Once Upon a Time...

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"Repairing my shirt would take too long," Linnor decided. "And I'm in too much pain to want to deal with that now." Trying to turn it into a joke, he smiled at her, even getting a little chuckle out. After she had told him that he would have to borrow her father's clothes, he simply nodded before saying, "I don't mind...It must be done." He said that, even though it was obvious that he didn't like the idea of wearing her father's clothes. Still...he couldn't help but think about how much money one of the Lord Regent's adviser's shirts would be worth...At least enough to buy food for him and his uncle's family for two weeks.

No. He wouldn't do that to Aurea's family, even if her father had been less than kind to him. Shaking those thoughts from his head, he said, "Borrowing one of your father's shirts would be fine." After hearing her next question, he said, "Yes...that would probably be best." After watching the way that she seemed to be...almost afraid of him, what he might do or say, he frowned, not liking that expression on her face.

"What is it?" he asked, pushing himself over to where she was. "I...If you think I'm going to hurt you, don't. I promise I won't hurt you."

((The Spine is amazing xD He's such a great singer ♥))
 
Her light brown eyes met his grey eyes, but there was nothing in his expression to suggest he would harm her. Not that he was really in any position to do such a thing. "Oh... I don't believe that you will," she said, trying to smile at him. "It's just that my father is very... disapproving of what I'm doing for you. As I'm sure you heard." Her father was known for making his opinions quite clear.

"I'll... I'll be right back. I can help you get the shirt on." Aurea dashed from the room, eager to escape the conversation. Linnor wouldn't hurt her, not after everything she'd done to help him. But she didn't want to think about the way she presented herself to him. Her parents never minded her stance, but he had pointed it out. Maybe he didn't like it.

She sighed and shook her head as she moved down the steps. She traveled through the house to where the next tower resided, the tower holding her parents. The towers weren't tall, but they were wide enough to hold multiple rooms. She knew her father had already left to do business with some noble, but it was likely her mother was still home.

Aurea found Rinath and Falyen's room empty, but it was better that way. She sifted through her father's clothing until she came upon a long sleeved, cotton green tunic with gold and silver embroidery, and as always, a diamond sewn into the center of the collar. Her father wouldn't miss it; he had plenty. They all did.

She was quick about returning to Linnor. Closing the door behind her, she unfolded the shirt and rested it over her arm. "It's not the easiest shirt to put on... I'm sorry if it hurts." She sat down on the bed beside him, fixing the sleeves and helping to slide his arms all the way up. The cotton material wasn't very stretchy, so she had to tug it over his head multiple times in order for it to rest properly.

After a moment of struggling, the shirt sat on Linnor's injured body. Aurea stood up and resumed her earlier position to look over him. "Once we're in your... home, you'll have to direct me around." Aurea's father had been very strict on her never entering any slum's home at any time. She was going to disobey that today too.

((I watched his Diamonds cover and now I'm in love. xD))
 
Linnor hadn't liked how quickly Aurea had left the room, or her less than adequate answer. Still, he was in no position to chase after her, and was left to instead wait for her to return. while she was gone, he couldn't help but see if last night hadn't been a dream and his leg really was broken.

It was.

As soon as he prodded his leg, pain ran up it, and he could barely suppress a shout. Biting back pain, he decided that he wouldn't touch it until he got to Icetalon. Focusing on keeping his breathing steady so Aurea wouldn't worry when she got back, he closed his eyes to calm himself, deciding that if nothing could be done about the pain, he would just have his leg removed. That might be easier than trying to get it fixed. Still, amputation would be a worst-case scenario. He liked to be able to walk around by himself.

When Aurea returned, Linnor was completely normal, and he was able to smile. Still, the smile froze as he saw the tunic she had brought him. Gods, that thing must have cost more gold than Linnor would make in a lifetime. His eyebrows rising in surprise at it, he said, "That must have been expensive." Even if it was cotton, like he suspected by the look of it, that diamond on the collar must have cost a fortune.

