A Hero With/Out Time

Chapter 4: My Change. (Part 2)

When we reached Stonewall I did as usual and dropped the Hero and her party off at the inn. In the evening I cooked for the other carriage drivers and talked with them. I stayed up during the night to catch Ardent casting magic in the inn's backyard and in the morning I woke up early to prepare a towel and breakfast for the Hero as she did her practice. Due to that and coupled with the nightmares I had of those guards dying over and over again, I was a little sleep deprived. If it weren't for the fact Pina was an amazing bird and practically drove herself we may have went off course.

Today however was the first real hurdle. The bandits near Wester. Considering how well things had gone previously I was intent to repeat what happened. There was just one problem with that. I couldn't get the Hero's crestfallen fallen expression out of my mind. Sure it hadn't lasted long and she was back to her usual self after a few days, but... I had to wonder if I could do something about it.

A few hours past midday I parked the carriage a little ways off the road in view of a small waterfall. It wasn't a well-known spot and I only heard of it due to my interactions with yesterday's drivers. It was nice to see that the Hero appreciated the view as did the others, well at least I think Ronalt kind of smiled.

Just as I began to prepare lunch something poked my side. I turned to find a scary looking hammer in my face. Marley huffed beneath it,

"Why did you only make breakfast for Lara this morning?"

"It wasn't much at all, didn't you have breakfast at the inn?" I asked in return.

Her expression turned sour, "Bah, they call that breakfast. It tasted like stale bread and water. Next time you cook make sure you send me whatever you make!"

"What if the next inn you stay in has a better dinner, wouldn't I just ruin your appetite?"

She rubbed her stomach, "You underestimate my power."

I almost choked from laughter as I forced myself to hold it back. Her expression just now was far too serious, "I'll-I'll keep that in mind."

She nodded, "Good." I stared in odd disbelief as she made her way to where the others sat.

Like the previous day I ate lunch with the Hero and her party. They didn't talk about anything serious and mostly just admired the scenery while comparing it to their own homes. The Hero's rendition of home was especially strange as she described buildings that stretched to the sky and bridges that could span hundreds of metres without magic.

"What was your home like Rain?" the Hero asked me innocently.

"It's a nice place," I smiled softly. "It's actually pretty close to the border and south of here. Not much to compare it to, it's a small town and we make do with what we can."

"What's it called? Maybe we can visit it on the way through."

"Axel," I replied tenderly seeing Ronalt's gaze harden. "But I doubt we'll have time for that and it is pretty far south." I was actually inclined to agree with Ronalt's disdainful look. My last thought was to bring all these dangerous people near home. As close as we were to the border, we had nothing to do with the demons. I wanted my safe haven to stay that way.

"That's a shame," the Hero laughed awkwardly and focused her attention back on her food.

After lunch we left straight for Wester. It was a steady and boring ride but as the town came into view my chest tightened in apprehension. The sun was already setting and as soon as I had the carriage stowed away and Pina settled down, I left to do my investigation. Really I knew exactly where the bandits were hiding but if I didn't go through the motions and someone found me I'd only become suspicious. The signal from the forest wouldn't flash until just before midnight and to bide my time I decided to get a drink at the local bar. It was the same one I had gone to during my initial investigation, it hadn't panned out well for me but the drinks were decent and cheap.