Eight Intertwined

183 - Determination

Therion was not a fool. 

Over the years, Therion had learned to read between the lines with the people around him. He knew everything he needed to just by looking at them, and if he needed more information, he could always find a way to urge it out of them with a casual conversation. Therion knew how to handle himself in any and all situations because that was what thieves needed to do. How could he steal something valuable if he couldn't get away with it without raising any flags?

Since joining the rest of the travelers, Therion had been using his skills to try and get the best read on them that he could. Initially, he hadn't understood them at all, always thinking that they were acting too irrationally and emotionally for their own good. Since then, Therion had realized just what made all of them tick, and he was happy to have them in his life. They weren't what he was used to, but given the fact that he was used to Darius, he was willing to take the change as a good thing. He had earned this chance as far as he was concerned. 

Unfortunately, traveling with other people meant that he would have to make good on the deals he made with them. Right now, Therion's biggest grudge was against Primrose because of the deal they had somehow wound up making back in Saintsbridge. If one of them confessed their feelings to their crush, then the other would have to follow suit too. Primrose had already said something to H'aanit even if she hadn't confessed it to the rest of the travelers. Therion could see it in the way she and H'aanit stuck closer to each other than usual, searching for any small physical contact they could get their hands on. 

In other words, it was time for Therion to pay up. Primrose may not have been holding their deal over his head yet, but she was going to start soon, and Therion needed to be ready for it. The best way for him to do that was to just get it over with and admit his feelings to Alfyn... But unfortunately for him, Therion had no idea how he was supposed to go about it. Today could have very easily been the worst day for him to even consider confessing his feelings to someone. The travelers had just coached Ophilia through the aftermath of a betrayal that would have devastated her if not for the persistent need for forward motion. Primrose couldn't have waited until after this calamity she hadn't been able to see coming, could she? 

When Therion arrived back in his and Alfyn's room, the apothecary was already hard at work. As per usual, he was brewing together any tinctures he could before going to bed. The travelers would need everything they could get their hands on to prepare for their battle against the Savior. To Alfyn, preparing for a large battle meant pulling together as many healing potions as he could in case anyone needed them. He would be ready for anything and everything when they arrived in Wispermill. That was what apothecaries did, and more importantly, that was what Alfyn did. 

Alfyn didn't even notice that Therion had walked in on him for a long moment, too caught up in making sure all of his ingredients were in perfect balance for his current tincture. Therion sat down on his bed on the opposite side of the room and looked up at Alfyn for a long, solemn moment. He really was in love... And Therion loved it. Back when he was with Darius, Therion had thought he understood love, but it had always been hatred. Darius hadn't given a damn about him, and Therion hadn't seen it until it was too late. As soon as Darius betrayed him, Therion realized just what he had been missing out on for all those years, and he couldn't seem to decide what he wished for more: going back to Darius or forgetting he had existed at all. In the end, Therion had flipped between the two for years, avoiding any country that had too much green for him to bear. 

But at the end of it all, Therion found himself in love with green all over again. Alfyn's green was far softer than Darius' ever had been. His jacket was an old memento of his village, worn from years of use and love. Darius used green as a mark of pride, letting its boldness attract all the attention in the world with a smile on his face. Darius' shades of green were specific enough to spark fear in anyone who just so happened to catch a glimpse of him, and his bright hair only made the emerald stand out more. With Alfyn, his soft hair accentuated the soothing paleness of his jacket. Darius felt like the green skies that appeared just before a major storm. Alfyn felt like the soft swaying of grass on a perfect spring day.