* * * * *
Morning broke. The sun peeking over the edge of Sharia; the whistling and chirping of the birds sang out from the leaves in the cold, yet pleasantly clean air. It would be a welcome way for anyone to wake up. For others it was, Lanyan however, was not so lucky. First the tug on his left arm, then he awoke and his right eye popped open, checking his surroundings, worried of an attack.
Again, he felt a yank on his appendage, and now someone holding it in the air. He was more curious than alarmed, had it been a warning he would have been shaken—perhaps even violently. But the tugging was almost gentle, so the turn to his side was casual. He saw Gnert, holding his limb and examining it in the air. He was puzzled, but glad that he hadn’t bolted up like his instincts had told him to. Scaring the Gnome twice in as many days would have made him feel entirely guilty. Lan was tempted to ask what he was doing, but it seemed that he finished and ran off to the forest—scurrying as he often did. The Elf only reflected bewilderment, wondering why all of the sudden Gnert had taken such an interest in him.
Merial passed by him, watching the strange scene and chuckling slightly, “Good morning Lan,” she said, drawing his attention away from the forest.
“Morning Mare,” he replied as he stood, yawning and stretching; his nose turning towards the air smelling the last of the boar cooking and followed Merial towards it. Gort, as usual, was sitting in front of the fire…holding his frying pan above the flame, not in it.
“Morning Gort,” Lanyan said as he sat on the ground next to the dwarf with Carsis and Merial already around the fire.
“Mornin’,” he said as he pulled the frying pan back, tugging a piece of meat out and handing it over to Lan, asking “Hunting today?”
“Aye, I was hoping to catch something before we ride away from the forest,” he took the meat from Gort and nodded in appreciation, smiled at Merial and Carsis, then ate quietly. Although he accepted the bolo and was able to work it well, he had grown up using a bow. Not using one seemed almost unnatural. He knew that many wished for this journey to be over, wished to be on their way to freedom and back to their own lives. Lanyan would eventually come back to his desire to end the journey for peace and prosperity, perhaps after Mt. Forgas. As it stood now though, he wanted this trip to the mountains to be as short as possible for one reason: he wanted his weapon back. “Thanks Gort,” he flicked his head again and stood, walking back to where he was sleeping and reached into his bag to remove the bolo.
“Morning Lanners,” came a greeting from a very bright, chipper—practically bounding—Elryia.
The Elf, previously wearing half of a smile, now had a full grin across his face, “Morning. You’re in a good mood.”
She wrapped her arms around him, hugging him quickly, “It’s a gorgeous day!” She continued onward, smiling all the while. She walked across the field, resisting the urge to skip before she sat down next to Gort with eager eyes. Again, he pulled the frying pan back and removed a hunk of meat, passing it over to her as she flashed him the same beaming face and gratefully took it. Carsis and Merial looked at each other with confusion as to why she was so happy, but neither asked..
“How did everyone sleep?” Elryia asked after chewing and swallowing.
Carsis chucked slightly, “Well. And you?” Though he saw no need to verify to verify.
“Wonderful, thank you.” She said between bites.
“Are we leaving early?”
Elryia finished and dabbed her mouth with the corner of her sleeve, “Not too early. I’ll let everyone get up and around.” She rose to her feet before speaking again, “I’m going to go for a walk. Enjoy the nice weather,” and turned away from them, towards the road.
Merial’s face flickered with a hint of deviousness, “I think I will do that as well.” She turned and kissed Carsis lightly, moving from her seat and crossing in front of Gort. When she closed the gap to Elryia, her hand found its way under the other’s arm, “Come,” she insisted and tugged her playfully as she strolled forward, leaving Elryia only enough room to follow.
Neither of them said a word as they sauntered down the road, Elryia leaned up towards the sky and closed her eyes, smelling the breeze—completely unaware of anything else. Merial halted after they were a good distance away from the camp, her hand had to slip away entirely from Elryia’s arm before she even noticed. When the young woman finally realized what had happened, she found Merial smirking with her arms crossed and foot tapping, “Out with it.”
El feigned ignorance and knelt down to smell a flower growing from the earth. Her eyes averted from Merial’s as the battle between her emotions and her mind began. A smile played at the corners of her mouth while she struggled to keep the rest of her face calm. Merial’s gaze grew even sterner, trying to read the look, “You dreamt about him didn’t you?”
Elryia whipped around on Merial to debate the matter further, but she was familiar with that stone face. Merial wouldn’t stop until the truth was out. “Yes…” she began, sitting on the ground and pulling her knees to her chest arms wrapping around them, the smile seemingly a permanent addition to her face. “It wasn’t so much the dream though, it was the feeling that I had when I woke up from it,” her mind drifted again and she sighed softly. “Just a sense that he was well, that he was safe. I know he’s gone and I miss him, but I felt like he was with me—like we were connected.” She peered skeptically towards Merial, thinking her words sounded crazy and expected a look telling her the same. But there was no incredulous stare, just a gentle, understanding gaze.
“You know, when I first fell in love with Carsis and we were forced to spend time apart I would wake sometimes with that very same feeling.”
Elryia took a deep breath, “It’s a nice feeling. Today is going to be a good day.”