Putting on the shirt diverted Linnor's thoughts about the cost of the shirt to the shifting bones in his torso. Raising his arms too high hurt, as well as the way he had to wriggle into the shirt. When it was finally on properly, the shirt felt out of place, and though he knew if probably didn't fit him right, it still felt off.

"Of course," he answered when she told him that he would have to show her around. "I am ready when you are," he said, knowing that he would need her help to even walk around.

((I love the cover more than the original song xD))
 
Cost meant nothing to her family. The Lord Regent was very gracious in his payments to Aurea's father. They were never left wanting anything. It didn't seem like a good thing to talk about with Linnor, so she kept quiet, even as she helped him stand up. Releasing him for a half of a second, she opened the door and was right next to him again, his arm around her neck and her hand holding onto his side where he wasn't injured.

Going down the steps was much harder than going up. Aurea went slow to ensure there would be no falling for Linnor. Her gentle work would have been ruined and he could have died. They made it to the bottom with no trouble, and Aurea was going to release Linnor to open the door when her mother returned with a basket full of something sweet smelling. Aurea dipped her head as well as she could while holding Linnor up, but it seemed Rinath was cutting her slack.

"I hope you find what you're looking for," she said, and her voice was calm and matter of fact, like she knew, even though Aurea hadn't told her anything. Rinath moved out of the way then, allowing Linnor and Aurea to pass out the door and into the gentle sunlight.

Aurea took Linnor down the street, her hair flipping around her face. She refused to look anyone in the eye, knowing that some were glaring and others appeared horrified. A wild elf in the garb of a noble was appalling to them. However, Aurea wasn't here to impress them. Everyone knew her father, not her. Instead, she turned to look at Linnor, her gaze softening as her eyes fell upon his face. "Tell me the shortest way there. We won't have to deal with them as much," she said, a quick jerk of her head motioning at the disgusted elves around them.

((I didn't even like that song to begin with and now I do. xD))
 
Linnor hated going down the flights of stairs. Each time he had to put weight on his injured leg, waves of pain ran through him, though he tried to keep his hand on the railing so he could use it as a crutch. When they were finally down and in the roads, he was able to walk a bit better, though he was still in pain. Still, his pain wasn't enough to keep him from seeing the dirty looks that many of the people were throwing them. He didn't like it. Why couldn't a wild elf be dressed in finery and walk with a adviser's daughter?

Of course, he knew. City elves didn't like the idea of a wild elf becoming 'one of them'. They wanted to believe that wild elves were little more than animals and shouldn't be able to act civilized and proper enough to even hold a proper position in the city. Biting his tongue to keep from shouting at them, Linnor was shaken out of his thoughts by Aurea's voice. "Hmm...Go by Market Square...It will be west...er, left of where we enter it." He wasn't entirely sure of the route, since he had never gone from one of the higher-class districts to the Hin'tio District, but he felt he knew the city well enough to get there.

Looking through his hair at the people and the buildings, he watched the houses and shops turn from nobility to merchant class as they neared the square. As they walked towards the square, he saw a Tralk tribesman sitting on the side of the road, asking for anything. He was obviously Tralk by the severe, dark red tattoos that covered his face, arms, and bare chest. When he looked up, Linnor saw that he was completely blind. The sight making his heart twinge a bit, Linnor focused back on the road and on trying not to step on his right foot.

He hadn't liked seeing the Tralk begging. Once upon a time, when the wild elf tribes were still free to roam the lands as they pleased, the Hin'tio tribe had been enemies with the Tralk tribe. Now that both were underneath the rule of the city elves, he wasn't sure where their relationship stood, and it made him unsure of himself. Suddenly, he was glad that the elf had been blind. Shaking the thoughts away from his head, he focused on putting one foot in front of the other, not liking his own reaction to the elf.
 
The Tralk tribesman wasn't lost on Aurea, but she didn't feel the same as Linnor. It was a sad sight, but she was used to it. Whenever she went out, she saw at least one. Her father always told her not to stare, but it was so the wild elves wouldn't learn her face, not out of courtesy.

