They were outside the village, gathered at the forest entrance.
Adva and Momoko were wearing cloaks over themselves. The same went for Minerva, Michael, and Victor. Since they would be traveling far, they would need to hide away from Renaisse soldiers.
Michael had dragged along a horse, a black coated mare with a beautiful mane. Next to him was Victor, taking Lucy with them.
Victor and Minerva climbed onto Lucy, the knight sitting upfront. She patted Lucy's head gently, nodding at Michael that they were ready. Omis came over, nudging his nose against Lucy's. The wolf snorted, shaking his head as Lucy let out a short noise.
Sato was there, handing Michael a map to the rebellion's base. The man told the other a couple of other tips, telling him things the others couldn't hear.
"If you see Timothy there, can you tell him... tell him that I- uh," Sato found it hard to say the words. He wasn't so touchy with his feelings.
Michael chuckled, "Yeah, I'll tell him you miss him."
Sato showed a quick smile at Michael.
The others were surrounding Minerva and Victor.
"We'll see each other soon, probably way sooner than we think," Minerva said hopefully. She patted her sword on her hip, smiling down at her friends. Minerva's beating heart would stop as it she held onto Lucy's reins tightly.
Evgenia handed her brother their parents' book. Victor stared at it as it was placed in his hands. Why was his sister giving him this?
"I think you'll need it more than me," She said, hiding her face away so Victor couldn't see her sad smile. Evgenia muttered, "You better write letters to me or else."
Victor laughed, putting the book in his bag. The witch nodded, "Of course, Eve."
Evgenia smiled but then she frowned. Pointing a finger at him, she feigned anger when saying, "And if you die out there I swear to God I will use dark magic and bring you back only to kill you myself, got it?"
Victor faked a gasp, dramatically pretending he was shot in the heart. "Oh how you woe me, dear sister!"
Evgenia rolled her eyes, resisting the urge to smack her brother upside the head.
Victor laughed at his sister. He giggled when Omis came over, the wolf licking him on the cheek. The wolf looked at him with its bright yellow eyes. Victor patted Omis' head, feeling the soft white fur.
Taking his hands away, Victor made sure his father's white scarf was wrapped snuggly on his neck.
"Come on, we need to get there as soon as possible," Michael said.
Minerva nodded, turning to Victor, "You ready, Victor?"
He grinned, "Ready as I'll ever be."
Saying their last goodbyes, they set on their path to the rebellion's base.
The dark haired mare and the light gray one ran off in the distance, Minerva, Victor, and Michael on their backs. Momoko leapt up, shouting goodbyes as loud as she could.
When their figures were nothing but small specks in the distance, Adva turned to Bella with a sad smile.
They grabbed her hands, facing their girlfriend. Adva sighed, still keeping a smile on their face. "I'm sorry we have to go out separate ways."
Bella shook their head, "It's alright."
They stared at each other.
Bella broke first. Her face fell into a weeping mess, her salty tears streaked down her face. Her freckled cheeks turned red. "I'm going to miss you," She cried. Adva wrapped their long arms around her, taking the bard into a big strong hug.
Adva started crying too, though it was quiet and soft. They chuckled, "Hey now, you're prettier with a smile."
Bella let out a shaky laugh, hugging them even tighter.
"We'll see each other again, I promise." Adva whispered in her ear. Bella nodded slowly.
Finally they let go.
Momoko sniffed, jumping into Bella's arms.
The spirit pulled away, holding onto Bella's shoulders. "Don't worry!" They said, declaring, "I'll protect Adva! You two have to get married in the future!"
Everyone stared at Momoko.
Then they erupted in laughter with Sato shaking his head in disbelief.
"Alright alright," Evgenia said, pulling the spirit away from Bella.
Evgenia looked at Momoko.
The spirit was her first... her first friend.
Evgenia sighed, immedietly she knew she was going to regret this. The witch cleared her throat, cheeks turning an embarrassing red. "You, uh... you can hug me, if you want... Momoko."
Momoko, unsure if she hear that correctly, stared at Evgenia with concern. "I'm sorry, what?"
Evgenia huffed out an annoyed breath, crossing her arms. Muttering, Evgenia said "I said you could... hug me- oof!"
Momoko squealed, quickly leaping at Evgenia and taking the witch into a big hug. The witch felt her arms get sore as Momoko squeezed tightly. Momoko laughed, giggling uncontrollably.
The spirit finally pulled away, brushing a strand of black hair behind her shoulder.
Adva grabbed their travel bag, hooking their staff to it and putting it on their back. They nodded at Momoko, the spirit quickly getting to their side.
Waving one last time, they went on their way, with Momoko flying backwards and waving at Evgenia and Bella.
They were a couple meters away when Adva froze. The necromancer let out a loud curse before turning right back around. They ran, hurridly making their way to Bella.
