After many leaps and jumps that would’ve certainly earned a couple of gags from Ignei as he felt his body kept bobbing up and down by the violent movement, they arrived at the village. It wasn’t what Ignei had expected, the elves didn’t seem to be living above ground in villages like home. Instead, they seemed to either be living up above or inside hallowed trees and underneath them.
The elf brought the boy gently down to the ground down on his knees. He left him unattended, earning strange looks from the others as they walked on by past him. He stared at them all, keeping his distance, but he knew they didn’t want to go near him anyway.
When his captor returned, he pulled Ignei up by the shoulders and led him towards a makeshift building made out of logs. It seemed pretty homey, Ignei thought and the two went inside. The elf gently set him down back on the floor before leaving him once again.
The small space had a single bright candle for light, illuminating the room with a warm feeling. Ignei relaxed himself and looked to the right of him before the elf came back with a companion of his. This time, it was a tanner elf, which he found strange, along with pale hair and a mischievous smile. “So, this is the boy?” he asked with a small chuckle.
“Chrysus, be serious here,” the other ivory-haired elf sternly told him. “He burned up my vines. He’s not a normal human.” The blond elf, or Chrysus, as Ignei was indirectly informed, took a step closer to him and chuckled.
“He looks human,” he said simply. “He won’t be a threat to us, Ivy. Now, may I return to my duties? I believe you took me away from doing my important job.” His superior glared at him.
“Just keep him in here. Disguise him, I don’t care. Do not mention that you were doing your job because I deliberately saw you not doing your job. Understand?”
The blonde elf stuck his tongue out childishly. “As you wish, ‘Prince Stingy’,” he replied before leading him out of the logged building. The elf looked at Ignei one last time before turning away and disappearing completely.
Ignei stared in disbelief at the blonde elf, who chuckled at him. “Well, look what I got right here. Trouble, huh?” he asked to no one in particular. “So you’re the one eh?” he bent so that he could properly see Ignei face to face. Unlike the other elf, this one had hazel eyes and slightly darker skin, much like he imagined the elves to have.
“The name’s Chrysus. Might as well get acquainted with ya, since I have a feeling that you’re going to stay here a while, is that true?”
Ignei nodded slowly, not wanting to say anything. He didn’t know how this elf would behave, considering that despite his appearances, he seemed to act a little less cold than the elves he heard from stories.
“You know, I don’t bite,” Chrysus said. “Call me Chrys. Perhaps that will get us to a better start.” He laughed. “I can’t believe that I’m actually doing this. I mean, I can’t believe that I’m actually trying to befriend a human being.”
The boy couldn’t help but look at the elf curiously as he began to mumble about his kind. Perhaps what he’s saying might be the Royals’ fault. It would explain the looks of disdain.
Either that or the trespassing.
“Now, I’m going to ask you yes or no questions since I have a feeling that you’re not going to talk. Just nod yes or no, simple as that. Seriously, if Prince Ivy didn’t tell me to do this, then I wouldn’t have to collect information.”
Ignei’s eyes blinked. “Prince?” he asked.
Chrysus chuckled. “So the human can talk. Ivy ain’t really a prince, but he does have a lot of prince-like qualities in him. What would you expect from someone born into the leader thing? However, that isn’t why we’re here right now, is it?”
The boy shook his head.
“Well, since you can talk now, I guess there’s no need to skip out on all the questioning and everything. You have to answer truthfully to everything I tell you. Don’t worry, other than Ivy, most of this stuff will be confidential, so you don’t have to worry about anything.”
“Okay, but in exchange, please tell me what in the world is going on with my friend,” said Ignei, “I need to know if she’s going to be okay.”
The elf tilted his head upwards and smiled. “You don’t have to worry, she’s in good hands. She’s going to get married to one of Ivy’s cousins and become part of the tribe. I heard it all this morning. That companion of yours is very pretty.”
What? Ignei thought. “No, please, there has to be a mistake, please, release her,” he said.
“Don’t worry. As I said, she’s in good hands. You don’t have to worry for her safety. The tribe leader’s sons are very respectable. She will be in good hands. She’s a beauty, that’s for sure.”
Suddenly, Ignei felt hazy, and his vision went blurry. The thought of his friend, the insanity of her getting married by force in a new territory…
It was his last thought before he fell asleep.
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