Just as the thought entered her mind, someone backed up into her side, causing her to stumble forward. She kept Linnor up, taking the near-fall. "Pardo-- Aurea?" She knew the voice and it made her want to cringe. Shifting in front of her was a tall, blond elf peering down at her with a suspicious glance. "Aurea, why are you carting this elf around?" he asked, looking Linnor up and down. The other male noticed the earrings and his gaze flattened into one of disdain. "Why are you dragging a slum in our city?"

"...Don't call him that, Calanon."

"I'll call him whatever I want." Calanon watched Aurea move past him, but unlike her father, he wasn't finished. He bounced back in front of them, causing Aurea to halt again. "I asked what are you doing." It was no longer a question, and Calanon's bright blue eyes blazed with hate for Linnor. He seemed to be upset that Linnor was even near Aurea.

"I'm helping him. He can't walk."

"Do you hear that? The slum can't walk!" Calanon announced to the growing crowd, and some snickered at Aurea and Linnor. She hung her head before she pushed her way through them, taking Linnor with her. "My father will hear of this, Aurea!" Calanon called after her, but she didn't look back. Her whole demeanor had changed; she was trying to keep her head up, but her hair was falling around her face and hiding it.

Once they neared Market Square, it grew quieter, as many elves preferred the bustle of what was around Aurea's home. Aurea herself walked in silence. Everyone was going to hate poor Linnor, and here she was, dragging him through the streets. "I'm sorry," she whispered, but her voice cracked and she turned her head away. She knew the way for the most part, but her eyes watched her feet while they walked.

((My internet's correction wants to keep changing Linnor to Elinor. -_-))
 
When Aurea stumbled, Linnor did his best to bounce on one foot to keep from having to put weight on his broken leg. However, he could care less once he heard the elf speak. As soon as he knew that the elf recognized Aurea, he knew there would be trouble. The very moment the word 'slum' exited his lips, Linnor balled his hands into fists, and anger blazed in his eyes. Still, the way that Aurea tried to get him to stop made him feel a little better.

That feeling left as soon as the elf, Calanon, Aurea called him, asserted that he could call Linnor anything he wanted. Still, he wouldn't be able to fight, much less hold himself in one for any amount of time. Storm grey eyes met the brilliant blue of Calanon's, anger blazing in the wild elf's. Linnor had almost made a move to attack the Aka's as soon as he had shouted for the crowd to hear that he couldn't walk. Of course, he couldn't, but the way he said it sent rage burning through his veins. He would have attacked the elf, too, had Aurea not started pulling him through the crowd.

Feeling mostly calm by the time they were in Market Square, he pointed down the right road that led to the Hin'tio District. Hearing her whispered apology, he shook his head. "It's not your fault...It's my own, for getting beat up like that."

((Mine too xD))
 
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Aurea managed to look at up him as he didn't blame her for anything. In fact, he blamed himself. It wasn't his fault he'd gotten beaten for just being... him. "I don't see how it is," she replied, her voice a little stronger than before. There was more silence the closer they got to the Hin'tio District. "You don't deserve harm for being what you are." It sounded much better in her head, but she remembered being like that. She thought the wild elves were scary when she was younger and she didn't like being around them.

Guess she just needed to get to know one first.

They arrived at the Hin'tio District, and that was where Aurea was lost. There were a lot of elves, more than she thought possible. She didn't think the districts were that big, which made her wonder where they all slept at night... if they did at all. She hoped no one would spare them any glances, but with the nice dress she was in and her father's shirt on Linnor, it was bound to happen.

"Do you know where Icetalon might be? Or do you want to go home?"

((I'm just like 'stahp. D:' my ipad is even worse. xD))
 
Linnor felt more at home once they had entered the Hin'tio district. Of course, to Aurea, it must seem like they lived like animals. Most of the houses were in shambles, and the ones that were slightly larger than the rest mostly contained more than two or three families at a time. Even still, so many years after being relocated, many tents were still in place, in between houses and on the side of the road, and most of the people that lived in them still existed as they had on the plains.