Bella didn't have enough time to even process what was happening.
Adva ran over, with their strawberry blush reaching their pointed ears. Not saying a word, Adva grabbed Bella by the collar and landed a kiss on their lips.
Bella was going to pass out if it weren't for the fact that their mouth was touching Adva's. The bard smiled into the kiss, pressing back joyfully with closed eyes.
Momoko screamed as if they had just recieved a blessing.
Evgenia smiled, silently cheering inside.
Omis just simply scratched the back of his ears, tailing thumping into the ground.
Sato was looking away, giving them privacy.
Finally, Adva pulled away. Their blush was so red it rivaled any cherry on the planet. The necromancer gulped then turned back again. They marched on, Momoko excitedly following close behind. The spirit was cheering them on, gleefully reenacting the scene.
Bella sighed lovingly, her cheeks flushed red and heated.
Then she turned to Evgenia, the witch smirked at her teasingly.
The bard coughed awkwardly.
With Adva and Momoko on their way, Sato turned to Bella.
The man cleared his throat, telling the bard, "I'll meet you back at my place. We'll have to do some packing before we leave. I hope you have everything."
Bella nodded, excitedly bouncing on the balls of her feet, "Yup! I'm ready! I'll see you then!"
Sato sighed, turning around and walking away.
He lied, he had already packed for their departure from the village.
But he guessed Bella would want some alone time with Evgenia.
Bella turned back to the witch, eyes brimming with tears.
Evgenia raised an eyebrow, "You better not be crying on me too, Bella."
The bard chuckled, wiping their eyes, "No no, I'm good."
They stared at each other, both not knowing what to say or do.
Finally Evgenia broke the silence and said, "I'll really miss you, Bella."
"Yeah, I'll miss you too, Evie."
Evgenia smiled, encouragingly saying, "Hey, I bet when we see each other again you'll be a great swordswoman."
"Really?" Bella wondered. Did Evgenia really have that high of hopes in her?
The witch nodded, "Yeah, just prove me right."
Bella chuckled, "Alright, Evie, I'll prove it."
The witch looked up at the sky. It was a clear soft blue, a beautiful painting of clouds drifted in the sky. It was such a perfectly warm day.
"Promise me one thing, yeah?" Evgenia said, still looking up at the blue sky.
"Hm?"
Evgenia looked back at Bella, a smile on her face. The witch asked, "Promise to write a really nice ballad about our adventures, yeah? After this whole war is over, I bet someone will have to tell the tale of our adventures. That's the job of a bard, right?"
Bella's eyes brightened, her heart beating with joy.
Evgenia really thought she could do that? Sing about her friends' adventures?
Just looking at Evgenia, Bella knew the witch did believe in her.
Bella nodded, "Yeah, yeah I'll do it! I'll write the best ballad! And... And the first song will go to you!"
Evgenia blinked, confused. She honestly wasn't expecting Bella to say that. If Bella was going to write a song about someone, Evgenia thought it would be about Adva.
Bella blushed, quickly explaining, "It's just... without you, Evie, none of this would've happened. You literally brought all of us together. Evie, you truly are an amazing witch."
Evgenia's mouth was agape. Then she smiled, letting her tears fall finally.
Bella said it so.. sincerely. Her friend.
Evgenia chuckled, wiping her tears away quickly. Thankful, the witch managed to say through muffled cries, "Thank you."
Bella let out a soft laugh of endurement. The bard gripped the strap that held their guitar to their back.
"I should head out now," Bella said, knowing it had to happen. The bard strongly kept a smile on, "See you soon, Evie."
"Yeah," Evgenia agreed, "See you soon."
Bella giggled before turning away, walking back into town to join Sato.
When Bella was finally out of eyesight, Evgenia let out a breath she had been keeping in this whole time.
Her heart gave out, thumping wildly as she was left alone. Evgenia wiped away the last of her tears.
"You have wonderful friends, Evgenia," A soft voice said from behind. Omis snapped his head, pupils growing into slits at the voice of a stranger.
Evgenia turned, spotting Irene standing in the forest. The older witch was smiling, eyes crinkled with kindess.
Evgenia let out a relieved laugh, "Yeah, they are."
Irene walked over to Omis, gently petting the wolf and letting him sniff her hand. The witch chuckled amusingly as the mutated creature licked her hand, laying down and showing his belly to her.
Damn, Omis already likes Irene.
...
Evgenia was shocked.
Irene had taken her into the forest, guiding her and Omis through the thick woods.
The woman had taken them to a small cottage that was built from thick trees twisted together. Inside it was cozy and warm, with small magical lights slowly drifting around. It smelled of roses, with the slight burn of a fire in the chimney.
The front room was an average size, giving space for a table and chair. A small firepit was at the side, a fire dancing inside it.
There was a hallway, probably leading to other rooms.
