Shaffron

CHAPTER 11

Shaffron heaved a sigh when she caught sight of the forest tree. It was a short tree that could be easily mistaken for a shrub, so unlike any type of tree he had seen before but she had gotten the memo that nothing on the other side was as that of where she was from.

They had arrived at the Zraftharat village.

'One step closer to getting out of this blasted land' Shaffron thought to herself.

It seemed as though Jerry thought differently as he tensed up beside her.

"Here" Ebuza called her attention, holding out what looked like a bunch of leaves.

"What's that for?" she raised a brow at him.

"Its clothes made out of leaves" he went on to spread the leaves but she still did not get why he was handing it to her.

As though reading her mind, he said "you need to wear this. The Zraftharats are Aske', vegetarians as you call it. They won't appreciate you wearing animal skin when they themselves are."

Jerry nodded and accepted the clothes, Shaffron still looked confused.

"What do you mean 'they themselves are'?"

Ebuza glanced at Jerry then shrugged.

"Good luck." Was all he said before he morphed back into a snake and disappeared.

Unlike the last time, the mortals did not freak out. Well that's if you'll count Shaffron's tensed up body as a normal reaction. They understood this was a battle they had to fight on their own.

Before she could turn to ask Jerry, his back was already to her.

Shaffron's eyes ate him up without second thoughts. She watched his muscular back flex as he stretched the fabric of the leaves. He was so toned that she could not believe that a person with a body like his could look so lean and lanky with clothes on.

Oh but that's even better. Only I would know the goodies my man has she thought to herself.

As if hearing her thoughts, Jerry cast her a sideway glance, raising a brow. "You getting dressed or do you prefer to keep watch?"

Shaffron was sure her face was beet red as she ran into the bushes, chiding herself

My man? What were you thinking Shaff?

Jerry's attire was easy to wear and so he had to wait a few more minutes after dressing for Shaffron to join him.

The minute she walked out of the bushes, Jerry's mouth dropped.

The green of the leaves blended so well with her pale skin. It was a bra let of some sort made with just enough leaves to cover her chest region. Jerry's mouth dried up at the sight of her toned flat belly. Tied to her waist was the same woven material that was knee length but did nothing to hide her toned legs.

Something about her bare feet felt intimate and he could not stop staring at her.

"So, how does it look?" she asked, looking uncertain.

Gorgeous was what Jerry thought but instead, he said "it'll do" and crossed the bushes trying to move away from her as fast as possible.

She caught up with him easily and they made their way to Zraftharat village.

They walked aimlessly through the bushes that were beginning to turn into tall trees leading to the dense forest in silence.

Jerry's hand kept making its way to his neck to touch what looked like a pendant. It had silver coated chains and a foreign looking pendant.

Shaffron glanced his way, obviously noticing his fidgety form.

"What's wrong?" she asked but he held a hard expression.

"Nothing."

This made Shaffron stop. He too stopped when he noticed his companion was not by his side. He turned and glanced at her.

"Why can't you just tell me what's bothering you?" she scowled at him.

"We've been over this already. My only obligation is to get you out of here. You don't have to pretend you care about what's bothering me when it's none of your business." He pointed. "Besides, this is not a place to discuss matters" he added when he saw her trying to speak again.

She paused for a moment, her face showing utter disagreement and most of all, disappointment but Jerry did not wait for her response. He kept walking.

They had covered a few miles when they heard rustling causing Jerry to pause. Before he could make a move though, a strange man jumped out of nowhere, pointing a knife at them.

"Where do you think you're going to?"

"Hey, calm down" Jerry said, tentatively standing in front of Shaffron, pulling her protectively beside him.

The man did not lower his knife though, his obsidian eyes staring directly at Jerry.

"My wife and I were just passing by, we are not looking for trouble." Jerry said again.

The man's eyes flicked between the two mortals before the knife disappeared into thin air and he stood back.

"Are you lost?" the man asked in a baritone voice, his shoulders relaxing a bit as he stared at them.

"We're not, we just wanted to pass by this village and get some food before carrying on with our journey." Jerry lied through his teeth. Had Shaffron not known better, she herself would have believed him.

The man's eyes narrowed at Jerry then bounced to Shaffron before he nodded.

"You came on a market day, lucky you." He said with a sly smile. "My name is Iju." He introduced himself, then looked at them expectantly.

"I'm Jena and this is my wife, Ifi." Jerry told him.

The man nodded then moved to the side, gesturing for them to follow him as he ventured into the forest.

Shaffron gripped Jerry's arm tightly. This game they were playing was a dangerous one, they had to play their cards well if they want to leave there alive.

The mention of food reminded Shaffron that she had not eaten anything tangible the whole day.

What she found strange though was that she could still taste her last meal as if she had just finished eating it.

It was strange how things worked on this side and Shaffron was finding it hard to adapt.

Iju, the wild hunter; as he earlier told them, offered to show them around the village. His rare act of kindness was not enough to make either mortals let their guard down though.

"The village is at the heart of the forest, that's why it's easy for people to get lost here." He told them, still walking beside them but a few feet in front. "Where were you both heading to, anyway?"

They glanced at each other then turned back to Iju.

"A neighboring village?" Iju repeated after hearing Jerry say this.

"What's the name of the village?" He asked yet again.

Shaffron stiffened and Jerry's face displayed no emotion.

Iju nodded at both of them.

"You don't trust me." He turned his back on them and kept walking "I understand."

Both mortals did not go out of their way to explain anything to him, of course it took a lot of trust for them to have followed him but he did not need to know that.

The walk was quite a stretch. And when Shaffron was about to open her mouth to complain, Iju opened the curtain-like leaf and then turned to face them.

"Welcome to Zraftharat village."

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