Being the standing tribeleader to the Hin'tio, many of the people knew him and would almost wave or greet him, until they saw what he was wearing and who he was with. Then, they would lower their hand, an odd expression on their face, and turn away. It hurt him to see this happen. He didn't want to be known as the tribeleader who felt he was better than them. That had happened to the Ya'jahj tribeleader when they first came, and his people had exiled him. He hadn't known the Common Tongue at the time, so he had nowhere to go, and had left the city. Linnor didn't want that to happen to him, but he tried his best to return the few waves that would actually form.

"My uncle would probably know where Icetalon is," he said when he heard Aurea speaking. Watching as his uncle's daughters ran around, both looking like boys with their hair cut short, he continued, "Over there...his house is that one on the left." Linnor gestured towards one of the small houses. Instead of a door, it had a thin curtain to cover the entrance, and he could hear his uncle's voice calling for his daughters in the Old Tongue. "Starshade! Pathsong!"

The two girls stopped, both breathing heavily before calling back in unison, "Yes, Father."

Walking with Aurea to the house, he watched his cousins disappear inside before following them. "Uncle...?" he called into the house. For a moment, it had seemed like everyone had disappeared. The front room, with a small firepit dug into the ground and small cushions positioned around it, was empty, even though his uncle's family spent most of their time in there.

"Nightvine!" he heard, just before the two young girls appeared from the bedroom. "Father's in the bedroom; we got some new sheets while you were gone."

"Yes, yes," Linnor said tiredly. "Go get him...I need to ask him something." Once again, the girls disappeared, but in a second they were back, their father, Blacksnake, and mother, Dreamrain, following. Telling the girls to go back outside, Dreamrain approached Linnor.

"Oh, Nightvine, what happened to you? How did you get such nice clothes? ...Who is this?" she asked once she saw Aurea.

"It doesn't matter," he said, shaking his head before looking to Blacksnake. "I need to know where the old healer is," he said. "Remember Icetalon?"

His uncle nodded, before saying, "I'm not certain she is even alive anymore...but the last I saw her, she was in her tent by the spiritfire. I'm not going to ask what happened, because I can kind of guess, but you will be explaining...this," he gestured towards Aurea and the clothes he was wearing, "when you get better."

"Yes, Uncle," he said, bowing his head before saying in the Common Tongue to Aurea, "I know where we need to go now..."

((My tablet was really bad for a long time, too Dx))
 
Aurea was lost as they entered, but she had Linnor to guide her. If she hadn't, she felt like she never would have escaped the maze that was the Hin'tio District. Even while trying to concentrate on the route, Aurea saw the way they treated Linnor. They were pleased to see him, but they saw her too and faltered. It didn't help that Linnor had to wear her father's shirt. The entire way made her feel terrible. Linnor wasn't welcome in the city, but the wild elves were growing unsure of him even while he limped toward home. If she hadn't interfered, he would have been home and she wouldn't have to drag him through places where the city elves saw, and hated, him.

When Linnor pointed out his home, Aurea went just a little faster. It wasn't enough to trip either of them, but Aurea wanted to ensure that Linnor would find the people he was looking for as quick as possible. She was sure he didn't want to be helped all around as much.

She was silent as Linnor spoke, but her small frame resumed the slightly lowered head and the downcast eyes, even as she heard an inquiry. She could only assume it was about her, because their language was unknown to her. Still, she listened, and she found it was... lovely. It was smooth and it seemed to roll off their tongues perfectly. It was like a gentle lullaby, and Aurea had to shake herself from her wonder when Linnor spoke. She helped him move out, but she still needed detailed directions to move around. She hadn't known the Hin'tio District was so big, and yet so small.

Aurea didn't want to think about that, so as they walked, she said, "Your language is... very beautiful." She couldn't find any other way to phrase it.

