Luna

Chapter Six

We all sat down and enjoyed eating a lovely dinner together, afterwards Kip took his horse and headed to the barn. I decided to follow just to see if he needed any help. He moved quickly, but I caught up easily. I cleared my throat loudly and accidentally startled the poor man. His eyes were wide and I had to think of something to say.
    “Um, sorry. I just wanted to see if there wasn’t something I could do to help.” I was so nervous that my words sounded like that of a scared mouse.
    “Do you know how to put up a horse?” Kip had calmed down and was looking at me expectantly. Since there was no need for horses in the Araki lands I did not in fact know how to perform this task.
    “My previous master didn’t allow me to touch the horses, he thought we women were all cursed and shouldn’t touch such useful items as horses.” I let my face fall into sadness and continued, “I would love to learn though.” Even though I always thought horses were weak, fearful, and useless animals, they were about to become very important if I had to pretend not to be Araki.
    “Alright then, follow me and I will explain everything that I can.” I inspected everything that he did, the speed of his movements, where he held the lead for the horse, how he tied the rope, the things he said to the horse, and even the tone of his voice. There are far more people in the world that owned horses than people that owned dragons, it couldn’t be that difficult. After he finished putting the horse up he began making a bed for himself out of blankets on the floor.
    “Wait, there is an extra bed in the house, why don’t you sleep there tonight?” I was gesturing towards the house and speaking very quickly in order to keep Kip from laying on the hard ground.
    “I normally sleep with my horse on the ground during travels, and traveling is my life. You, my dear, sleep in the bed if you wish, but I will stick to what I am used to. I stood there trying to hide the shock that was no doubt an obvious expression at this point. If I was truly raised by a hateful merchant then I must have slept on the ground many times as well.
    “I will sleep outside tonight as well, but it was very nice last night and it was a nice break from the hard ground.” I was trying to save the situation and not give myself away.
    “Don't worry girl, if you want to savor your last night in bed you may. I, however, prefer to forget all together what it feels like in order not to miss it.” He sighed and slowly lowered himself to the ground, sighing quietly. The more I thought about it the more that I realized I would not be able to sleep with Fidi for who knows how long and my heart began to sink. I needed to see him.
    “I prefer to sleep under the stars and it is a clear night, so I am going to be outside tonight. Sleep well Kip.” I turned and as I exited the building Kip sat up and spoke again.
    “Goodnight,” his pause was long and I could tell it was not because he had forgotten my name. It seemed too intentional, “Luna.” I couldn’t help but wonder if he was already onto me, if he was, would he turn me in? “We leave at first light.” I nodded and walked out of the barn. The sound of the front door closing broke my focus and I could see Lily running towards me. Her beautiful hair was streaming behind her and her  face was full of happiness. 
    “Luna!” Her happy face crumbled and a few tears began to glisten in the moonlight. “I am going to miss you so much.” She hugged me tightly and sighed heavily. “You are going to do great and I know that Kip will take great care of you.” I smiled at her and took a deep breath.
    “What if he finds me out, Lily?” The worry was no doubt evident in my eyes, “I think he is already wondering. I don’t know anything about merchantry or tending horses or sleeping on the hard ground. What if he finds out?” Her eyes were soft and calm.
    “Even if he does find out I am sure that he wouldn’t do anything rash. He is a kind man.” She seemed deep in thought as her brow furrowed, “If he does find out just make sure that you explain everything. Everyone has a reason to hate the Araki. Your people have ruined many lives.” Now the tears were spilling from my eyes and my voice was unsure. 
    “I still can’t understand why my f… people could do such horrible things” I realized now that even Lily didn’t know the extent of who I was, if she knew who my father was would she even turn her back? I couldn’t let anyone know. Not until I had a plan, a plan to right the wrongs that were being done to the people of Chora. I had to change things, maybe this is why I was born to a red dragon. Maybe this is why I was born to run. “Okay Lily, I will trust Kip and I will make it through all of the kingdoms. I have to see the extent of the horrors and I will change them. No matter what, I have to do something.”