Irene smiled at Evgenia, "I'll take you to your room. You could unload your belongings there." She pointed to an open space near the firepit, telling the large wolf, "Omis, you may stay there for the time being."
The wolf obeyed, walking over to the spot the witch pointed at. He walked in a circle before plopping down, resting his large head on his paws. The white wolf stared at the two witches. He was awfully big, but he at least fit in the room.
Irene took her through the hallway. The witch passed by plenty of doors, some smelling of familiar scents back home.
The walls was a twist of branches, like waves of the ocean.
Irene finally stopped, opening a door and showing Evgenia the inside.
The witch walked in, dropping her bag on the floor.
The room was huge. There was a higher platform with stairs leading up to it. The platform gave view to a large window, showing the bright sky. She could see a well cushioned bed up on the platform.
The lower floor, the they were standing on, was cleared. The floorboards were a caramel color and almost shimmered. There was a desk to the side. Opposite of the desk was a wall of books, books that when Evgenia examined them, were books not even her parents owned.
She gasped, tracing the spines. This was incredible!
Evgenia looked up at the ceiling, smiling wide when she was met with an illusion of the starry night sky.
Irene came next to her, gently saying, "I hope you like it. I tried to make it to your liking."
"I do like it," Evgenia said. It was similar to her room back home, only it wasn't so cluttered and messy.
Though, Evgenia felt like soon it will become just that.
Irene walked away, saying, "I'll be making lunch. I'll see you in a bit, Evgenia."
The woman left the younger girl alone in the room.
Evgenia smiled, immedietly deciding to ascend the stairs.
She walked up them, finding her bed on the higher platform. There was another shelf of books intergrated into the wall.
The bed had soft blankets, the pillows felt like peaceful fluffy clouds. Evgenia sighed, laying in the bed.
For the first time in a while, Evgenia felt at peace.
The magic of the area was filling her body, giving her a light she never knew was there. Evgenia smiled, her eyes looking up at the night sky she Genevieve loved so much.
The stars of the illusion sparkled, twinkling with delight.
Just then there was the sound of a thump.
Sitting up, Evgenia saw a whisp of light bumping into the window. It wasn't the indigo color of Victor's. Instead, it was magenta.
Magenta?
LUIZ!
If this was Luiz's magic then that means... Yuri!
Evgenia nearly fell out of the bed as she scrambled out of it, almost tripping over her own feet. Fumbling nervously, Evgenia opened the window and let the stream of light dance around her head.
She grabbed it, letting the light morph into a small blue box with a gold ribbon around it. Evgenia blushed, smiling as she jumped back onto the bed.
Excitedly, Evgenia slowly unwrapped the ribbon, slipping it off the box.
Opening it, Evgenia found a folded note. Lifting the note, Evgenia gasped as she found a shiny crystal underneath. It was a beautifully polished crystal, the color of a bright cyan. It was in the shape of a small diamond, about two inches big.
It sparkled elegantly as the stars above reflected off of it.
Evgenia smiled at it, holding it close to her chest as she opened the note.
"Dear Eve,
It's Yuri! Was that too exited? Oops, sorry. Wait, this isn't how you start a letter. Let me start over.
Eve, I'm so happy to finally find the time to start a letter! I hope your travels are doing well so far! Ever since you and your friends left, Icier has officially opened its gates to the rest of Lenaria. My people are willing to fight for the country.
Eve, I really can't wait until we meet again. I'm not sure when that will be, but I'm really excited for it! As king I'm awfully busy, but I'll always make time for your letters!
I think about you all the time. You truly make me so happy, Eve.
Though, I will respect your wishes of your rejection.
I truly am grateful to have met you, Eve. You really are an amazing person.
Also, I have gifted you a Fairy Crystal. They're incredibly rare and are only available to nobles. However, I don't very much care about that seeing as I think you would very much like this crystal.
A Fairy Crystal is special, because during the Fairy Lights the crystal shines the brightest. Unfortunately we were disturbed before I could show you. Perhaps at the next Fairy Lights you'll see it. It's very beautiful, just like you.
Was that weird? My bad.
I hope to see you soon, Eve.
Waiting for you,
Yuri Ivanov
P.S. Would you give the wolf a few pats for me? I assume you've given it a name."
Evgenia let out a chuckle, a soft blush on her cheeks as she finished reading. The witch set the note down, looking back at the crystal in her hand.
Yuri was right.
It is a very beautiful gem.
This crystal would look nice dangling from a necklace of sorts. She'll have to make it later.
Carefully putting the crystal back in the blue box, Evgenia got off the bed and went to the desk below.
On the desk was a pile of papers and pencils.
Excitedly and with a beating heart that felt warm, Evgenia sat down and began writing.
Imagining Yuri's bright smile, she started her letter to the king.
Dear Yuri...