((I typed a reply once and went back to read it after the other person had already responded and I was just like "o-O I don't even." My autocorrect had changed a bunch and I didn't notice. xD))
 
"Thank you..." Linnor answered when she spoke to him about his language. No city elf had said that to him before, and though he still felt immensely awkward about walking through the Hin'tio District in her father's clothes, the words made him feel a bit better. "My father once told me that it was a language that mimicked the sounds of nature, at first, since we lived in the wildlands and knew most of what we did from animals...later, the sounds turned into words and we became who we are now." He smiled slightly, before pointing out a mottled green tent with black and gold accents on it. "That's Icetalon's tent," he said, before silently wondering if she really was dead, like his uncle had said.

In the middle of the square they were in, which was more of a decagon, a medium-sized, purple fire was burning. "That's the spiritfire," he told her. "It's a fire for the gods of nature, and it tells them that their wildlands children are still living and still remember them. It's not supposed to go out as long as Hin'tio elves still live." He smiled slightly at it, remembering when his uncle had helped spur the other tribesmen to build a spiritfire once they moved. Not many had wanted to, especially since they had once considered themselves to be city elves once they lived int the district, but his uncle's spurring had made them understand that they were still Hin'tio as long as they held to the way it was before they moved.

The entrance to the tent was large enough that he didn't have to stoop to enter. Inside, the oldest woman he had ever seen was sitting upon a cushion. She was definitely blind, but she immediately said, "Who is it?" once she heard them entering.

"Icetalon...It's Nightvine," he said. "I am in need of some help..." Turning to Aurea, he said in the Common Tongue, "Don't worry...she'll take care of me..."

((I know that feel, bro xD))
 
Aurea smiled when he did. The wild elves had history, but the city elves... they prided themselves on the present, never once giving thought to how they got there. His voice distracted her while they walked, because they reached Icetalon's tent sooner than she expected. It was better looking than some of the others, but her eyes averted to the spitfire when he spoke of it. She'd never seen purple fire before, but it had a certain allure that was much better than normal fire. Again, it had history, and Aurea wished her own people had such lovely things that reminded them of their past.

She pushed the tent flap open and helped Linnor inside. The cracking old voice of Icetalon startled her, but she calmed once she noticed how ancient the elf woman really was. They hadn't been joking.

Linnor's voice caught her ears, but he was speaking to her and not Icetalon. She nodded at his words, trusting Icetalon to take care of Linnor, even if she didn't know the woman. She didn't even really know Linnor either, now that she thought about it.

"Do you need me to leave?" Linnor might still need help, but Aurea didn't want to intrude anymore than she already had.

((You think at some point I might have caught it... nope. It looked a little like Mad Libs had invaded my post. XD))
 
Linnor shook his head. "No...You can stay...if you want," he added, not wanting her to feel as if she had to stay. He was about to say something else, but Icetalon broke into the conversation.

"Sit," she told him, pointing to an old, worn-down chair. Withdrawing his arm from around Aurea's shoulders, he hobbled over to the chair, practically falling into it. She shifted closer to him, and when she did, the sound was worse than thunder, her bones all cracking with the effort of moving while the pendants and jewels around her neck and wrists jangled together. She raised her arms, placing her hands on the sides of Linnor's face, feeling the bone structure. "Gods," she mumbled. "You look so much like your father, Nightvine..."

"Icetalon, my leg...It's broken, I think, and I need it fixed..." She nodded, before moving her hands down to his legs. Immediately feeling that it was his right one, she ran her fingers along it, feeling which bones were broken.

"Sticks," she said, and for a moment, Linnor was confused, before a young boy who couldn't have been more than ten emerged from behind a shelf, obviously shy. Reaching into the shelf, he took two long, smooth sticks, handing them to the healer. He must have been an apprentice, but he didn't have the piercings of a wild elf. Odd...However, Linnor couldn't focus on that too long, because the healer had started securing the sticks against his leg, keeping them in place with a length of gauze that left him no room to wiggle around with. As pain filled him, he shouted out, but quickly bit his tongue so that he wouldn't scream during the whole time.

