The three strangers stared silently, and Faye stared back. Jyri stared, but at one of the girls. She had red hair, with a dazed look in her eyes. The other one had dark hair, and wore a frown with her black dress.
After several seconds of awkward silence, the redhead spoke.
"You have an arrow in your arm."
Jyri turned his head to look at his wound. Blood dribbled from the puncture, staining his shirt sleeve. He nodded, and looked back at her with a pained smile. "I do."
"Shouldn't you do something about it?"
Jyri winced. "Probably." He fell to his knees, clutching his arm to his side. Then, howled in pain.
"Oh dear." The redhead dismounted, along with the man and dark haired girl.
"I can help with that," the old man said, reaching for the arrow.
"No! Don't touch it!"
"Relax. I'm a wizard." He reached for the arrow again.
Jyri pushed him away. "I'm fine." He attempted to get to his feet, but stumbled. The wizard steadied him, and led him off. Everyone else followed.
The group found a river not too far away. The wizard instructed Jyri to lay on his stomach, and ripped open his shirt sleeve.
"What are you doing!"Jyri shouted, shoving him away. "That's silk!"
"Calm down, boy. I'll fix it later." The wizard shook his head, and forced Jyri back down. Faye and Kirsten watched as he inspected the still-bleeding wound. Lavina squatted in front of a tree, holding her hand out towards a chattering squirrel. The wizard pulled a rag from his pack, and handed it to Kirsten. "Go wet this."
"Lavina," Kirsten called. The redhead tore her attention away from the squirrel. Kirsten waved the rag. "Go wet this for me."
Smiling, Lavina took the rag, and dunked it in the river, then handed it to the wizard. The wizard muttered something under his breath before taking it, and wiped the blood away. "Hold still," he said to Jyri. Jyri whimpered, but complied. The wizard closed his eyes, and ran his hands over the arrow. He grasped the shaft of it, and yanked it out.
Jyri shrieked.
"I'm almost done."
"That hurt!"
"You're lucky it's only your arm, boy." The wizard set the arrow aside, then wiped up more of the blood, before putting his hand over the wound for a moment. He removed his hand, revealing flawless skin. "How's that?"
"It... it doesn't hurt anymore." Jyri sat up to inspect his wound. Or, what was once a wound. He poked at it. "It's gone."
"Yeah, it's almost like I used magic." The wizard picked up the arrow, studying the head of it. Eyes widening, he glanced at Jyri, then back at the arrowhead. Then, Jyri again.
"What's wrong?" Faye asked him.
The wizard shook his head. "Nothing." He stood up, and tossed the arrow into the river, the current carrying it away.
Lavina gasped. "What'd you do that for?"
"So no one will step on it."
"Yeah, instead someone will swim into it," Kirsten said.
"I was more worried about the fish." Lavina nibbled her lip.
"Yeah," Jyri agreed. "Think of the fish." He rubbed at his arm, and seemed to notice the rip in his shirt. "And my shirt." He smiled up at Lavina. "It's expensive."
"Well, get up so I can fix it," the wizard grumbled. Jyri got to his feet, and the wizard held the pieces of cloth together, running his palm over it.
As the wizard focused on the sleeve, Jyri introduced himself to Lavina. "I'm Jyri."
"Lavina."
"Lavina." Jyri gave her a half-smile. "Such a beautiful name for such a beautiful maiden."
Lavina looked down at her feet, flushed. Kirsten grinned. Faye took a step back, and frowned at Jyri. But he only had eyes for Lavina.
"I'm Corvin," the wizard said, tugging at the now intact, bloodstain-free shirt sleeve. "And you're welcome."
Jyri blinked at Corvin, then apologized. "Thanks for saving me." And just as quick, he turned back to Lavina. "What brings you here?"
"I'm on a quest."
"Really?" Jyri gave her another half-smile. "What kind of quest?"
"A quest to find a quest." Lavina's voice was soft, yet filled with confidence.
Faye tilted her head, mouth flopped open. Kirsten gave Lavina a disapproving look that went unnoticed. Corvin put his hand over his face, muttering something under his breath.
Jyri's smile didn't falter. "That sounds wonderful. Do you need any help? I might be able to help."
Faye shot him a look. "I thought we didn't have time-"
"Lavina needs our help," he whispered to Faye.
