Beastly Beauty

Suspicions

Cross and Chara had made it back to the town safely. Of course the towns people were worried about them, rushing towards them in a small frensy. What would the town do without Chara, the one who spotted danger a mile away, and Cross, who destroyed said danger with a single glance.

Swiftly, the younger sibling told the people of the horrible, destroyed Castle that resided deep within the forest, maybe a day or two out from the town.  They spoke of the beast that roamed that very Castle, imprisoning all who trespassed. They also claimed that Cross was able to stare that very monster into submission!

The town was both horrified and gleeful to hear an exaggerated story of what had happened. Cross only listened to parts of it, namely peaking interest at the mention of the disgusting food the gooey monster had to serve. The beast didn't seem to be the type to serve his guests, even prisoners, food that he wouldn't eat himself.

This made the swordsmith decide to give the beautiful monster something to eat. Something good and least likely to get them sick. The food won't hold too much flavor as he wasn't certain how their taste buds would react to that. Probably bad to be honest.

However, he knew if he just walked straight into the forest with cooked food, people would get suspicious. No, if he walked into the forest at all and not bring back the head of that monster, it would look suspicious. He didn't want them to march into the forest and try to kill the creature, that would more likely lead to many unnecessary deaths...

"Brother?" The confused tone of his sibling pulled him out of his thoughts.

Blinking some, he looked around and saw himself in his workshop, mindlessly working on a blade. The blade was almost done, just needing a few more hits with the hammer, sharpening, polishing and a proper hilt. Not a lot honestly. Yet, sitting in a long bucket beside him were several other swords and long blades that needed to be sharpened, polished and given a hilt. How long had he been thinking and working?

Turning towards his sibling, he saw that they were holding a thick envelope in their dirty hands. They probably had been helping him with his work, meaning he had been "out" for a while. However, he noticed how the envelope's natural color was a creamy one and it look expensive almost.

"Far Lands?" He looked up at the human, who held a deep frown.

Far Lands was a code word the two of them would use when Cross originally had to take jobs out of town. Most of these jobs, the Far Lands Jobs, he never talked about. Chara had always noted how he only brought the family's sword and some spare clothes and had always returned with food and many precious medals they would use in their new projects and swords. The younger sibling had also noted the more damaged and used look of the family heirloom he always brought with him.

They had often wondered what he was doing when he had received those special letters from the "Far Lands". They had always seen the look in his eyes whenever he or they mentioned it. It was a dark and almost twisted look...

Their main thought was that he worked in the Queen's army. The Queen's army was said to have provided food and other valuables as payment for their soldier's hard work. It also would make sense on why he'd keep quiet about it. Sure, the town was under the Queen's rule and Kingdom, but they were basically left alone. Barely anyone with a Royal symbol came through the town and they were situated in an area that no Kingdom wanted to fight over, so they didn't really need army members stationed there. Now, the town wasn't really against the Queen and her rule, they just were... Well, they weren't really open to getting jobs outside the town, even if it meant better money.

"Seems I'll be gone a week this time." Cross gave his sibling a big grin, but there wasn't much light in his eyes. He honestly hated getting these letters. He was thinking of retiring, but they needed the money.

Chara just nodded, shifting uncomfortably. They wanted to ask about the letter, they always wanted to, but they knew Cross wouldn't give them a straight answer or would just outright refuse to answer it. It was a sad thing really... Chara could tell their big brother almost anything in the world!, yet he couldn't tell them about a simple letter.

Suddenly, they felt someone ruffle their hair, causing them to refocus on the person in front of them. The pale skeleton with the same eyes as her, gave her a genuinely sweet smile.

"I promise these letters will stop once our shop gets off the ground." He said sweetly.

The pale haired teen just smiled sadly, doubting that. As good as their swords and weapons were, they were too far from any real city to sell them at even a decent price! The letters would never stop, because they would always need the money that the Queen's Army gave.