((Lol XD))
 
Aurea started forward to help him, but he was able to handle himself. They began to speak in their own language again, so Aurea withdrew herself from the conversation and turned toward the tent flap. She didn't exit; she just made her presence less obvious. She heard someone shift around and was surprised a small elven boy carrying a set of sticks to Icetalon. She smiled at him, but he was gone before he saw anything. Linnor's shout made her look up and begin to go to him, but he didn't need her help.

Aurea stood there as Icetalon worked, and she only hoped that the old elf would be able to help him. Linnor had been beaten so terribly, and glancing at him in that moment, in pain and trying to stifle it... it broke Aurea's heart. She had told him earlier: no one deserved that kind of treatment for anything. She still had to fix his side after all.

Aurea went back from studying Linnor and Icetalon to studying the outdoors as well as she could without opening the tent flap. Icetalon's home felt safe, even if it was a worn down tent, something that looked like it couldn't hardly support anything.
 
After a while, Icetalon looked to Linnor and said, "That's it...Keep off of your leg until it doesn't hurt, which should be in a few weeks." The young boy came back, this time holding a worn-looking walking stick.

"H-here," he stuttered out, handing it to Linnor. "T-to keep o-off your leg..."

Linnor nodded, before saying, "Thank you...both of you." Looking to Aurea, he asked, "Could you help me stand?" Reaching out his hand, he grabbed her wrist before having her pull him to his feet, careful not to put weight on his broken leg. Using the stick to hold himself up, he was surprised that it actually was about tall enough for him. "We...should probably go," he said in the Old Tongue to Icetalon and then in the Common Tongue for Aurea. Smiling weakly for her, he said, "This feels just a bit silly..." gesturing towards the stick.
 
Aurea stepped over to him and extended her hand, pulling up so he could stand properly. He switched so easily from one language to another, and he was proficient in both. It surprised her in a good way, but she was shaken from her thoughts as he mentioned feeling silly with the walking stick. She smiled and managed to giggle, "Well, you could always use me again." Her disposition changed quickly then and she shook her head. "I'm sorry. That was a little forward of me."

Trying to dispel the awkwardness of the situation, Aurea lifted the tent flap and exited Icetalon's home. It'd grown no quieter in the Hin'tio District, where the city might have calmed down some. There was so much going on. It was overwhelming for Aurea, as it wasn't something she was used to.

She noticed that a few of the wild elves kept glancing at her, but she chose to believe it was due to her appearance. Silver didn't seem like a common thing for these elves, and she was parading around in a silken dress of the lovely color. It didn't help that she had a gold necklace set with a ruby and two sets of gold hooped earrings. She felt out of place then, but there was nothing to be done because she'd come out before Linnor.

((I can't stop looking at your sig/pic now. xD who knew I'd think a guy with an awesome voice dressed up like a robot would be hot? I feel like I just answered my own question.))
 
Linnor had blushed slightly at Aurea's suggestion, but in the din of the tent, he was certain that Aurea couldn't see it. Instead of focusing on that, he said, "It's okay...It doesn't really matter." Once she left and the redness had receded from his face, the wild elf followed, blinking against the light. Raising his hand, the one that wasn't focused on keeping the walking stick upright, he blocked out the sun, squinting his eyes.

As he began following Aurea, his uncle's daughters found him, and tugged on the edge of his borrowed shirt. "Father wants to know when you'll be getting back," Starshade, the elder of the two, said, smiling up at him. Her sister was instead looking at the silver dress and other finery that Aurea wore, seemingly in awe.

"As soon as I can," Linnor answered, poking Pathsong gently on the shoulder in order to get her out of her stupor. "Don't stare," he said softly. When the two were gone, he turned to Aurea. "I...suppose that you'll want me to return to my own home now," he said, frowning a bit. He had enjoyed her company, and parting ways with her now would probably mark the end to their relationship. It was a saddening thought, truly.
 
