LaQue

Journey [SporkoBug & LaQue]

“I....” Haki wiped the tears off of his face and though bout his next words. Hesitantly, he put down his drink and got up. “I’m sorry I didn’t mean to cry. I I’ll be in the forest if you need me.”

Haki didn’t want to leave as seen in his reluctance to move towards the door. He wanted to be by Chance but also want to clear his head. Eventually, his legs began to move and he disappear though the door. Once again, he changed into his smaller form and escaped out of the building. Then a short run later he was outside the city and on his way to the forest.

He knew his way through the forest even though it was his first time. This made it was easy for him to find a small stream hidden from prying eyes. It was a perfect place to clear his head away from the noises of the city. From what happened in the cave, his feeling for chance, and his pact to take down the Lich, he had a lot of think about. But all he could focus on was Chance.

---

Images from his past began to flash in his mind. He was at a loss on what to say. Nessa’s story as so similar to his own that it didn’t sound plausible. Slowly, Adrian reached out and grab Nessa's hand, squeezing it tightly. “I’m sorry,” He sign.

It wasn’t his attention to bring back old memories making him feel horrible for doing it. He knew what it was like to lose someone you love. The feeling that the world is ending and that it would be better to join them. Everything changes and distort. “Well—”

The woman from the counter walked over to them and set down their order. “Please enjoy,” she said then walked away.

Adrian started at the pie suddenly losing his appetite. “Here why don’t we have a bite.” He moved the plates over to Nessa and began to sip on his tea. He didn’t know how to move on from so he just stayed quiet.

Journey [SporkoBug & LaQue]

“You don’t have to tell me Chance,” Haki said quietly as he stared at his drink. It swirled around his hand for a long moment before he took another drink. It tasted sweet and bitter as he swallowed but felt nothing. He had forgotten what being drunk felt like. His body was naturally resisted to it rendering alcohol nothing more than strange tasting water. Looking down at the pint of beer, he wielded it down once again but this time he added magic to his palm. The beer glowed a dim green before dispersing. He then took another chug and immediately felt a burning in his lungs and a sudden dizziness. The feeling only lasted a few moments before disappearing. He sighed then looked up at the ceiling.

“Chance what am I to you?” Haki asked suddenly. Tears began to form at the corner of his eyes but he quickly wiped them away. “I have so many feelings towards you that I can’t hope to understand. It’s so confusing and frustrating. You are the most amazing person I’ve ever met and and...”

He couldn’t hold back the tears any longer. They began to fall and drop into his beer like tiny raindrops. His mind race to rationalize what he felt but couldn’t. He was angry. Angry at himself that he can’t even say why he wanted.

---

Once everything was paid for, Adrian sat down at a nearby table and looked into the streets. It was quiet and peaceful which was something he was not used too. His eyes constantly dart around scanning for any sign of danger. He quickly noticed his behavior and cursed at himself to stop. There was someone more important to focus on.

Adrian turned to look at Nessa and nervously fidget with his ring. He wasn’t very good at conversations and didn’t know how to start one. “Nessa, what made you became an adventurer?” Adrian asked then immediately regretted it. Was this to personal? Straightforward? What would Haki do?

Journey [SporkoBug & LaQue]

Haki couldn’t help but steal a glance as Kip was Changing. He noticed himself staring and quickly diverted his gaze. Hopefully, kip didn’t notice him looking. Once Kip was fully clothes, Haki refocused his attention onto to Chance. He worried about his eye as Chance answered him. No one would be okay after everything that happened. Especially chance since it was his people that died in that cave.

“Chance I’m here for you if you ever need anything,” Haki said. He took a sip of his beer then leaned back against the bed. He started at the ceiling and thought about what had happened in the past few days. His time in the fairy realm was longer than he wanted and now that he was out he didn’t know what to do. Sure he had to discover who this lich was but what was he to do till then. He felt as if he had no purpose.

---

Adrian smile and walked up to the counter. He knew exactly what he wanted which was a piece of their apple pie. It was rare for him to be able to eat something like this. More often then not a quest would take months to complete where they would have to eat what they can forage. Though Haki did make some good food, it was rare to get to eat sweets. “Can you order for us? I would like a piece of apple pie,” Adrian sign to Nessa. He didn’t have his notebook with him so it would be difficult to order something.

Journey [SporkoBug & LaQue]

Haki watched as the stag disappear. It was strange that such a powerful spirit would agree to leave so easily. The stag did mention that taking a physical form took a lot of energy. “Um sure I’ll be right back,” Haki said.

Haki left through the door before changing back to his wolf form. The owner of the inn didn’t know he was here so it would be best to not cause a panic. Now that he was used to walking on four legs, it was easy to get around. It only took him a moment to reached the front door without being seen. Once out of sight, he changed back and began looking for some food. There were several food stands in the area due to the festival which made it easy to get what he wanted. After buying more food then he could carry, he returned to the inn. No one was at the front desk so he sneaked back inside and back to Chance’s room.

