Into the Darkness (OCXOBI)

Part 5

The ride to town was nerve wreaking, but even so I couldn't help being excited. As the huge castle came into view from the top of hill above the large town, I was completely wonder struck.

I could always see the palace from the mountains where I lived because it was so big but I never thought it would be this beautiful.

When we tied our horse to a some trees, I saw people everywhere. There were children playing and adults heading in and out of the shops.

It was overwhelming seeing so many people in one place. All I could hear was the sound of feet hitting the stone walk way and different conversations from every direction.

I stood frozen for a few minutes until I felt a hand on my shoulder. Obi. He looked down at me with a toothy grin and then to Shirayuki who was smiling at me as well.

I suddenly was at ease just feeling the warmth from his hand on me. As he slowly pulled away, I still felt his touch linger on my skin.

"Are you ready for some fun?" He asked me.

"Yeah, what would you like to do first Arisa?" Shirayuki asked taking a few steps in my direction. "Oh! I know, how about I give you a little tour of the town! I could show you all the shops, and then we can have something to eat. Maybe next time I come here, I could take you to the palace."

"That sounds wonderful... thank you two so much for bringing me along with you." I said looking from her emerald eyes to his cat like ones.

"I'm glad you decided to come with us, I can't wait to get to know you better. Maybe someday you can come see me in Clarines." Shirayuki said.

"I will one day. Then we can go on adventures together!" I said smiling widely with my eyes closed.

Out of habit, I pulled my hood over my head and the three of us began walking around the town together, Shirayuki pointing out different shops and building everywhere.

When we past a jewelry store, I couldn't help but stop and look at a beautiful silver necklace with a small red gem. It was so beautiful shinning in the light reflecting through the window.

I wonder if this is the gem Obi talked about that reminded him of my eyes.

After a while of spacing out, Obi waved his hand in front of my face to get my attention.

"What are you looking at? Do you see anything that you like?" He said looking though the window. His eyes fell on the piece of jewelry I had been eyeing, then I saw him smirk a little while pretending like he didn't know what I was looking at.

"Oh, no. It's nothing really." I said shyly, rubbing the back of my head. He just nodded his head.

I kept getting a weird feeling as we continuted our walk. Someone was watching me. Maybe I'm just being paranoid because I was nervous. We continued on for a little while more, just talking and laughing with each other.

"This has been amazing! I never thought that I would have this much fun coming here." I said with my arms spread wide while turning in cirles a few times. "I can't wait to eat, I'm straving."

Obi and Shiryuki both laughed at my child-like behavior. When we sat down in a small resturant and ordered our food, I looked at my two friends with a loving smile, just happy to finally have company.

"So Shirayuki, why did you leave here to go to Clarines?" I asked. "Didn't you like living here?"

"I did love living here, I even had my own pharmacy and Tanbarun will always be my home. But, long story short, I had to leave because I was ordered be a concubaine by the first prince of this kingdom. His name is Raji. We have everything worked out now though, and we're actually good friends. After I left here, I ran into Zen, who is the second prince of Clarines, along with Kiki and Mitsuhide who are his attendants. That's when they invited me to go to Clarines with them, I ended up getting a job as an court herbalist in the castle and I've been there ever since." She finished. "I really hope that everyone is able to come next time we come to visit so you can meet them, I know you will like them." She said to me giving a small smile.

"Wow. You have had a pretty intense life so far, huh." I said dumbfounded. I turned to look at the man across from me. "What about you Obi? How did you and Shirayuki meet?"

"I was hired by Lord Haruka to keep The Miss away from the castle, but she's a stubborn one if you haven't noticed." He laughed. "The Master caught me and offered me a job as his offical messanger." He said playfully looking from Shirayuki to me. "So I decided to stick around."

"Both of you work at the castle?! That's pretty amazing!" I said with excitement. They both gave me a smile.

Shortly after, our food arrived, I looked at my order with wide eyes. The ramen I had ordered looked and smelled so good. It was the most delicious meal I had ever had, apart from those sweet dumplings.

The others began to eat their meals and made small talk while I just listened. I really wish this day would never end.

Before I knew it, we had finished our meal and decided to head back to our horses. As we were walking, Obi said he forgot something, leaving Shirayuki and I alone for the rest of our walk.

Still, no matter how much I tried to ignore the feeling of eyes on me, I just couldn't shake that feeling. In a single moment my world changed.