Book of Valors

12-Reo

 When they finally reach the base of the Winter Peaks, Reo feels the excitement and anticipation well up inside him. It's been almost eight years since he's been home. The dry, frigid air brings back a flood of memories from his childhood. He doesn't realize he was lost in thought until Calliope squeezes his shoulders. He jumps at her sudden touch.

"Are you alright?" She asks.

"Oh, yeah I was just...thinking." She looks up at the mountains.

"So, how do we get through those mountains?" She asks. Reo scans the mountain until he spots a pass a little ways up. He glances at the sun, then back at the mountain. Based on where the sun is in the sky, they should go north and circle around to avoid the wind chills. He points to the northernmost path.

"We need to go this way." They begin their journey fighting against the cold and wind of the open path until they're protected by the tall rock sheets of the mountains.

Several hours later, thick, grey clouds roll in completely blocking out the sun. With the sun not out, the temperature will drop very quickly, most likely bringing in a snow storm. The wind blows right into his face and bites his nose. Calliope brushes up against Reo and starts to hug herself. Her cheeks are now a rosy color and the rest of her skin is so pale it almost matches her platinum blonde hair.

"And I thought Lora was cold." She says, Reo can't help but chuckle. He lets her link her arm through his to keep warm.

"Calli, you ain't seen nothing yet." They continue on the path a little while longer when Calliope jumps back. She's covering her nose and looking up at the sky. "What?" Reo asks.

"Snow," She says softly. Sure enough, it starts to snow, small little flurries fall from the sky almost like sugar is landing on the tip of Reo's nose. It's been so long since he's seen snow, he'd been so annoyed by it when he was younger, but now it's like home. They continue forward, now with snow falling around them. The sprawling mountains on either side of them reach immeasurable heights. The ice and snow encapsulating the rocks and trees reminds Reo of an ice palace.

Later that night, they camp in a small cave a little ways away from the main path. The duo continues the same pattern for several days. Luckily for them, the clouds start to open up, making way for the sun to shine through. Calliope puts her arms over her head and turns her face up at the sky as if she's blossoming.

"You look like a plant." Reo says. His heart warms at the sight of her smile . He has to suppress the need to reach out and touch her cheek. She puts her arms down but keeps her head turned to the sky.

"Heat is good, sun is nice."

"See, you're a plant." She rolls her eyes.

"So, what's beyond these mountains?" Calliope asks.

"Forest...that's pretty much it."

"Yay forests are fun." Calliope says sarcastically. They share a soft smile. After a few more hours, they camp again for the night. They sleep on opposite sides of the fire with the warmth of the glow surrounding them.

'Reo is suddenly awakened by Calliope's voice. She's yelling and clearly angry. He slowly gets up and clears his foggy vision and sees that she has a boy by the collar of his shirt. Her face is contorted into a sneer and the boy is staring at her wide eyed and his lip is trembling. Reo immediately jumps into action, pulling her off of him. The boy falls into the snow with a large thump. Calliope tries to get at him again, but Reo steps in between them.

"Okay, what in the Seven Hells just happened?"

"This bastard just tried to steal from us!" She points an accusing finger at him.

"I said I was sorry. I'll leave you alone I promise." The boy says. His whole body is visibly shaking. Reo leads him to the fire pit that he and Calliope built that has long burned out. Calliope paces behind them, letting out a slew of curses in Loran. He sits across from Reo while rubbing his hands together. He looks not that much older than Reo. He's very slender with a look to him that's both masculine and feminine. He has jet black hair that is a fluffy tuft on the top of his head with light blue-green eyes that are a stark contrast to his dark skin.

"Okay Calliope, start from the beginning." She stops pacing and stares daggers at the boy.

"I had started to pack our things when I sensed something was off. I turn around to see him trying to get away with some of our stuff." Calliope goes back to pacing angrily. An idea suddenly strikes Reo.

"You didn't hear him?" The sounds of footsteps on the snow would have been a clear indication that someone was near.

"No I didn't. The only reason I even knew if he was there was because of my sixth sense. I didn't hear footsteps, shuffling, nothing." Reo scratches his chin, deep in thought. A new plan starts to form in his mind. Calliope is going to hate it, but it might just be too good for her to say no. Since this mission started the question of slipping into the temple undetected has been not only at the front of his mind but at Calliope's as well. He and Calliope are by no means the quietest people on Earth. Calliope does have experience sneaking into places but the normal tavern brutes have nothing on Valor priests.

"So, what's your name?" Reo asks the boy.

"Reelan." He says meekly

"Okay, Reelan so are you a thief?" Reelan shrugs his shoulders.

"I'm what people in my country call a reat den rued which translates to street rat. I have to steal to survive." His thick Marchian accent is barely intelligible but luckily for Reo, he does speak Roschan well. He ruminates on his idea a little longer before pulling Calliope outside.

"I need to speak with you for a moment." Still grumbling, she follows close on his heels.

"Look, I have an idea about Reelan." Calliope just stares at him, her arms crossed.

"Does it involve ripping off various extremities?" Her voice is completely deadpan. Goddess, she can be violent. It's a total change from her normal, calm demeanor.

"Uh, no. Look, I know that you'll hate this idea but I promise that it will help us in the long run." One of her platinum eyebrows shoots up.

"Okay? Spit it out."

"Well... maybe he can help us retrieve the book? He's a pretty good thief obviously." Calliope just gapes at him. Her anger quickly dissolves into confusion.

"Why?"

"Well, I just think that he can help us. I know that you are good with stealth but we need someone that can get past Valors. " Calliope scoffs at him.

"You don't think that I can handle them?" Reo sighs, clenching and unclenching his fist.

"It's not that, it's just you have no idea how powerful these priests are. We're going to need help." Calliope still doesn't look convinced.

"So you're telling me, that a kid we've only just met and that tried to steal from us would be a good addition to this heist mission?" Reo nods sharply. She heaves a huge sigh. "He's going to want something in return, and there's no way Clementine is going to give something to some thief we found in the mountains."

"We're giving him the choice. He doesn't have to help us." Her eyebrows knit together.

"I don't like this." Reo takes her hands into his.

"Calli, please trust me on this. I have a good feeling." Her bicolored gaze softens.

"You're too soft." He shakes his head and laughs.

"I have to contrast against your ruthlessness." They share a laugh.

"Okay, I trust you. But if he tries anything, I'm gouging out his eyes." Reo smiles endearingly and tucks a lock of hair from her braid behind her ear.

"I'm counting on it." They reenter the cave and Reo swears he saw her blush at his touch.