“Chance I got us some food.” In total, he was only gone for about 10 minutes. During which, he bought a bunch of pastries and several different drinks most of which were alcohol.

Haki pushed the table int he corner over to the bed where he set all the food. After grabbing a small keg of beer, he sat down near the bed and turned to look at Chance. “Chance are you holding up okay? After everything that happened…”

---

Adrian smiled as Nessa pulled him towards the door. It was good to see Nessa this happy after everything that happened. She nearly died several times due to his lack of power. It made his stomach turned everything he thought about it. He hadn’t been that powerless since he was a child where his magic was suppressed. He quickly pushed those to the back of his mind and refocused his attention back to Nessa.

He pushed the door of the shop opened reviling a small but homely cabin-like room. Near the back wall was a large counter where dozens of sweets were displayed. At the front were several small tables for two looking out into the street. “Hello welcome! How may I help you today,” a young and chipper voiced called out to them. Standing behind the counter was a short girl with long curly red hair, pale skin, and freckles.

Adrian held the door for Nessa before entering. “What would you like to get?” Adrian signed.

Journey [SporkoBug & LaQue]

“There is no one better than you Chance. You have to know that…” Haki said. His ears began to droop and his tail stopped wagging. He wanted to tell Chance how he felt but he was afraid of his response. He didn’t want to ruin their relationship. It would be much better to have Chance as a friend than none at all.

“If you are here to guide Chance than why have you not appeared sooner?” Haki asked. The Windigo was indeed a spirit but he was unsure if it could be trusted. He was also slightly annoyed that the spirit did not protect Chance. It was supposed to look after him so why did it not help when Chance was in danger?

---

Adrian smiled and scratch Ra behind the ear. He had never had any luck with animals so he was surprised that Ra had taken a liking to him. “I know a good place,” Adrian signed.

He tightened his hold on Nessa’s hand as he began guiding her out of the clinic. The streets of the city were busy with hundreds of people preparing for the festival. Not wanting to get lost int he crowed, he took a short cut between the buildings until they reached a small shop that was built into the side of a large willow tree. He had discovered the place the last time he visited the city. It was hidden behind several buildings which made it a quiet place to enjoy some sweets.

“The sweets here are some of the best in the city. They also have very good tea,” Adrian said. The moment a slight breeze brush past them, the smell of freshly baked sweets filled the air. “If this place okay with you?”

Journey [SporkoBug & LaQue]

Haki quietly listened to the stag as it talked. He understood the form of pact Chance made with the windigo. It was similar to the one he made with the entity that changed his body. He couldn't remember much of the experience and what he could remember was a jumbled mess of pain and realization. It was liked he lived through hundreds of lives as he was forced to remember all the past Druids. After that experience, he made a pact with the entity to stop the calamity that was going to destroy the world.

"Then why are you here now? Chance has been doing all he can to help his people. It is not something one person can do," Haki said slightly irritated. He didn't like that the stag was asking so much of Chance. He had suffered enough and did not need this to weight him down.

---

Adrian stared at the woman in shock. It took a minute for the question to register in his mind, and once it did, "No she is only a friend!" Adrian signed. He didn't really believe what he just said. Nessa was definitely more to him than anyone else. it was different from the bond he had with Haki. It was something more.

"oh my apologize," the woman said. She then signaled him to sit down on the bed. Once he did, she poked at in him in several spots and asked if he felt pain. The area where the arrow pierced him had the most pain. He was surprised that it missed his heart and so was the woman. if it was any slight to the left then he would've been dead.

"Looks like it is healing properly. You will only need to rest. I have to say the healer that healed you is quite talented. even with your status, we cannot guarantee that we could've done the same," The woman said. then after exchanging a few words, he was dismissed.

he walked out of the room and returned to Nessa. "the healer said I only needed to rest. Haki healed most of the major injury. And there is no need to pay. would you like to get something to eat?" His heart began to race again, and his palms began to feel sweety. Why was he so nervous around Nessa? It didn't feel right but he cannot deny the feelings.

Journey [SporkoBug & LaQue]

I'm sorry for posting so infrequently. school and work have not been giving me a lot of free time.

Journey [SporkoBug & LaQue]

Haki stared wide eyes at the Windigo standing before him. He had only met a hand full of them in his lifetime and all of them were man-eating monsters incapable of speech. Why was this one different? Could it be that it wasn’t even a Windigo but just an avatar? Either way, this only made it harder to trust the stranger. What could a Windigo offer a mortal? Why did Chance have a pack with it?

Haki didn’t feel conformable being in his small form, so in a gust of wind, he changed back to normal. He stood up and leaned against the wall so that he could keep an eye on the entire room. “Chance?” Haki asked after seeing Chance’s reaction to the word ‘pact’. He was more worried as to that this could be. If it was anything harmful he has no quarrel fighting a spirit.

—————————

Adrian wince at the thought of going to a healer. He didn’t like the prospect of letting someone poke and prod at him without his armor. It seemed like a recipe for disaster. He would much rather have Haki heal him but he didn’t want to argue with Nessa. “Okay, I know a place,” Adrian signed.

