"I hope he’s okay, don’t worry Miss Rhianne! He’s a Guardian and he’s tough! although I never meet him.." She giggled. Millia gave Rhianne a big smile. It’s a sign that she shouldn’t worry a lot about him because, she believes that he’s strong and will come back safely just for her.
The Smasher looked at the list shown by the Elestra, she nodded.
Rhianne flipped to a blank page onto the notebook and quickly scribbled half of the list, and gave the neater list to the younger sorceress.
"Unfortunately I have to get even the utensils because no one bakes at our place," she said, chuckling. "Let's split up the list, if that's fine, and let's meet up and check if we missed anything after ten minutes?"
The Elestra left the ingredients -- the flour, chocolate, baking powder and the likes -- to the Smasher, as she thought of personally inspecting the baking pans herself...
"Hmm.. so he is also in a raid.." Millia’s smile turned into a frown, in her mind was about her Raid Team. They were bunch of elites, having no mercy and showing care for others. She hopes that Rhianne’s boyfriend is safe and okay.
"Yeah," she said sadly, as she looked at the shelves upon shelves of ingredients. "But, I know he's doing his best, so I try not to worry too much and look forward to his return from the raid."
At that, she clapped her hands.
"Well then! It's time to shop for a cake~"
The notebook had listed all the ingredients she needed, and she showed it to the Smasher.
Serethil dizzily pushed herself up from her bed and rubbed her eyes. Mumbling incoherently, she walked towards the door, only to find a girl, shuddering in the cold, dark night. She was about to shoo her away for disturbing her sleep, when she caught notice of the girl's emerald eyes. Squinting again to make sure, the Windwalker then quietly ruffled the guest's head. "Something troubling you, young lady?"
She had been running for a while now.
They were far too great in numbers for her to deal with; though she was able to stall them, the ice magic would not hold forever…
She was able to reach the outskirts of Lotus Marsh, but she was tired and wounded — luckily for her, there was a lone hut, hopefully with someone inside.
If there weren’t anyone there, she’d have to break in and hide… Or something…
Luckily she did not have to resort to that; after several seconds of banging on the door, it opened to reveal an elf that easily towered over her. Before she could relay her plight the elf put her hand on her head, ruffling her hair.
The elestra blinked confusedly for a second, and got her wits back when asked what was wrong.
"Please help me," she pleaded, looking over her shoulder in the darkness. "Dragon Followers are chasing me—"
The elf merely tilted her head when the young girl showed the emblem. That looks familiar.., she thought to herself, then she glanced on her shoulder armor..
And it was the same emblem.
Oh.
The girl began to embarrass herself in front of Serethil and apologized, again. The Windwalker merely scratched the back of her head, one of her eyebrows raised in curiosity rather than irritation. If ‘guild active’ meant being with others all the time, then she and her sister-at-arms Sedina would’ve been both labeled as ‘lazy-ass’ by the Matron or some other smartmouth of the group, because the two of them were always away on some mission, personal or otherwise.
Serethil chuckled softly, then coughed lightly on her closed fist. “It’s all right Rhianne,” she said, as she patted the young girl’s shoulder gently. “You must be one of the newer members that I don’t know much of,” she added, as she shrugged her shoulders.
"Though it’s nice that I’m going on a mission with someone who’s from a group that I know of. So ready your stuff, all right?"
She then straightened her hair, pulled it up, then secured her golden locks into a high ponytail.
Though it seemed that that sort of thing wasn't a big deal for Serethil. Which was good for the Elestra, really... she knew that there were some who used their seniority inside guilds to extract favors or force errands on newbies...
It was actually a relief.
"O-Okay... Thank you."
It seemed that Serethil wasn't also the type to ask a lot of questions, so the sorceress focused on physically and mentally preparing herself for their little infiltration plan -- armor back on, book of spells tucked under one arm while the other held the staff.
The Elestra lay motionless on the ground, in a pool of her own blood. The battle was long and hard, and she had hoped that her sacrifice had done something more good than harm for the party.
At the very least, she hope that he had escaped.
It felt cold. She wasn’t sure if it was just her ice magic going out of control, or if it was because she was dying soon. She had no strength to move…
She felt dull thuds on the ground. Like footsteps. And there were voices too, but too muffled for her to hear. She didn’t know. Her eyelids felt very heavy…
At least, let my smiling face be the last expression that you see on my face…
Millia’s eyes were sparkling again, it’s so cool that she has a boyfriend! “That’s really romantic Miss Rhianne!” She gave her a bright smile.
Wait, they don’t see each other a lot?? That was sad.. probably he was busy in Raid Nests, maybe?? The thought about her Raid Team made her shiver and scared.
She saw the baking shop now! The elestra quickened her pace.
