Edited.
____________
They were to leave at dawn.
Ivy had rushed to her tent to gather her things. Realising that she had nothing to gather she had dawdled outside of her tent, not sure what to do. She decided to take a walk and re-trace her steps. Just as she was about to take a step, she heard the crunches under the feet of someone walking towards her. To her credit, it was Iel.
"Going somewhere?" He asked with a mischievous smile.
Sheepishly, she smiled back.
"Well, I was going to go for a walk." She bit her lip, waiting for his response.
Why do you care? Hissed a voice in her mind and she shushed it away. She seemed to do that alot.
He nodded thoughtfully and then smiled; a dazzling, look-away-before-you-blush smile that almost made Ivy rock back on her heels. What was wrong with her?
"Mind if I join you?" He asked, extending out an arm for her to take. She feigned a thoughtful posture and then sighed dramatically, taking his arm and leading him towards the gap in the forest.
"If you must." She sighed, sending him a toothy grin. She never trusted anyone, so why did she trust this white haired boy so easily? Maybe it was fairy magic.
They walked through the skyscraper trees that reminded Ivy of far away lands with foreign sea's and dark skinned people. She breathed in the fresh air, free of the fumes that constantly left her throat dry and scratchy. Savouring the moment, she thought of her life at the Sanctuary.
Was Ronand looking for her? Had he sent Tammy and the rest of the assassins to look for them? Or had he already forgotten about them? Before she gave herself a headache, she cast the thoughts away and focused on the path in front of her.
There was a long, comfortable silence before they entered a clearing and Iel slowed them down to a stop.
He sighed, looking up at the sky wistfully.
"When I was twelve, Eric found me and took me under his wing after my parents were killed." Ivy was surprised at his openness, he hardly knew her.
She nodded at him to continue.
"He tutored me; gave me the rest of my education. After that, he taught me how to fight for myself. He's a kind man, or he was. I haven't seen him in three years." He said it as an after thought, sadness lacing into his voice.
"Three years!" She exclaimed. "Why?"
Iel looked sad when he smiled.
"He is a quiet man. Some would call him odd but he's just quiet, and he's a good leader. A fantastic leader in fact." She stared at him as he spoke; Eric must have been a father figure to him.
"Has anyone seen him?" She asked gently, she could tell that it was a sensitive subject for him.
"Only Irian, he's Eric's second in command and since he's been gone Irian is the only one that has seen our leader." She nodded at his words.
"Who does he answer to?"
Iel scratched his chin and glanced at her sideways. "Whoever pays well."
Interesting. Why would this man want to see her?
She voiced her thoughts and Iel seemed to ponder this for a moment.
"It cannot be told, i'm afraid."
Ivy sighed and nodded, she didn't think that he'd know anyway.
They walked out of the clearing and down a new path, their boots padding along the dirt until they came to a small pond with frogs jumping around Lilly pads and brownish water. A memory tickled the back of her mind but she couldn't quite reach it.
Ivy drew away from Iel and crouched with her elbows on her knees at the side of the pond. She watched in fascination as the animals and insects busied themselves with their lives; grass hoppers jumped over tall blades of grass carelessly and tad poles swam around each other in excitement. To her surprise, she envied the creatures as she watched them, they had simple lives and they had a family.
Feeling Iels eyes on her back, she slowly stood up, brushing away non-existant dirt from her legs and turning to face him. She couldn't quite place his expression and frowned up at him.
"What? What is it?" Why did she feel so self-conscious?
His gently open face was quickly masked with a surprised, then cold, then blank one when his eyes travelled past her shoulder.
"Eric," He murmured, inclining his head towards the trees behind her.
Despite his mask, she could see the hurt under his features. She turned to look at the intruder, curiosity winning over as usual.
He was a middle-aged tall man with quiet, brown eyes and chestnut coloured hair laced with grey. His face was lined with age and he held a book in his hand. His eyes stared her down, authority keeping her mouth shut tight. His gaze wondered over to Iel and his face softened slightly and then returned to it's former when he looked back at her.
"You are Ivy, yes?" His voice was formal but wary, as if ready for her to launch herself at him at any moment. He needn't worry himself, she wasn't going anywhere. Not yet anyway.
"Correct." She would say as few words as possible, she decided.
He nodded, seemingly taking in this information.
"I would like to take a walk with you, we have many things to discuss." They did?
Ivy saw that there was no getting out of this so she stepped forwards, Iel close behind.
"Daniel, you are excused." The boy behind her stiffened and she looked back at him apologetically, he stared at her blankly and then turned on his heel and stalked off.
"You didn't have to do that." She said stormily, her chest tightening. So much for keeping her words to herself.
Eric looked sad when he spoke.
"Yes, I did." He turned around and beckoned for her to follow.
She did, at a distance.
A question itched to be asked and she bit her tongue, then she looked up at the back of his head.
"How did you know that I was here?" She asked.
He chuckled and looked back at her.
"I followed you."
"Huh," She paused, another question surfacing in her mind. "How come only Irian has seen you in three years?"
He tutted.
"No more questions." She rolled her eyes at his back but held her tongue.
"You want to know why I have resurfaced to see you after three years, yes." It wasn't a question. "Well, I have something to tell you."
He paused his walking and turned to look back at her with a strange glint in his eyes. When he didn't continue she sighed and waved her hand at him.
"Go on then."
He took a breath, the corners of his mouth turning up slightly as if he enjoyed knowing something that she didn't.
"I know who killed your family."
***
Well, then.
How do you feel about Eric and what he's told Ivy?
Stay tuned for the next chapter, it's gonna be a good'n.
As always, thank you for reading and leave a vote and comment for support!
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When Embers Grow
Fantasy***READ THE FLOOD INSTEAD*** Ivy's never been normal. She always had something different about her, that's why she was hidden. Though she didn't know, there was a reason why her family was taken from her. It wasn't just assassin's working for the mo...