The guild had a healer for anyone with a guild card. Generally the higher up you go the better the performance of the healer. This is one of the many perks of being a high rank in the guild but it is not an easy thing to obtain. There are several ways of raising your rank. The quickest is monster hunting and doing guild quest which is the occupation he and Haki chose. It is a dangerous job but can quickly raise your rank and make money. Within the guild, there are certain rankings for each type of monsters. The higher the ranking the more dangerous the monster and the more valuable. Another option is doing business with the guild. A majority of the guilds were merchant that uses the guild card to get into cities without paying. It is much harder to raise a rank as a merchant since it required more work to acquire enough to rank up.

After a short walk, they arrive at a small building with over a dozen potted plants at the front door. Adrian walked in and was greeted by a woman, “how may I help you today?”

“I would like to get my injuries checked,” Adrian sign. Most of the people that worked as healer knew sign language since injuries that cause muteness is very common within the guild.

“May I see you guild card?” Adrian handed the woman his guild card. She looked over the information before handing it back. “Thank you sir please follow me.”

The woman led to the back of the building to a private room with a large cushion bed and severely seats. “Please take a seat, Mr. Novas. May I ask if this woman is your wife? I will need it for the record.”

Journey [SporkoBug & LaQue]

Haki stood up and began to growl at the strange stag. It took him a moment to realized what it was and to register what it was saying. He expected the stag to look different now that he was able to see it up close. He thought It would look grander. Slowly he settled back down and sat down on his hind legs. “I cannot say the same for you. May I ask what you are and how you are connected to the druid?” Haki said.

If he wanted to learn more, he could look through the memories of the other druids. There is over a millennium’s worth of memories. It would take him more time than he had to look at it. He also didn’t entirely trust the stag even though it was a spirit, so his answer might not be all that trustworthy.

“Also what do you have to do with Chance. What pact have you made with him?” Haki said. He might be stepping over the line with his questions but he wanted to know more.

---

Adrian smiled and took Nessa’s hand. Using it, he helped himself up off the roof. “Do you have a preference as to where we go?” Adrian sighed. Slowly he made his way to the side of the roof. He looked to the ground and wondered if his magic was back to normal. After thinking about it, it was too risky with his current health.

“I’m sorry but I cannot go very far. My injuries will not allow me to do much,” Adrian sign after noticing the burning in his lungs. He was sure that they had been punctured but Haki musted healed them. He didn’t know how but his magic seemed to change. It would be something he needed to ask later. For now, he needed to focus on Nessa.

Journey [SporkoBug & LaQue]

Haki quietly listened to Chance’s story. It was a heartbreaking tale that made him want to cry. He knew where Chance was coming from since his own past wasn’t that much different. He just never fell in love. But when he was little and still a slave, his magic would occasionally cause him to go berserk. It was mostly due to the magic dampening collar and a special medication that his slavers forced him to drink. The purpose of this medication was to block the growth of magic but it didn’t work as intended. Instead of halting the growth it only bottled it up until it eventually exploded. During one of these occasions, he went berserk and killed several of his fellow slaves and severely injuring a few. Needless to say, he was locked up and punished for months after that incident.

“I’m sorry Chance. She must’ve been someone special to you,” Haki said. He unknowingly shrank his size and curled tighter into a ball. Chance’s story only strengthened his hunch that he was straight. Even if He couldn’t be something more, Haki hoped that Chance would stick around since he is one of the few friends he made on his journey. In the past, he thought he had made friends but they only wanted to be with him for his fame. Chance and Nessa were the only genuine friend he made thus far.

“Chance…” Haki began talking but hesitated, “can I ask you something?”

He wanted to ask if Chance liked him but decided against it. They have only met a few days ago, though in his perspective that day had been months ago. It wouldn’t be right for an almost complete stranger to ask something so personal. He was also afraid of what Chance would say. Their friendship would surely end if Chance said no.

“What does the stag want with you now?” Haki asked. He had no intention in asking that question, it was just what came to mind.

---

Adrian was slightly startled when Nessa leaned against him. Though the feeling quickly faded as he leaned back against her. Her touch was warm and calming. Someone thing he hasn’t felt in a long time. He wished It would last forever but deep down knew that it wouldn’t. He was too afraid of starting a relation seeing how his last one ended. Even if Nessa could defend herself, it wouldn’t be right to put her in danger. He held up his hand as if to say something but it didn’t move. He couldn’t think of what to say so he stayed quiet.

He looked to the sky and towards the horizon. It was the afternoon and the wine festival would soon start. To mark the occasion, the city would light thousands of and release it into the sky. Afterward, a large parade would bring everyone to the city center. Once everyone was gathered a dance would take place. To predicate, one would need to buy a flower and leave it at the city center under a large willow tree. Once the signal is given, everyone would go and retrieve their flower then ask their partner for a dance.

“Nessa, would you like to go and look around the city?” Adrian signed. Nessa was an amazing woman and if he didn’t try, he would regret it for the rest of his life. He would at least need to try and ask if Nessa felt the same about him.