Tales of Arlo

Synchronous Relation

Delilah accepted me into her household and gave me some of her old clothing to blend in. While she lived with my grandfather at Castle Orah, she disguised herself a high elf and spent her days working as the royal seamstress. 

Delilah claimed that large, bowed blouses were becoming increasingly popular among young ladies about my age, convincing me to take the white, chiffon blouse she had made so many years ago. She paired the blouse with a asymmetrical skirt with a sash that wrapped around my waist and hung nearly at my ankles. 

"It's beautiful, Delilah, really! But how am I supposed to travel or fight in this?"  I questioned as I twirled the lightweight skirt around. 

"That's enchanted cloth that was bathed in the holy river of Syrinx. Your grandparents and I travelled for months to reach the holy city in order to dye them" Delilah explained, "They'll protect you from disease and curses, despite not offering much physical damage. I may be a good tailor, but I am no blacksmith". 

I would have never been allowed to wear anything so freeing while living under my parents' watchful eyes. When I lived at home, my mother chose everything I wore and she preferred I dress like a woman her age since I became an adult. It was always layers of stuffy overdresses and overcoats, whether it was summer or winter. My hair always had to be in a bun with a single pin hanging from the side. 

"You seem to know a lot about the Fountain of Spirit and travelling... Why aren't you coming with us?" I asked Delilah as she added her final touches to the length of skirt. 

"I have a mission of my own, for yours.... for Sivero's.... for Oda's betterment" Delilah said with a sewing needle between her teeth. 

Delilah placed the needle in her pin cushion and went back to her closet, coming out with a pair of white hunting shorts. She took her sheers and sliced them just below where the pockets ended and quickly clean up the trim before handing them to me. 

"These go underneath" Delilah was clearing trying to distract me, "they'll give you pockets and keep you from flashing anyone". 

"What is your plan once we leave?" I pressed the silent changeling further. 

"To wait for your father or whoever the coward sends instead" she answered plainly, "but no need to worry about that tonight. Tomorrow, you are all going to leave and head northeast to the Fountain of Spirit". 

"Dinner's ready, everybody!" Oda called from the lobby of the closed bar. 

"Thank you for taking care of me, feeding me, and clothing me" I said with a hug for Delilah. 

Delilah pulled me in tightly and hugged me without saying a word. Her warmth went beyond her smile. It radiated directly from her heart and you could feel it in the way she spoke, carried herself, and treated others. I swear I could feel the physical warm of her heart as she held me close. 

"I've needed someone like you for so long" I began tear up. 

"I know you have, Arlo... All I ask in return is that Oda never goes hungry under your watch, not that I have the right to ask anything of you" Delilah whispered, combing her long fingers through my hair. 

All I could do in that moment was nod. Delilah knew what she was doing when she closed her bar. The word that the only local tavern has randomly closed it doors. She wasn't just waiting for my father; she was luring him in. Delilah was the distraction and poor Oda had no clue what was going on. He thought that his mother was just grieving him leaving home for the first time. 

We had barely been here for a full day, but it already felt like somewhere I could call home. Whether it was laid-back life of locals or loving aura that filled the Culvandi home, I could feel my body finally reach true rest. I don't know how Oda could have had a brave face when leaving this life behind.