Beyond The Night - Bronze

XIX. Griff

   Griff had two aces and a jack in his hand. He was about to win.
   "Did he tell you?"
   Liz looked around as if to see who Caira was talking to.
   "Tell me what?" Alvis asked without looking up from his cards.
   "Who it was," Caira said vaguely.
   "Why don't you ask him?"
   "I'm asking you. Do you know or not?"
   Alvis shrugged.
   "What are you talking about?" Liz asked. "Who told what?"
   "Never mind," Caira said as he put down his card. Four of spades. After Liz, it was Griff's turn.
   "Aristide," Alvis said.
   Caira frowned.
   "What about him?" Liz asked, ignoring Caira.
   "Caira is asking if I know who Aristide lost."
   "Is this about him taking revenge on the esneparaña?" Griff asked, finally catching up to the conversation.
   "Is it really that hard to say yes, or no?" Caira threw his card down with force.
   "It really isn't," Alvis said. "But it's easier and way more entertaining to annoy you."
   Caira squeezed his hand to a fist, but Liz jumped in.
   "Caira. Alvis is right." She turned to Alvis before adding, "Even though he's trying to rile you up."
   Alvis smiled shamelessly.
   "If you're curious, you should ask Aristide."
   At Emma's insistence, Aristide decided to stay in the big room under the deck after lunch and play the piano. Aristide's absence was the only reason Griff was about to win the game they were playing.
   "I'm not curious," Caira insisted. "I just want to know if Alvis knows or not."
   "Ask him that, too," Alvis suggested.
   Before Griff could comprehend what was happening, Caira had already jumped on Alvis. While the two idiots brawled, Liz stood with her hands on her hips, frowning as she watched them.
   Griff put down the card on his hand and stood up with a sigh. He held Caira from the neck of his coat and pulled him away from Alvis. "Just one game. I just wanted to win one game." After getting Caira out of the room, he leaned back on the door he closed behind him and kept mourning the unfinished game by scolding Caira. "Can't you go on without starting a fight for ten minutes? Can't we just play a game?"
   "He started it," Caira said, fixing his lapels.
   Griff narrowed his eyes and folded his arms on his chest.
   Caira rolled his eyes and turned around. He walked the long hallway before climbing the stairs.
   Griff watched him until he was out of sight. Then he dropped his shoulders and shook his head before he went back inside.
   Liz was gathering the cards that got scattered around in the fight and Alvis was sitting on Liz's bed, grinning.
   "I wish I let them kill each other," Griff joked.
   "I don't want anyone dying in my room."
   "This won't be your room tomorrow," Griff reminded.
   "But it still is. And no one is killing no one in my room. If you have a problem, solve it somewhere else. On the deck, if possible. It would be easier to clean."
   Since Griff couldn't tell if Liz was joking or not, he decided to change the subject. "Alvis," he said as he sat down next to Alvis on the bed. "Did Aristide really not tell you?"
   "Tell me what?"
   Griff glared at Alvis from between his brows.
   "Who he's taking revenge for?" Liz said as she sat down on the floor. "Do you know who it is?"
   Alvis shook his head. "I don't know. I never asked."
   Griff rolled his eyes. "If you said that five minutes ago I would've won."
   Liz must've found this hilarious, because she burst into laughter.
   They reached Centhepha in early morning. Because the coastal area was thick with mountains, Centhepha was the coldest city in Avonlea. Even though Griff wasn't bothered by this, it would take some time for him to get used to the cold. On the other hand Liz was complaining non-stop ever since they left the ship.
   "It's just September. Do you see this weather? It's as if we didn't travel on a ship, but traveled in time. We've come to winterland." She lifted the lapels of her coat and continued. "I'm surprised it's not snowing. There's steam coming out of my mouth. You can see it, right?"
   "We won't, if you shut up," Caira said.
   "Took you long enough," Liz said on a sigh. "I can't feel my toes. I think they're frozen."
   "It hasn't even been ten minutes since you left," Caira said as he put on his hat. "Believe me, I don't want to be here, either." Then he turned to Aristide and said, "I hope you know where we're going."
   Aristide nodded.
   Caira motioned for him to lead the way. "After you."
   Aristide sighed before starting to walk towards the trees beyond the harbour.
   "If I freeze to death I'm going to haunt you all," Liz said before going after them.
   "Don't worry," Griff said catching up to her. "It's impossible to freeze when youre walking"
   "Great," Liz said through gritted teeth, making Griff wonder if it was from the cold or from anger. Whichever it was, it didn't lessen the urge to hold her hand. He pushed his hands deep inside the pockets of his coat and tried not to shield her with his wings from the wind that was hitting her back. He failed after two minutes.