"He's really busy with some guild matters as a senior member, so we don't see much of each other as he deals with some important things," she explained. "Of course, he gets the calling of the raid from time to time..."
He was a Guardian, and his role was quite indispensable.
With a small sigh, she pushed open the door to the shop and led the way inside.
Serethil dizzily pushed herself up from her bed and rubbed her eyes. Mumbling incoherently, she walked towards the door, only to find a girl, shuddering in the cold, dark night. She was about to shoo her away for disturbing her sleep, when she caught notice of the girl's emerald eyes. Squinting again to make sure, the Windwalker then quietly ruffled the guest's head. "Something troubling you, young lady?"
She had been running for a while now.
They were far too great in numbers for her to deal with; though she was able to stall them, the ice magic would not hold forever…
She was able to reach the outskirts of Lotus Marsh, but she was tired and wounded — luckily for her, there was a lone hut, hopefully with someone inside.
If there weren’t anyone there, she’d have to break in and hide… Or something…
Luckily she did not have to resort to that; after several seconds of banging on the door, it opened to reveal an elf that easily towered over her. Before she could relay her plight the elf put her hand on her head, ruffling her hair.
The elestra blinked confusedly for a second, and got her wits back when asked what was wrong.
"Please help me," she pleaded, looking over her shoulder in the darkness. "Dragon Followers are chasing me—"
Serethil’s leaf-shaped ears pointed up at her words: here in front of her was a complete stranger who’s willing to take her to a known hideout of the Dragon Followers. Sure she’s capable of handling her own, not to mention her motive was parallel to hers.
But at the back of her mind she wanted to make a stop to Lotus Marsh first; bring in some needed supplies, inform Zenya, gather some more information from the local adventurer’s guild…
Hey wait a minute, she thought to herself. Why am I thinking like Sedina?
'Cautious' is not a perfect way to describe this particular elf, that she much admits. At times she just plunges head-on, do what she can, then pulls back if she can't handle the skirmish. That is, if she's alone.
But what if the opportunity slips by, as Rhianne implied?
The elf bit her lips, her mouth moving to and fro as she quickly thought of the situation. Then she made up her mind.
"All right, we can finish breakfast along the way. It’s a perfect opportunity to strike them now while they least suspect," she said to the young girl. She then pocketed a whole apple, then divided the fruits into equal portions for her and the Elestra, and tied them securely into a neat pouch cloth.
She then checked her bow and quiver ready. Her cobalt-blue eyes gleamed in the rays of the sun as she fitted her boots and gloves.
The elf took a few moments to consider; Rhianne could see her deep in thought.
On the Elestra’s end she wanted to end this mission swiftly and properly; and if the trail gets cold she would have to restart the investigation…
If the elf did not want to go, then she will have to go back to Lotus Marsh and ask for reinforcements from Master Sorceress Tamara —
"Alright."
To her relief the elf chose to go now. Rhianne went back to inspect her damaged armor — it could still do for now — when she noticed something on the elf’s armor.
"That emblem —"
She held out her clothing, which had the same pin on it.
They were from the same guild. Though, Rhianne had been in there for barely a month —
"Aah I’m so sorry! I should’ve recognized you sooner!"
Millia wasn’t really well-known due to her shy attitude, which makes her kind of anti-social and don’t have a lot of friends.Meeting Rhianne makes her happy since she was kind and friendly, unlike the other sorceresses who she tried to be friends with.
"Ummm.. Miss Rhianne.. who is this ‘he’?? Is it your boyfriend or husband?" She giggled, wanting to have a little bit of fun.
A/N: This took too long to write. Probably around 2-3 months in the making. Also canon in game, which was actually the inspiration for this.
Rhianne and Silfr. :3
The horse’s hooves made sharp clacking sounds as she rode through Saint Haven. The Elestra came from the Garden of Time and Space, having just finished exploring a crack in the dimensions…
She alighted from her mount, almost losing her balance -- she was a bit excited, she had to admit -- as she half-ran, half-walked up to the living quarters in their guild house , and opened a particular door --
“Silfr?”
No answer. The room was empty, and didn’t look like anyone had been there in the past hour.
Where could he be?
She closed the door gently as she mentally ran through several places where he could be.
Today is a Tuesday, so…
Rhianne roughly had a grasp of his weekly activities, as it was tied a lot to her tutor Eazor’s; during weekdays, they would frequent the Trading House for wares, while planning excursions before sundown by the Garden of Time and Space. She had just got back from there, and didn’t see him, so…
She walked out of the guild house and rode her horse once more, and this time rode towards east of Saint Haven, by Merchant Deowen. She was hardly tall enough to see through the crowd, so hopefully being on a horse would help her see him faster --
As usual there were lots of people hanging around the merchant, but no sign of the familiar blonde Saint in white… She clenched her fist, where she held a small stone, as her excitement began to die down --
“-- not really sure how --”
“-- demand and supply, it’s really difficult --”
She turned into the direction of the stone steps leading to the Theme Park, where she saw the Majesty-Saint pair walking up the steps, deep in discussion.