Aurea looked down at the child's voice, but the strange words weren't meant for her. She instead smiled at the small girl who was staring at her. In the city, her attire was nothing to gawk at, but here, it was a different story. Linnor's admonishing tone made the girl look down and run off with her sister, but then he spoke to her directly. He talked about going home, and her brow furrowed in thought. She would never see him again after this. Their time had been so short, and normally, she was fine with that. Most interactions she had nowadays were with stuffy nobles from other countries visiting the city, doing so only because her father asked her to entertain them. But... there was something about Linnor that made her too sad to really want to leave him again.

"I think you should... But...." She paused, biting her lip before actually looking back up at him, confident in her words. She didn't have the submissive position, and there was the sparkle of a question in her eyes with a gentle smile on her face. "May I see you again?" she asked, hoping he wouldn't deny her such a request. "It's just that I find you-- your culture strange but... fascinating. I think I would like to learn about it, if... if that's not too much trouble for you." She spoke a little too fast and almost admitted the... feeling she had about him. She didn't know what she felt, but she knew he was far more interesting than the nobles she spoke with.
 
Linnor smiled gently. "Of course you can see me again..." In truth, he had been about to ask the same thing of her. He truly enjoyed her company, and felt that he owed her some a little...more...than just saying goodbye and never seeing her again. "I work at Silver Lantern Trading near Market Square...and I suppose you know where I live, too, so you can visit any time..." He trailed off for a moment before something came to him. "I...suppose that you'll want me to return your father's shirt..." In truth, he was happy to be rid of the thing. Among the city elves, a wild elf wearing such finery must have stolen it, and it wouldn't be long before the city guard was upon him if he wore it outside.

The wild elf bowed his head for a moment before saying, "It was...nice knowing you," with the barest hints of a smile on his face. "I have never met a city elf as kind or as helpful as you...I might have died last night if you hadn't helped me..." That was a slight white lie, he knew, but it felt right. Of course, if he hadn't gotten help, his leg might have healed incorrectly and he would be a cripple forever, and would never be able to hold a proper job anymore. So, in a way, she had saved his life. "Thank you," he said, letting the smile grow slightly.
 
Aurea didn't know where Silver Lantern Trading was, but it didn't mean she couldn't figure it out. However, she shook her head when he mentioned the shirt. "Keep it. My father won't mind... Even if he does, there are plenty more he can find. Do whatever you like with it. Though, I wouldn't suggest wearing it again." It was a poor attempt at a joke, as she knew the city elves would become crazy if they found something so nice on someone they considered so low.

She had to smile at his compliment. Maybe death was a little exaggerated, but she let it slide. She'd helped him, and he was going to get better because of it. "Of course," she answered, dipping her head in a courteous reply. "And... Thank you," she added. "For letting me come back to see you. You are... different than what I'd been told. It's nice." Her smile grew before she turned and walked away, picking her way around the wild elves so she could go home.

Her arrival to the Hin'tio District's exit was met with her father and Calanon. "I told you to never go in there," Falyen snapped at her, but she shook her head. "I had to get him there, Father. I told you he couldn't walk." Calanon stepped in and said, "You should listen to your father, Aurea. Don't care about them. Those slums are dangerous."

"Don't call him that!" A hand flew to Aurea's mouth as she tried to stop the outburst, but both Falyen and Calanon jerked back in surprise. Even some of the other elves stopped to look. Aurea trembled before she ran. She dashed all the way back home, not stopping to greet her mother or brothers.

She slammed the door shut to her room and she didn't come out until the next day. She was afraid of what her father would say to her that she didn't exit her room until she knew he was gone.

She changed into a knee-length blue, blue cotton dress and removed her necklace. It didn't change her appearance that much, but maybe she wouldn't be as obvious. Tying her hair into a long braid, she slipped down the steps and left the d'Thaon household, taking care to avoid her mother.

Market Square was much more lively this time around, but Aurea was content to take it all in. She had never really looked around, since she'd never traveled through the area, but it was a welcome change from everything else she'd seen.
 
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