You Owe Me Two

Chapter 2 - New Clothes

××Zypher××

I blinked in surprise at the woman who now sat in front of me. She was infinitely more pretty in this form but tears were beginning to build in her eyes and I was not going to deal with some sobbing female.

I fisted a hand in my leather jacket before swinging at her. She gasped when it hit her in the face but quickly pulled it on. It swallowed her small frame.

"Thank you," she mumbled out. Her eyes nervously glanced around us, dancing over me every few seconds as if I was about to pull the knife from my belt and take her life.

I guess that wouldn't be an outlandish thought considering what she had seen happen inside the cabin only a little over an hour ago.

"You are quite pretty," I said, bringing a hand up to take a piece of her long, red hair between my fingers. I twirled it slowly; it was soft.

"What is your name?"

"Wild," she whispered, holding completely still as I dropped the strand in favor of another.

"Interesting."

"Are you going to hurt me?" She rushed out, her hands shook at her sides and the fear was evident in her wobbling voice.

"Not tonight. Let's sleep," I said. I wouldn't kill her tonight; it would be easy, quick but I wouldn't. I was unsure what I was going to do with her but she was too pretty to murder. I stood up and pulled the silk cloth from my bag before picking a more grassy spot to lay down.

I used my bag as an uncomfortable, lumpy pillow and threw the cloth over my body. My half closed eyes watched Wilds trembling form. She had curled back in on herself. I couldn't let her sit by herself all night. She might run away and that would cost me my jacket.

"Come here," I ordered, holding up an edge of the cloth. Wild looked unsure but after a sharp glare, she was stumbling over and falling into the space I has opened up for her. I hooked an arm around her waist and squeezed tight in warning before shutting my eyes. Wild clutched my shirt but stopped moving all together afterwards.

×××××

A soft groan left my lips as soon as I awoke. I was already feeling the effects of sleeping on the rocky terrain and it wasn't pleasant. I opened my eyes and gave them a few blinking moments to let them adjust. I glanced at the sky; the sun was just beginning to peek over the tree tops.

I looked down and found Wild exactly where I left her. Her hands still held wads of my shift but her fearful face had relaxed over night. Again, I couldn't help but notice her beauty. I reached my hand up and took a stand of hair. The small movement was enough to have Wilds eyes snapping open.

A small, scared whimper escaped her causing me to sigh and let go. I sat up, exposing myself and Wild to the cool morning air. Wild sat up beside me and pulled my jacket closer around her body, trying to preserve her warmth.

I opened my bag and began rummaging through to find the bag of dried meat I knew sat inside. Through the side of my eye, I noticed Wild begin folding up the silk cloth. She ran her fingers over the light green.

"Aren't you fairies good at making clothing? You can use that," I said, pointing towards the cloth.

"Really?" She asked hopefully, her head drifting up to meet my gaze. I nodded my head yes instead of speaking and popped a piece of meat into my mouth.

Wild stood with the cloth in hand. She held it up before dropping the edges; it stayed suspended in the air. A red glow incased the cloth, a sign of Wilds magic.

She turned to the side and suddenly, a life size mannequin made of red sparkles stood next to her. It was faceless but had the same height and body proportions as the female fairy.

It was quite interesting seeing her work. It seemed effortless as she moved her hands to move and cut the cloth. Pieces separated and connected, sewing together with magic strings. Within minutes, the cloth had become a full outfit. The clone disappeared and the shirt and pants dropped into her awaiting hands.

A sweet smile slipped onto her pink lips as she examined her work. She rushed behind the trunk of a tree and my body tensed, prepared to make chase. I calmed when I heard the sound of shifting fabric. Wild walked out from behind the tree with my leather jacket drapped over her arms.

She handed the jacket to me and allowed me to actually see the outfit on her. The shirt front was fairly normal, two straps went around her neck so the back could be more open in the area where her wings would be freed. The shorts were a darker green meaning the fabric had been flipped to the darker side and she had enough fabric left to create a stringy type of shoe to protect her feet.

She smiled up at me wearily as I stood in front of her, slipping on my jacket as I did. I pressed a few pieces of dried foot into her hand before turning around. I kicked dirt over the smoldering fire and grabbed my bag all at once as I began walking.

"Follow me." The nearest town, Pokle, would take us about a day to reach so it was best if we started moving now. Wild rushed to catch up with me and almost had a jog at my side to keep up with my long strides.

"Where do you live?" I asked, glancing down at her. She looked tired despite sleeping all night and extremely nervous. It wasn't helping that I was walking this fast.

"Fae Isle," She whispered. I stopped in my tracks.

"You are a long way from home," I admitted, watching as her expression fell even further.

"How far?"

"We're on the complete other side of Vespear."

Wild raked her trembling fingers through her long hair. I sighed softly when the first sniffle met my ears and soon enough her shoulders began to shake. Her hands covered her face as she desperately tried to wipe away the tears.

I rolled my eyes and sat a hand atop her head. She jumped in surprise and looked up.

"I'll help you get home," I said, dropping my hand as soon as the words left my mouth.

"I can't let you do that. You've already done so much," Wild whimpered. I could hear the hope in her voice though, even through the hiccups.

"Let's just say you owe me two favors. They can be redeemed along the way," I offered. The favors might come in handy; it might not be so bad to have a fairy as an ally. Wild looked down in thought, most likely thinking over the pros and cons of owing a killer.

"If we're going to be traveling together, I think I should know your name." Wild graced me with a teary smile and despite my better judgement, I gave a stiff one back. At least the question proved my theory of her not being able to hear anything inside that jar. There's no chance she'd be this calm around me if she knew of my lineage.

"Zypher. You can call me Zypher."