“Silfr!” The Elestra jumped down from her mount, and ran towards the two, who looked surprised at her sudden outburst.
“What is it?” the blond Saint asked rather cautiously, as the Majesty looked at the Elestra’s excited face.
“Hmm, I’ll just be checking my mail, okay~?” She said, patting the cleric’s shoulder. “I’ll leave you two for a while~”
“W-Wait, Ea--”
But she had long Teleported away. The Saint looked at his sister, who still had that excited grin on her face.
“Well… you were looking for me?” he asked, his face not betraying the confusion he felt.
“Here, take this!” She took out a jewel from her pocket and handed it over to him. “See if you can touch it, first.”
The Saint looked at her and at the jewel a little dubiously before tentatively reaching for the jewel. It was cold to the touch…
“A Dragon Jade?” He thought out loud, as he looked at it more closely. “I’ve.. never seen one of these before… what is it?”
“A Tree of Life Jade!” she said excitedly. “Oh Goddess, I’m so happy you can even hold it -- there are some special restrictions about it, you cannot seal them, some of us in Fairystar are still looking into it.”
“Tree of Life Jade,” he repeated, as he ran his fingers around the small, arrow-shaped jewel. He could feel the same life-giving sensation that the Tree of Life in Anu Arendel emanated, albeit faint... “So.. how were you able to give it to me if it could not be sealed?”
“Well…” The sorceress stepped back a little and moved away. “The hypothesis is that… it’s about people’s bonds.”
“Bonds?”
“Yeah… but it’s rather hard to measure such a vague requirement… But it’s still up in the air.” She hesitated. “Anyway, I hope that it helps you and Eazor and Saraquel too. I know it would be useful for you.”
“How do I --”
“No.” Her voice was firm. “I still owe you for that Frost Nova plate, remember?” She smiled at him. “This is in repayment for that. So don’t bother, alright?”
The Saint gave a defeated sigh before smiling in gratitude. “Alright, alright, you win this time. Thank you, Rhianne.”
She giggled. “Don’t mention it.”
“Oh?” The Majesty resumed her place beside the Saint. “Looks like I missed something interesting~”
“W-Well--”
“Show it to her, Silfr,” the Elestra urged, and so he held it out to the Majesty -- whose fingers simply went through the jade.
“Eh?” Eazor blinked. “What a curious little jade~”
Rhianne still couldn’t help but wonder what exactly it was that allowed Silfr to touch the jade that she had found, and she was sure that the thought was floating in his mind, though he was probably too scared or awkward to voice it out. For now, she contented herself with getting something unique for him; it was usually the other way around, as Silfr got around to doing a lot more things than she was able to.
That smile that he gave her… he looked more like the child that she knew before, instead of the tough Dragon Slayer persona that he had around him now. It was good to know that he had not completely changed after all these years…
Millia’s expression was full of joy, her eyes was sparkling. The way she expressed it was like she’s meeting a idol or someone famous. I’m so happy!~
"Thank you Miss Rhianne!” She smiled happily. “Umm.. okay Miss Rhianne!” Millia replied when she took her by hand.
She looked through the list in Rhianne’s notebook. Potato Salad seems to simple.. Tenderloin sounds really complicated and hard… Lemon Chicken is okay.. Wait.. THERE’S CHOCOLATE!!
"Chocolate Fudge Cake seems nice Miss Rhianne!~" She has been a big chocolate fan since she was young.
Millia is grateful to find a friendly sorceress, she’s really happy today.
"U-Umm… actually… I-I don’t know where I’m going.." She said in a quiet voice while blushing. "C-Can I join you..??" Millia looked at her with eyes full of determination, she wanted to repay her.
She blinked at the younger sorceress. Well, if she has nowhere to go...
"Sure, why not?" She replied, taking the girl by the hand. "You have to help me pick first, though~"
A second opinion might also be good to aid her indecisiveness.
"You see, I'm going to cook something for someone special, but I can't decide which one," she explained, showing Millia her notebook. "What do you think?"
Serethil dizzily pushed herself up from her bed and rubbed her eyes. Mumbling incoherently, she walked towards the door, only to find a girl, shuddering in the cold, dark night. She was about to shoo her away for disturbing her sleep, when she caught notice of the girl's emerald eyes. Squinting again to make sure, the Windwalker then quietly ruffled the guest's head. "Something troubling you, young lady?"
She had been running for a while now.