    “I hope you can, for all of Chora I hope that you can.” She squeezed me tight once again and we said goodnight to each other. I made my way into the sparse desert brush next to the barn and attempted to sleep. After tossing and turning for hours, Fidi’s presence grew faintly and I knew he was near. Not long after I fell into a deep slumber filled with visions of my brother destroying homes and my father ordering the executions of children. 
I woke in a heavy sweat as the sun was rising. I rose from the ground, dusted off my dress and made my way back into the barn to help Kip load up. I untied the horse from the post as he rolled his blanket and we walked to the cart. He showed me how to hook the horse to it and I watched every move. The horse was much less afraid of me than I thought it would be. Fidi’s scent must have faded from me. I am still here. I’ll follow at a distance and remember to always go downwind if you want to see me. A shaky breath left me as my body filled with relief. I hadn’t heard his voice since the day before and I have never gone this long without seeing him. “Let’s head out Luna.” Kip’s voice broke into my thoughts and I hopped onto the back of the cart while he sat at the front holding the reins. Surrounding me were all kinds of fabrics, spices, cured meats, and other dried goods. Mostly dry foodstuffs and clothing supplies. We started forward with a lurch and my journey west began. The cart ride was much rougher than I imagined it being. I felt every rock and every hole on my now bruised tailbone. My ribs ached heavily as well with each bump that the rickety cart hit. We rode towards the town where we had first found food for Fidi. I never missed him as much as I did now, soaring through the sky was much more comfortable than this. After hours of silence Kip broke in, “Do you know how to sew, Luna?” I looked behind me and could see he had turned his head sideways with both me and the road in his peripherals. 
“No, sir. I do not know how to sew. I really don’t know how to do much honestly” I shifted my weight so that I could face him better and continued. “The man who had me never taught me anything and forbade me from speaking to others.” I nodded silently and faced the road once again. “I’m sorry that I am not much help,” I raised my voice to make sure he could hear me with his head turned, “but I am a fast learner.” He simply grunted and nodded once more. I could not tell what he was thinking, so I hoped for the best.
We were traveling through the desert with no shade, as most of the Fotia lands were, and I could feel my skin burning and my lips cracking. I knew better than to complain because supposedly this had been my entire life, right? I had to admit that a part of me missed my previous lavish lifestyle, only now I knew it came at a cost. A cost I couldn’t bear to pay, wouldn’t bear to pay. I shook off these thoughts and looked up at the sky, wondering where Fidi could be. It wasn’t close based on the complacent speed at which this horse was moving. Oh well. I will see a lot more of the country this way.
Just as the town came into view Kip spoke again, “Alright, I am the man who is known never to take an assistant, so you are my niece. That means that your name is Luna Mathers, an Edafosi. No fancy water tricks and no speaking of where you are from.” He looked at me for a minute and seemed thoughtful. “Also try not to look too many people in the eyes, actually just keep your eyes down. Those blue eyes will have people asking a lot of questions.” My jaw dropped.
“So how am I supposed to assist you if I can’t even be seen?” I didn’t want to be a problem, but I also wouldn’t see much of Chora sitting in the back of a cart. “This is starting to feel a lot like my previous situation...Keep your mouth shut, don’t let people see you.” My expression hardened as he stopped the cart abruptly. “So what if I have blue eyes, I’m sure they can’t be that rare and why can’t you have just changed your mind after seeing a poor girl from Kyma lost in Fotia lands.” I spun all the way around as I looked at him and he looked away. “I am Luna Potami of Kyma and I always will be. Lying won’t help us, just help me learn the trade for real and I will fit in.” The cart started rolling again and I turned back to watch the world roll away.
“Okay, you are right, lies will only trip us up. Won’t they?” He was silent for the rest of the ride and only spoke again when the cart stopped in town and a shopkeeper waved him over. “I’m coming Earle and you know it!” His voice was lively and friendly. Nothing like he was during the cart ride over. I began to worry that he didn’t like me very much.
It had been hard work helping Kip carry all of the goods that everyone requested from the cart to the shops. I was sweating and my burned hands were bleeding, not to mention my side which throbbed at every breath. Finally Kip brushed his hands together signalling we were finished. I couldn’t believe how much work it had been. I didn’t get a chance the whole day to look at anything besides the goods or even visit Fidi. I reached out to feel his presence and once I found it I sent him an image of me hugging his neck. I miss you too Luna. I guess that this is how we are going to have to communicate for the time being. Kip and I headed back to the cart to head on our way.