"She has help." Faye hissed, tugging his arm. "Nice meeting you," she said to the three. "Thanks for healing Jyri, but we have to go."
"Except we don't have a map anymore, since our estin ran away with our saddlebags," Jyri said, wrenching his arm from her grip.
Lavina's face fell. "I'm sorry."
Kirsten elbowed Lavina, and grinned at Jyri. "We could help find your estin."
"You've helped us enough," Faye said, but Jyri jumped in.
"That's a great idea!"
"Except he's long gone," Faye said.
"He's not," Jyri said. "Estins are known for their loyalty. I bet he's waiting for us, back where we last saw him."
"This is Holger we're talking about."
But Jyri ignored her comment, and led the way. The three acquaintances followed on horseback. Jyri fell into a walk next to Lavina, and Faye had the pleasure of listening in on their conversation.
"You're leaving the country?" Lavina asked. "Where to?"
"Dorendi," Jyri said.
"Really? That's funny." Lavina smiled. "We came from there."
Jyri returned her smile. "A happy coincidence. What are you doing here?"
"We heard non-humans were being mistreated, and want to help them."
Jyri clasped his hands together, beaming up at her. "I want to help non-humans too! We have so much in common."
Faye groaned. Jyri shot her a look.
"I know a lot about magical beings," he said to Lavina, sliding his hands in his pockets. "Did you know that an elf's hearing is five times better than a human's?"
Lavina shook her head. "Amazing."
"You seem... amazing yourself." Jyri's voice shook, and he glanced over at one of the many trees surrounding them, hiding his face behind his hair.
Lavina looked down at the reigns in her hands. Faye resisted the urge to vomit, and slowed her pace, to avoid hearing another word out of Jyri's mouth. She soon found herself next to Kirsten.
Kirsten looked down at her with a smile that rivaled Jyri's. "They're so cute together, aren't they?"
Faye shrugged.
"I keep trying to find someone for her, but she doesn't like anyone." Kirsten shook her head. "Unbelievable. But I hope this works out. Jyri's so awkward and adorable. They're perfect for each other."
"Maybe she doesn't want anyone." Faye tried, but failed, to keep the venom out of her voice.
Kirsten opened her mouth, then closed it, her eyes filling with realization. "I'm sorry. I didn't think."
"Didn't think what?" Faye furrowed her brow, but had a strong feeling in her stomach about what Kirsten didn't think.
"You like him. This must so be hard for you."
Faye wrinkled her nose. Just as she expected. "I don't."
"It's okay if you do." Kirsten bit her lip, and scrunched her eyebrows. "If it hurts, I could-"
"The only thing that hurts, is my stomach at the thought of being with him," Faye snapped.
The corners of Kirsten's mouth twitched back, and she said nothing else.
After an hour or so of walking, Faye realized that she did not recognize anything, and stopped. "Jyri." Everyone turned their attention towards her. "I don't recognize this."
Jyri looked around. Panic filled his eyes, but he blinked it away, smiling. "This is the right way. You just weren't paying attention earlier."
"But-"
"But," Jyri said, pointing to the right, "it's this way."
And so they all moved towards the right. After some time, Jyri led them to the left. Then, the right again. And the right again. And the right again.
"I feel like I've seen that tree before," Lavina said.
"Because we have,"Kirsten said.
Jyri waved his hand dismissively. "All trees look the same. And here, we make a left..."
More time passed, with Jyri making vague suggestions as to where to turn next. Everyone else had grown tired, and in Faye's case, annoyed. "Just admit you're lost!"
"I'm not lost. It's just-" Jyri rubbed his chin. "It shouldn't be far now."
"We're not even on the path anymore," Kirsten said.
"It's a shortcut," Jyri said.
"Feels more like along cut," Corvin grumbled, shifting in his saddle.
Despite the setback, Lavina's cheery disposition hadn't changed. She looked down at Jyri from her horse. "It's okay if you're lost. It makes for a fun adventure."
Pink-faced, Jyri smiled. He rubbed his arm, looking down at the dirt. "I guess I'm a little lost." Everyone except Lavina groaned.
"We're never gonna find Holger," Faye said.
"We... we will," Jyri said. "If we don't, he'll find us."
"Right now, I just want to find a way out of these woods," Faye said.
