Psychic

50. Ipalzia

It would take them three days to arrive at Ipalzia. During that time, Rai spent most of her time with the two youngest children, Isaac and Callan. Reno was not able to go see her whenever he wanted. There was always someone next to her and Reno did not feel comfortable with the thought of being with her while a kid stared at them. That did not stop him from coming to see her at night though. They spent most of that time making fun of the others they traveled with, talking about the things that had happened to them or telling each other about their lives before they met.

Aila was content with the situation. Glad to see how things had evolved, she was did not mind having nothing to do but sit with Jericho and observe. It was bizarre for her, even though she had been with Reno his whole life, to see him smile.

One night they were in the kitchen together. Reno had shown her how to make a chocolate desert with chocolate chips, gelatin and crumbled cookies that did not need to go in the oven. They were sitting next to each other at the table, eating their confections.

"So I thought I better get over there before Tolaymus tells me anything," Reno was telling Rai, who nodded. "Now, I didn't know that girl was still there from earlier but I sat up and I just puke all over my bed."

Rai covered her mouth with the back of her hand. "And you ate that spaghetti earlier."

"Yeah and it was like projectile vomit too and it wouldn't stop. I could see her out of the corner of my eye. She jumped off the bed and her legs were just covered in red puke and the look on her face killed me." Rai put her fork into her bowl as she laughed. "And I start laughing while I'm throwing up."

"Oh, the humanity." When their laughter slowed, Rai said, "so what did you do about Tolaymus?"

"I just didn't go. When it finally stopped I just fell back in bed and went back to sleep," he chuckled.

"Oh my god! What?!"

"It didn't matter because he came and saw how dead I was."

"Well, mine wasn't that bad but I had rearranged things in my room the night before. Lily told me that I shouldn't leave the desk next to my bed because it had these pointed edges. I didn't think it'd be a big deal so I left it there. In the morning, I start to get up, stab my head on the stupid corner of the desk and fall back on my pillow."

"Heh, like me."

"Yeah. I had been lying on my side and I hit right here," she touched the top right corner of her forehead. "I can still feel it if I think about it. I just stayed there and found the irony amusing for a while."

"My poor baby." Reno leaned forward and kissed her forehead. She smiled and turned to her bowl. "So how do you like it?"

"It's... interesting."

"That's not what I wanted to hear."

"It's not bad, just strange. It's just a weird texture for chocolate. Why'd they teach you to cook anyway? Seems like a weird thing to bother with for a soldier."

"Generals are the only ones who get to interact with royalty. We're supposed to be their guards and escorts. If I was traveling with them from one place to another, I might have to prepare meals for them, which I did for Yasashi and Marlene a few times. You're like a fighting butler, I guess. You have to be able to do everything from taking care of a baby to entertaining."

"Entertaining? Like what?"

Reno shrugged, "playing an instrument or singing or something."

"You sing?" He smiled at her before taking more of his desert. "You do not. Show me." He shook his head, smiling even larger.