Malaya: Resolve

The sounds from the ground level were different from the hustle and bustle of Malaya, but sitting still in the middle of the forest, I could almost imagine the insect's buzzing to be the mating calls of fire bugs, and the cacophony from the crunching of leaves and branches could almost be the loud noises from the strong, highborn winds clashing across the Malayan magical barrier.

But, I was a long way away from the floating Isle, and the sunsets came later than they did from up high. I hummed a tune, but I have never felt more alone.

"Therion!" the boy shouted out from behind the dense foliage. "Come back here when you're done answerin' the call of nature! Ma and Da are callin' for ya!"

I smiled a bit. Well, maybe I wasn't so alone.

A few days ago, I had been a trainee of the Order, and more months ago, I had been the apprentice for an old man and a student of a voluminous magician, and more than a year ago now, I was the first princess of a formidable kingdom. But, now, I was devoid of any true name.

I was the simple boy, Eleftherion.

"Hey there, Therion." The boy took sips of the soup as he spoke. "Sit down here and have a bite. Travellin' in the forest can get a bit cold, especially in the nighttime, so it's of most importance to drink up some hot stew."

The beefy man clamped a heavy, proud claw on the red-haired boy's back. His son immediately complained, "Awtch, Da! Dat hurts!"

"Hey there back at you, Monty," I greeted the boy, who glared at my nickname for him. I ignored him and bowed a little towards the thin-faced woman, elegantly sitting on the log as though she was having a tea party inside of a mansion. I told her, "The stew looks delicious, Lady Tabitha."

"Oh, enough with the 'lady's' and the 'sir's', Therion boy!" the woman bashfully shouted. "We've been travelling together for days now, and we both think of you as our own child by now. Come and call us Uncle and Aunt!"

"Tha makes sense, Ma!" Joren said with a smile, and then grabbed for me with his little, yet strong arms. I almost dropped my bowl, but my instincts immediately straightened my hold on it. The freckled boy continued to say, "And Therion and I are friends! So, we're practically brothers now!"

I laughed along with the innkeeper's family. I had shamelessly tagged along in their journey towards the Empire after I had sent correspondences from Malaya. And now, I'm on a journey on my own.

"Hey Therion," the boy whispered to me while his parents were busy talking. "Won't you come with me to the forest for a while?"

I stared at the boy with a mild curiosity. He was blushing a bit, so his whole head looked like a ball of fire. Nevertheless, I said calmly, "Sure. I'll come with you."

We stood up together, and as we were just at the very edge of the clearing, Tabitha called out, "Don't go too far, boys."

"Yes, Ma."

"Yes, Aunt Tabitha."

She smiled endearingly at how I had called her. I smiled back reassuringly and followed the red head towards the woods. We walked for a long time, and although I wouldn't get lost due to my training, I worried about the boy himself. He walked onwards with a determined gait.

He stopped just as we had reached a small creak. "We're fine here."

"Okay," I told him, looking around the area. The moonlight shone bright and full, so the forest was tinged with a mysterious and dreamlike aura. I asked, "What did you want to talk about?"

The boy blushed a bit again, before finally murmuring, "I didn't want my Ma to overhear, and I know how good her hearin' is. So, I had to drag us a bit away."

"That's fine, Joren," I said, but now I was really getting curious about what this was all about. I was  impatient, but I kept a calm demeanor. After all, patience was one of the virtues an assassin must uphold.

"Comin' to the Empire," he started. "... Although it's true it's purely for business with Ma and Da, but I... I wanted to apply for schoolin' there."

My eyes went wide. I had relayed some of my true objectives to Joren's parents. However, I was pretty sure I hadn't told the boy about it.

"The Lunar Academy for Special Mages," I mumbled, observing his reaction.

It was his turn to be shocked. "Y-Ya know of it too!"

I shrugged slightly. "I mean, who wouldn't?"

Then, he made to grab at my shoulders, but since I felt no malice from him, I simply allowed it to happen. However, as he brought me recklessly closer to him, I had unconsciously blushed at his brash action.

He whispered into my ears, as though anyone would even be listening in to us in the middle of the forest. But as far as my detection skills were involved, I sensed no peeping toms nor eavesdropping spies.

"I-I'm gonna test my luck and try to enter!" he whispered shakily into my ears, and then he backed away and stared at me with a guarded expression, as though he was waiting for me to rebuke or make fun of him.

Instead, I stood quite still as my brain worked quickly. A simple plan started to form, and I knew this situation was a gift from the gods. I smiled at him as widely and innocently as I could, and declared, "Then, I'll try to enter too!"

His green eyes went wide. But then, he too, soon smiled with me. "You'll come with me, too, Therion? You'll try it out too?!"

"Yeah!" I nodded. "I mean, what have I got to lose?"

"But, well, Ma told me you came with us 'cuz tha old man had an errand for you." He looked at me worriedly.

"Oh, that!" I shouted with a simple smile. "Farseer won't worry about me too much. I'll just send him a letter, and it'll all be alright."

"Really?!" he shouted, disturbing some of the woodland creatures' sleep. "You've got it real easy, Therion!"

I laughed lightly, my hands on my hips. "I always have it easy!"

Then, I had to pretend like I couldn't dodge as he flung a boot at the creak and splashed cold water onto my pants. I shouted in mock surprise and flung water back at him. Soon, we had filled the forest with our tinkling laughter.

After a few moments, we started to head back to our clearing, pushing at each other's shoulders as we went. All the while, he kept warning me, shivering from the cold, "D-Don't ever tell my M-Ma about it! D-Da's alright, but he never lies t-to Ma either. So, no tellin'!"

I hummed a little as we walked on slowly. The mild, evening breeze was refreshing, especially on my wet clothes, and the moonlight was just enough to guide us through the earthy path.

By the time we had returned to the clearing, Tabitha had incessantly scolded us and pulled at our ears. I've never had my ears pulled before, so it really had surprised me. Afterwards, she had herded us into the foliage and told us to change out of our wet clothes. Dry and comfortable, but the sides of our heads still stinging and bright red, we laid ourselves down onto the mossy layers we had made as makeshift beds.

In the moonlit night, Tabitha's gentle singing both lulled us into a sweet calm.

'How nice,' I remembered thinking, before finally succumbing into my dream.