Jyri rubbed his hand over his face. "We need Holger. All of our stuff was in those saddlebags."
"Not everything... we have our packs." Faye did a mental inventory of her knapsack. Clothes, and a bit of meat. "What's in yours?" she asked Jyri.
"Clothes, my hairbrush, soap, and some bread," he listed off, tugging down each finger.
"So we've lost our pan, a towel, and blankets," Faye said. "Could've lost worse."
"We'll freeze at night."
"We have cloaks."
"Most of our food was in those bags."
"We can always buy more," Faye said.
"We're running out of money," Jyri said. "Mainly because of your ridiculous purchases."
"Ridiculous purchases?"
Jyri gestured towards her torso. "You know."
Faye raised her chin. "I had help paying for that, thank you."
"Paying for what?" Lavina asked. Kirsten snickered.
"Never you mind," Faye said. "Do what you want, but Jyri and I are going to stop for the night, and we'll find a way out in the morning."
Jyri shot her a look, then smiled at Lavina. "You're more than welcome to stay the night with us."
"We'd love to," Kirsten said, grinning. Faye rubbed her hands over her face, suppressing a groan.
Once everyone settled down in front of a campfire, Faye miraculously managed to drag Jyri away from Lavina. Before she could scold his behavior, words poured out of his mouth.
"Lavina is perfect, isn't she? I think I love her."
"You just met her this morning."
Jyri ignored her. "I mean, I've never been in love before, but she does this weird thing to my stomach, and I can't stop thinking about her, and I really really really want to hold her hand. Do you think she'll let me hold her hand?"
Faye sighed. "I don't know."
"Maybe I should ask her," Jyri said. "Or would that be too weird? Is that too weird? What would you do, if someone asked to hold your hand?"
"Punch them."
Jyri looked towards Lavina, who sat in front of the fire with Kirsten and Corvin. "Do you think she likes me?"
"I don't know," Faye said, her tone sharp. "When are we leaving them?"
Jyri's mouth fell open, and he gave her a blank stare, as though he hadn't quite heard her right. "Leaving them?"
"Yes." Faye folded her arms, raising an eyebrow. "Leaving them. To go to Dorendi. Which you've been itching to do ever since we met."
Jyri rubbed at his forehead, looking downwards. He held a finger up, and tapped at his chin, frowning. He gazed back at Lavina. She left the campfire for a bundle of blankets on the ground, barely glancing their way. Jyri smiled for what must've been the tenth time since meeting Lavina. "I love her too much to leave. I'm staying with them."
A lump grew in Faye's throat, and she swallowed. "What about those guards following you."
"Corvin's a wizard. He'll protect us."
"So you're just gonna..." Faye paused to steady her voice, "stay with them?"
"Of course." Jyri gave her a half smile. Something about it was different than the one he gave Lavina, thankfully. Perhaps there was regret behind it, for it wavered. "If you don't want to, you can leave, and go back to your old life."
"But, you said life would be better for me in Dorendi."
Jyri nodded. "It would. Maybe you can find your way there."
"Alone?"
Jyri clutched both her shoulders, and looked down at her, his smile returning. "I believe in you." He pulled her into a hug. Or, what should have been a hug. It was more of him squishing her head into his stomach. Before Faye could push him away and tell him off, he headed over to Lavina, and laid down next to her. Lavina pulled some of her blanket over him, before snuggling up, using his chest as a pillow. Kirsten made her own bed several paces away from the two, another smug smile on her face.
Shivering, Faye sat on a log in front of the fire, across from Corvin, and considered her options. Aimlessly follow lovestruck Jyri, go back to her old life, or make the trek to Dorendi alone. None were appealing. She just wanted things back to normal. When it was just her and Jyri, against all adversaries. But he had to go fall in love with some daft-headed maiden. Burying her face in her knees, she groaned.
When Faye finally looked up, she caught Corvin staring at her, his wrinkled face illuminated by the fire. He opened his mouth as though to speak, but closed it.
"What?" Faye asked him.
"It'll pass," he mumbled, rubbing his palms over his legs. "It'll be over before it starts."
"What do you mean?"
But Corvin ignored her. He stood up and strode towards the nearest tree, making himself comfortable for the night. Faye shook her head. And she thought Jyri was cryptic.
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