“Great job keeping up today!” His joyful voice was still here and he patted me hard on the back. I could help but audibly scream as the pain reverberated from my injured side and blood started staining my new dress. “What happened to your side?” He quickly held me up and looked around to make sure we hadn’t drawn attention then helped me onto the back of the cart and looked at me expectantly. I had to think of something quick, because I’m pretty sure that telling him I fell off of my dragon and onto my brother’s dragon would not be an acceptable answer.
“When the Araki attacked us one of them stabbed me after they killed my master, I’m pretty sure they thought that they killed me because I pretended like they had in hopes of them leaving me alone.” I shrugged and stared at the dusty ground.
“I’m so sorry that this happened to you, and please leave the heavy lifting to me, at least until your wound heals.” He pulled out a second brown dress and told me to go inside the inn and change so we could wash the blood out before it stained for good. I obeyed. Inside of the inn, I was getting looks from everyone. I guess I was still a stranger and people here have a good reason to hate strangers. I tried to walk faster and one man got up from his table and friends to block my path. One of his friends stood behind me and grabbed my hip with one hand and my ass with the other. I stifled a scream as the first man came closer and pressed his body close to mine as he fondled my breasts. I didn’t know what I could do. There were six of them and I stood no chance as tired and injured as I was. I braced myself as I felt a third man grab my arm and yet another lick the side of my face. I caught a glimpse of the Inn master running outside, I didn’t blame her. Just as the first man went to rip my dress away from my breasts I heard Kip’s voice.
“Let her go right this moment!” His voice boomed and all but the first man let go of me. His hands were still grasping the fabric of my dress ready to tear it. He smiled and showed rotten teeth and I smelled his foul breath.
“Or what, old man?” He laughed loudly as the other five men positioned themselves behind him.
“Or I stop delivering goods to your town from the Edafosi and Kyma lands.” The man spun me around and held a knife to my throat, but now I could see Kip. His face was hard and his eyes sharp. “Are you willing to risk food for some fresh ass?” The knife pressed harder against my throat before I was released and simultaneously shoved forwards. I fell to my knees from the abrupt movement but quickly stood and reached Kip. The Inn master took my hands and led me to the washroom as the men slowly and stiffly walked out of the front door right past Kip. She helped me change and clean my dress. She also tended my wounds. After all of that I was truly exhausted, terrified, missing home, and in a dire need to hug my only friend. I met Kip back by the cart and he announced that we would camp here in the city tonight. So Kip gave the Inn master a bolt of beautiful red fabric as a thank you for helping then we were on our way. It wasn’t far though. I helped Kip set up camp and then told him I desired to go for a walk and after today’s events he did not argue. I walked downwind until I could barely see the town anymore and then right before I went to call out to Fidi a man grabbed me from behind and pushed me to the ground. He was trying to pull my skirts up, and he yelled at me to hold still, I realized it was the man from before. He flipped me over and pressed one hand on my throat and he fussed with his pants, trying to pull them down. My edges of my vision started to blur and I was losing hope, but then his head simply disappeared and blood was shooting from his neck. He fell backwards and I scrambled to my feet. Fidi appeared and simply ate the man. Only took him three bites. He then encircled me and I hugged his neck, thanking him quietly over and over again. I had never imagined Fidi eating a man, and the image filled my mind.
“Um, thanks bud.” I pushed away from his embrace and he was just as he had always been, beautiful red scales and black eyes. Tears were spilling from my eyes and I embraced him once again. That man tasted absolutely horrid. I broke into a tearful laughter and looked my good friend in the eyes. Please don’t make me eat human again. “Okay bud, you got it” I climbed onto Fidi’s back and we soared upwards. His red scales faded to nothing as the sun set behind the sad broken town. “Thank you for everything Fidi.” I wrapped my arms around him and sent him an image of Kip. I couldn't voice the words but knew that I had to go back. Fidi, still completely invisible, flew towards the village and put me down behind a building. We bid farewell and I went back to Kip who sat waiting by a small fire with dinner and a bedroll waiting for me. We ate in silence and said only goodnight.