They were far too great in numbers for her to deal with; though she was able to stall them, the ice magic would not hold forever…
She was able to reach the outskirts of Lotus Marsh, but she was tired and wounded — luckily for her, there was a lone hut, hopefully with someone inside.
If there weren’t anyone there, she’d have to break in and hide… Or something…
Luckily she did not have to resort to that; after several seconds of banging on the door, it opened to reveal an elf that easily towered over her. Before she could relay her plight the elf put her hand on her head, ruffling her hair.
The elestra blinked confusedly for a second, and got her wits back when asked what was wrong.
"Please help me," she pleaded, looking over her shoulder in the darkness. "Dragon Followers are chasing me—"
Hideout? Her ears twitched erect at that single detail. Her cobalt-blue eyes gleamed in excitement; it was an opportunity that she simply can’t, and won’t, ignore.
“You remember exactly where their hideout is?” Serethil asked her, her voice lined with excitement. “Ia— I was asked by Ekara Zenya to do some investigating around Lotus Marsh for Dragon Follower activities,” she continued. She left out the detail of ‘and exterminating the last of their kind, and that includes pig-faced Ignacio and that traitor Yuvenciel’.
At the mention of the word ‘hideout’ the elf immediately focused her attention on it; she was quite an expressive elf — Rhianne could see every fiber of her get so excited…
"Yes," she replied. "It was a bit too dark last night so we might need a little more time retracing my steps…"
Their objectives hardly clashed; she understood that the teachers of Lotus Marsh were probably also cooperating with Fairystar about dealing with the Dragon Followers, after what had happened during the Green Dragon fiasco…
"Perhaps we should hurry… they may be wary after having some of their number missing after last night."
"O-Okay! I won't think of it!" She smiled brightly and laugh at the slightly older sorceress. It's been a while she had a good laugh, she always giggle since she was too shy.
"M-My name is Camillianna.. b-but you can call me Millia..." Millia grabbed her hand.
Rhianne gave Millia's hand a firm shake, still smiling widely.
"Alright, Millia," she said, repeating the nickname. "Well then, don't let me stop you from where you're going -- I'd better finish off my groceries too."
She chuckled.
Oh dear, I still haven't figured out what exactly to cook...
The sorceress was apologized to her was quite shocking. During her childhood days, all the sorceress in Mana Ridge was.... mean.. and she was bullied because of her weak and soft attitude. But, the sorceress in front of her isn't one of those stereotypical sorceress, she's kind and gentle.
"S-She's different from them.." Millia thought while quickly wiping her tears, she gave her a happy smile with a little blush upon her face. "N-No.. I-I should be apologizing... I-I was looking down at the road... while thinking... a-and thank you for offering me a handkerchief.. " She giggled.
The younger sorceress calmed down soon enough, and wiped her tears immediately, giving Rhianne a smile.
"We're both at fault, then," Rhianne said, giggling a bit. "Apology accepted, so don't think too much of it, okay?"
Dear, dear. The elestra supposed that the younger sorceress had been subject to a lot of bullying... she had to admit that Master Sorceress Cynthia was hardly the nicest of sorceress teachers, and there was quite the elitism among their ranks...
"What's your name? I'm Rhianne," she said, holding out her hand.
Serethil dizzily pushed herself up from her bed and rubbed her eyes. Mumbling incoherently, she walked towards the door, only to find a girl, shuddering in the cold, dark night. She was about to shoo her away for disturbing her sleep, when she caught notice of the girl's emerald eyes. Squinting again to make sure, the Windwalker then quietly ruffled the guest's head. "Something troubling you, young lady?"
She had been running for a while now.
They were far too great in numbers for her to deal with; though she was able to stall them, the ice magic would not hold forever…
She was able to reach the outskirts of Lotus Marsh, but she was tired and wounded — luckily for her, there was a lone hut, hopefully with someone inside.
If there weren’t anyone there, she’d have to break in and hide… Or something…
Luckily she did not have to resort to that; after several seconds of banging on the door, it opened to reveal an elf that easily towered over her. Before she could relay her plight the elf put her hand on her head, ruffling her hair.
The elestra blinked confusedly for a second, and got her wits back when asked what was wrong.
"Please help me," she pleaded, looking over her shoulder in the darkness. "Dragon Followers are chasing me—"
She couldn’t help but look at the girl’s emerald eyes; they were a dead-ringer to someone..
Could it be..? Nah…, Serethil thought to herself, but her ears were twitching excitedly at such an imagination.
Not to mention she was able to smile after awhile. It would’ve taken me, like, half a day to make that boy smile when I trained him…
“So what did those Dragon Followers want from you?” the elf asked Rhianne between mouthfuls of chewed apple. “Other than uh…, the obvious ‘give no quarter to the non-believers’ and your..” her voice trailed off and kept her mouth shut. She didn’t want to offend the young girl of her thoughts.
