The Quest for Normania #1: The Door of Andrios

10. Sleepless Night and a Fight

Ayesha couldn't sleep well for the past two nights, not ever since she had met Yela Ashisha Rama and her powerful words.

'I'm not cursed?' she thought. 'How did I – how am I not cursed?! What happened?! Was the curse lifted on its own as I grew?!' Somehow, this was not too easy to imagine. 'But I was so sure... wait, who told me?' She dwelled over it for a time and on the third night, she realised that nobody had expressly told her she had a curse.

She sighed in relief and turned over on the bed she lay on in the Fletcher siblings' little home. It wasn't the most comfortable, compared to the one in her own bed chamber, but she didn't mind in the least.

But even after her final realisation, sleep refused to come to her.

And so, she sat up on her bed and stared out the window. The level was too low for her to see the stars. She stood up and walked out of the front door softly. The cool breeze bristled past her and she shivered, though it was a thrilling experience. Agatha had told her it was summer on Earth now. She faced the sky, closed her eyes, and just stood there, enjoying.

"Ah, I didn't company."

She jumped almost a foot in the air, her eyes flying open, and brandishing her knife, which was ever ready on her, she whirled around.

Fortunately for her, it was only Cecil. Fortunately for Cecil, Ayesha hadn't directly stabbed with her dagger like she did the first time they met.

"You shouldn't sneak up on a warrior trained to kill," she warned him before turning back to the sky.

"A warrior?" he asked incredulously. "That's what you are, wherever you come from!?"

She snorted. "Do you have a problem with that?"

He chuckled. "Not the slightest. Tell me, what nightmare was it tonight?"

"Why should I tell you?"

"Well, I want to say you stabbed me... But you already made up for that by healing me quickly. Basically saving my life." He sighed. "I suppose you don't owe me anything at this point."

She smiled, her eyes still on the stars. "It wasn't a nightmare. It was... well, it's complicated to explain." A pause. "I'm not about to ask you why you're here."

"Fair enough."

"Tell me, do stars in your land mean anything to do? Do they form any constellations like the ones in my w – land?"

"Well, I can tell you there are constellations, yes. I cannot tell you if they're the same as in your land."

"Good point."

"One thing I'm curious about, though... Why have you trained as a warrior?"

She snapped her head at him, fury clear on her face. "It was a choice I made. I was born for this!"

"Well, being a warrior in my land is... well, quite unheard of."

She scowled. "It would be. Your land hates magic, apparently."

"Well, it can hurt."

Ayesha smirked and he didn't think it was particularly pleasant. "You visit Yela Ashisha lots of times," she hissed victoriously. "You're not afraid of her!"

"Who? Oh, you mean, Ashisha? Well, she's a nice kind old woman who –"

Ayesha laughed cruelly. "She has magic, you oaf."