The Fallen Prince

⋇- 22: Together Again -⋇

Arisa's heart spread excitement as she saw behind the carriage's window that the purple and blue vegetation had been substituted with green scenery. She closed her book, knowing that they would reach her family's temporary residence in several minutes.

"Are we about to reach your house?" said a quiet and tired voice by her side.

Arisa spotted Caris rubbing her eye as she moved away her black-blue head from Arisa's shoulder. Arisa realized she must have woken her up when she put away the book in her bag. Caris had fallen asleep when their transportation entered the woods. Arisa understood her, though, they had woken up very early in the morning to reach their destination before sunset.

"Yes," replied Arisa. "We'll be there in short minutes."

Caris sat properly as she yawned.

"Wow," said Thelma by Caris' side. "That was a long trip. You two live really far."

Arisa's quick chuckle brightened the atmosphere. "We don't really live here. I told you it's a temporary residence."

"Right," teased Thelma. "You could have found a closer place to hide. I can't believe we'll have to go through all of this again to steal the sword."

Arisa agreed with Thelma, remembering that they would have to spend the night somewhere before reaching Aurora City again. Despite the long distance, she understood why her grandparents and Elise thought it was best to hide in this area. For her own safety, the farther away they were from the King's eyes, the better.

"My useless complaints aside," said Thelma, touching the carriage's brown surface, "I'm still amazed that this thing is moving without an animal guiding it and without an engine powering it up. How can it work just like that?"

"Magic?" Garoh tilted his head a little. "You saw Kazuya drawing and activating those runes."

Arisa gazed at the young man with long dark blue hair tied in a low ponytail sitting opposite her. By Garoh's side, she saw the white-haired Kazuya smiling with pride.

"As a future mechanical engineer, that explanation is vague," said Thelma, clearing her voice. "There must be a logical explanation to make this thing work. An inanimate object moving by itself sounds so surreal."

Kazuya tried not to laugh. "You're fine with magically having superpowers, but you won't believe in a carriage moving on its own?"

"It's different." Thelma's brown eyes met Kazuya's. "There are some scientific theories about powerless beings gaining powers, so I never questioned that. But this? I'm really curious if there's a theory about it."

Garoh shook his head. "There you go being all scientific again. Sometimes, things just work and don't have an explanation."

"I know," teased Thelma. "But the engineer in me can't help but wonder."

As cheerful laughter filled the atmosphere, Arisa glanced at the window again, her heart speeding as she saw that she would see her family again in minutes. Seeing various types of vegetation and trees passing by her sight, she squeezed her hands. She couldn't wait to wrap her arms around her grandparents again and tell them about the adventures they went through.

"You're happy," said Caris by her side.

Arisa shifted her gaze to the Oceanian. "Huh?"

"Your aura is so bright and warm," said Caris, looking as if she was gazing beyond Arisa. "It means you're happy."

Arisa touched her dark hair. "Is that so?"

Caris replied with a quick nod. Arisa smiled, remembering how Caris could see what a being really was and what were their feelings by reading their aura. Arisa found that power fascinating yet scary.