meliodas was gripping his tankard so tightly, his knuckles were paling, and Zeldris' hand twitched in her grasp. She gave it a gentle squeeze, remembering herself of the days when their lives had been like that, of trying to get any kind of attention from their bastard father - or mentors they may have had - any way they could.
Tears began to slip down Mead's cheeks, and Gelda felt an urge to wipe them away and cradle the boy.
"Is that why you put the bug in the Holy Knight's drink?" Elizabeth asked softly as Mead wiped at his eyes furiously.
Mead slammed his hands down. "No! He treated everyone like crap!" He took a deep breath, though it did nothing to steady his breathing. "Everyone in the village goes through a lot of time and trouble to make great ale, and he just insulted them all!" His tears began to slow, his face red from the crying and rage boiling under his skin, rage that shouldn't belong to a child. "Holy Knights are no-good bastards!" Mead spat.
"And you being friends with the Seven Deadly Sins?" Meliodas asked again. He pointedly ignored the glares sent his way by both Zeldris and Gelda.
Mead looked down at his food, now very cold, though his appetite was gone anyway. "I lied," he mumbled.
Meliodas hummed softly. "My hopes were up a little, honestly… ah well."
Elizabeth tilted her head, frowning. "But why would you lie about something like that?"
"W-well… if the Seven Deadly Sins are being hunted by evil Holy Knights… then aren't- aren't they the good guys?"
Elizabeth and Hawk glanced between Meliodas and Ban, Meliodas who was watching Mead with a barely there smile and Ban who was decidedly not looking at anyone - proud as he may be to be in the Sins, he was only an idiot to admit that kind of thing while blackout drunk, thank you.
Zeldris sighed softly. "Mead, do you remember what the Holy Knight looked like?"
Mead shook his head. "S-sorry…"
Ban walked over and ruffled Mead's hair. "It's alright, kid." He looked to Meliodas. "Well Cap, you gonna go help these people?"
"Huh?" Mead looked between the two, struggling to look up at Ban as his hand was still planted firmly on the kid's head.
Meliodas raised a brow at him. "Me?"
"Yeah, you're the one with morals-" he said the word as though it were the most disgusting thing to exist, "-so it only makes sense."
Meliodas huffed, and downed the rest of his drink.
Elizabeth glanced around, almost as confused as Mead, as a silence settled over them for just a moment. Meliodas' tankard hit the table and he pushed himself up.
"Alrighty then!"
As if there was any other option for him.
They did get to go shopping for supplies. After Meliodas removed the sword, of course.