Loving the Shadow

Chapter 6 Perla

They tumbled through the forest for a little while before they reached a clearing, the sun was about to set, the sky was painted with oranges, reds, and pinks. Her body ached and she was sore from the fall but they pressed on. Many emotions ran through her one being relief, relief that she survived, relief that she had Lyss, relief that they escaped. She was also feeling guilt and sadness. But she tried to shake the feelings as there was a more important matter. Looking for shelter. She sighed as she looked around for a cave or highground to build something.

"Over here." Lyss dragged her along, being sure to take care of their steps watching for twigs and sharp rocks, Perla was grateful as her feet, while calloused, were hurting. They trudged up a hill and She watched as Lyss disappeared into a cave. Hesitating for a moment she followed behind them the cave entrance was small but it opened into a huge cavern. There was a pile of furs on the ground and a campfire in the middle, Wooden plates sat on top of a stool. They looked very well carved.

"How did you know this was here?"

"I used to live here for periods of time."

Perla stood still as she took in the information, she never questioned how Lyss lived before she met them. She looked around again taking in what she could. They knew how to live off the land and animals. That was good. She had read books on plants and how to skin animals but she never tried hunting. Perla walked up to the fire and whispered under her breath. A fire burst to life and lit up the cavern. She stared in awe at the drawings on the wall.

"Did you draw these?" She walked over to a portrait of a woman. She looked like Lyss, they had the same deep set eyes, she wasn't sure what color they were as it was made in charcoal but it was beautifully drawn, there was extreme attention to detail.

"That's my mom." They said from behind Perla. Perla's heart sped up at how close they were.

"She's beautiful." She continued to look at the drawings. There were a few different people drawn, they looked all so different and each one beautiful in their own way. Then there was a rather gruesome drawing. It had fighting, and houses on fire, there were elves running amuck, and people fleeing in terror. Perla's heart sank. She wasn't proud of her history and she understood a little more as to why Lyss wanted to kidnap her.

Lyss grabbed Perla and spun her away from the drawings. "This... was my home a long time ago, I live somewhere else now." Perla looked at them, her blue eyes met their green. "These are from a little shifter who just lost everyone. I don't feel the same way that I did." Perla nodded at them.

"I'm glad to see some of your past. Thank you for sharing." Lyss smiled at her and her stomach tightened. They both stared at each other for a long time. Lyss cleared their throat and looked away before they stepped back. Perla let out a breath she didn't know she was holding. Her face felt warm. "Um. W-where should we go?" Her voice came out rather shaky.

"To the halflings' territory, from there we can go to the dragons."

Perla nodded it was a solid plan, the excitement of an adventure rushed through her.

"You'll need to hide your ears, they're not as small as the halflings."

"I have a cloak I can use."

"Good. We'll leave tomorrow for now. This is the best we can do for the night." Perla looked at the entrance of the cave, she remembered reading a spell and wanted to try casting it. She walked up to the entrance and waved her arms in a pattern. Mumbling under her breath she cast a spell, a purple glow emitted from her palm before it encased the cave entrance.

"What is that?"

"It's a hiding spell. It'll keep us hidden from the guards if they come by. It doesn't keep sound in though so if we hear them we have to be very quiet."

Lyss nodded and looked out the cave entrance. If you looked hard enough you could see a purple sheen wave at the entrance. Perla looked at the fire feeling a little tired. Magic took a toll. She sat down near the fire and watched as Lyss began to pull things out of their bag, it was food. Food she had never seen before. She watched them cut red meat into strips, they took a Stone and tossed it over the fire. It heated up and they threw the meat onto it, the meat sizzled on contact.

"What is that?"

"It's beef."

"Beef?"

"It's from an animal called a cow. Try it, it's similar to the flying boar."

Perla watched as they put some of the beef onto one of the wooden plates. She smelled it and her mouth watered. It looked like something she's had before. She tried a bite and her eyes widened; it tasted like nothing she had before. She ate it greedily and almost licked her plate clean. It was so delicious. Lyss laughed at her reaction.

"It's good right?" Perla nodded in agreement and wondered what else they had to eat. They dug around in their bag again and pulled out something red and round.

"What are those?" She eyed the red spheres with an accusatory glance, unsure what to do.

"These are grapes. They're called a fruit. They're sweet." Lyss handed a stem to her with the 'grapes' on it. She pulled one off and looked at it cautiously before she ate it. Her eyes widened in surprise at the sweetness of the fruit. They burst in her mouth with flavor.

"Grapes." She said to herself as she ate another one. She decided these were her favorite. While they ate they planned more precisely where they would go. They decided to go to a town that was on the outskirts of the halflings' territory. It was closer to the dragons. Once they'd arrived at the dragon's territory they were going to look for a portal.