Verange

Chapter 33

Hayden watched Elis cautiously. She had sat down on her bed and was retying her boots.  Once she was done, she looked up at him. “Are you ready?”

He glanced down at his clothes and at hers before shrugging. “If you are.”

She motioned to a hole in her tunic and the hole in her breeches, both of which were stained with blood. “I have to change first.”

He nodded and stifled a yawn. She continued to sit there, looking at him incredulously. “What?”

She stood up and motioned to the door. “Out.”

A blush crept up his cheeks and he hurried out. A stupid mistake, yes, but one that would be remembered.

She walked out a few minutes later, a green tunic and brown breeches now on her body. He was dressed similarly and they left her house together.

They walked along slowly in a companionable silence.  It was no longer awkward between them when they were alone together. He used to ask questions and receive answers that would only confuse him further. He had finally learned to just watch and listen. Things usually explained themselves.  For the things that didn’t, the questions could wait for later.

As they walked, the sun began to set and the already dim light beneath the trees faded to almost nothing. The only light seemed to come from the blue sword that always hung at Elis’s hip. It glowed faintly and reflected against the eyes of whatever creatures they passed.

It seemed as though they walked for an hour before they came upon Miran’s home. Soft music came from above and Elis stared up at the tree for a long moment before she ascended. She didn’t look happy. As it was, he followed her up the steep stairs. When he had first climbed into Elis’s tree, his legs had burned by the time he had gotten to the top. Now, he climbed easily and kept up with Elis.

The room fell silent when they entered and he was grateful for the few moments of silence to take in his surroundings. There were only a few other people here, most with large smiles on their faces.

Balue was there, along with a dark haired woman that Hayden assumed was his partner. Just looking at them, he could tell how much they meant to each other. They weren’t touching, but they stood close, side by side, and slightly angled towards each other. 

Genah and Ferik were also there, standing towards one wall. Another man and woman he didn’t know were near Balue, and on the other side was Heelio, alone as ever.

Another woman was standing next to Miran, and several others throughout the room, all of which were currently staring at Elis and himself. He glanced over at her and was relieved to see her putting on a brave face and smiling. If she could smile, so could he.

Elis went about, talking to each person and greeting them. She seemed happy enough. However, he didn’t want to interrupt, so he joined Heelio against the wall. He hadn’t seen the elf since they had arrived and they spent some time catching up.

Heelio had no partner yet, not wanting to force someone to come with him and not wanting to be away from them, he had simply given up on finding one until Conrad was killed. Hayden avoided speaking of the event with Talfon. No one else knew, he assumed, so he kept quiet. 

Turns out, Heelio made swords and he was currently designing one for Hayden.  The blade would be black, like obsidian, but much sturdier than the shiny rock. They talked of the design for a long while, debating on the size and hilt designs for a long while. It never got loud.

In the end, they decided on a hand-and-a-half sword. The longer blade would extend his reach, but it was lighter than a broadsword, making more suitable for fighting on horseback. The longer hilt would accommodate both hands if needed, but it wasn’t so long that using it one-handed would feel wrong.  By that time, Elis had spoken to everyone else and made her way over to them with a smile on her face.

Heelio spoke with her for a few moments, but soon drifted off to talk to Balue. Her smile immediately fell from her face and she groaned. “This is so tedious.”

He shook his head and nearly laughed at her. “These are your friends. Rejoice. “

She glared at him pointedly. “Hayden, if I wanted to speak with them, I would go to their homes and spend an afternoon with them, not congregate at a party where my time must be evenly divided amongst them so I show no favorites.”

He was about to answer her when Miran clapped her hands together to get their attention. “I want to thank you all for coming tonight. Now, tonight we gather to celebrate two people and everything they have been through. Love and loss seems to never pull them apart. So, Elis, We have a surprise for you.”

A door opened and a man walked out. He leaned on a cane and instead of boots; one of his feet was a wooden stick. It looked as though times had troubled him, but his face lit up like a candle when his eyes drifted to Elis. It was the man from all the paintings.

When he turned to look at Elis, She collapsed in a pile on the ground, just like she had in the forest.

He was at her side first since he was the closest, but Balue was a close second. He gently positioned her body so it was no longer in a crumpled position and sat, legs crossed, beside her.

“You shouldn’t have sprung it upon her like this. You all know this happens.” Balue was the only one who didn’t seem to think this had been a good idea.

“Balue, It was my decision. I had hoped it had faded.” Keni’s voice was deep and rumbling as he limped over. His wooden leg made a thumping noise as it hit the floor.

“It hasn’t. You should have told her as soon as you woke up, 10 years ago.” His partner was on the ground next to him now, holding his arm gently.

“She is a traveler. I can no longer ride a horse. I didn’t think she would want me anymore. I wouldn’t be able to keep up. Besides, If Conrad caught me now, I wouldn’t even be able to put on a decent fight. I figured she would be better off not knowing.”

Balue glared up at him. “Then you shouldn’t have come tonight.”

The End of Book 1

A/N

Been a long time guys. But here you go. It will probably be a long while before book 2 starts to go up. I have to do a lot of editing to this one and rework it so things in the later part match up with the beginning. I've already done some editing, but I havent posted it here yet and I probably won't until it's all done. 

If you want to reread this, I would wait until Book 2 had been posted. I vowed to myself I would finish this one before the other one was started.

ANYWAYS, What did you think of the ending? Was it stupid, confusing, awesome?

Should I have done 1 more chapter Telling of Elis's feelings when she makes up?

Tell me what the hell you guys think. 

I'll be excited.

That's all folks.

See you again in a month or so. Probably more. Maybe around christmas time when I'm off school and have a lot of time.