12 Riverflow Residence

It had been a few years since Thea last visited Riverflow Village, but Leader Lisias and Aldrin were giving her constant updates regarding that place. As she had heard and expected, that place improved a lot since the last time she had been there. Lazano was doing well in leading his people and protecting that place.

"You really came," Lazano was waiting at the gate of his elevated stone house. It was only a few meters away from the riverbank.

"My friend needs help. How can I not come?"

Lazano smiled and motioned for her to enter the gate.

"Is she at the greenhouse?" Thea looked around the yard that was thrice the size of the two-story house standing in the middle of the greenhouse, the fishpond, and the hot spring.

"At the kitchen," Lazano answered with what seemed like an embarrassed look in his eyes. "I told her that you will be coming over. She got so excited and cooked a lot of dishes even though I said that you might bring meals from Rainforest Farm."

"It's okay," Thea handed him the packed dinner she was holding. "Go ahead. I'll just have a word with Aldrin."

Lazano nodded before marching towards the house.

"You want me to guard your new friend?" Aldrin was suddenly behind her.

"You know me so well," she turned to her dependable bodyguard and tapped him on the shoulder. "After all of this is over, you can ask me anything and I will do my best to grant that wish."

"All I want is for you to be safe," Aldrin surrounded himself with a gust of wind and then vanished.

Thea entered the stone house with a relieved smile. The interior did not change much. Things only became cleaner and more organized compared to the last time she had been there. The kitchen appeared brighter and a mouth-watering aroma drifted in the air.

"Thea, have a seat," Miyara pointed to the chair next to Lazano.

"You're not only good at growing herbal medicines but at cooking delicious meals," Thea took the seat that had been offered to her.

"Lazano is also getting good at cooking your favorite dishes," Miyara proudly stated, making Lazano blush.

Thea only smiled and ate in silence. She can only respect the deep affection Miyara had for her only living relative.

"Thea, when will you marry my uncle?"

Lazano choked and coughed out a few pieces of rice.

"Miyara! I told you not to ask her such questions!"

"Why?" the young fairy glared at her uncle. "I can see how much you want Thea," she got up on her feet and walked away from the table.

"Where are you going? Lazano also got up on his feet.

"To the greenhouse," Miyara shot a disgusted look at her uncle. "I hate how spineless you had become," she ran out of the kitchen, passed through the front entrance, and right after the door had closed, Thea and Lazano felt that something strange had covered the entire house.

Lazano opened the front door but the knob was stuck and could not be turned. He tried the windows, but none would budge open. All exits had been locked by a powerful spell.

"Miyara!!! This is not funny!!!" Lazano screamed in frustration.

"I'm not trying to make you laugh!!!" Miyara yelled back from the other side of the front door. "I'm helping you. Be a little braver and make your move. Make Thea fall in love with you. Mona told me that the spell would only last for six hours. Don't waste more time. Good luck, Uncle!!!"

"Miyara!!!" Lazano angrily bellowed as they heard the young fairy ran away from the front door.

"It's only for six hours," Thea gave him a light tap on the shoulder. "Let's wait in the kitchen."

"I'm sorry," Lazano was upset. "We should be observing her," he let out another sigh of disappointment. "How can I not know that she had put a spell all over our house? I've been with her all day."

"Miyara is young but we are also aware of how clever and secretive she can be," Thea headed back to the kitchen. "Let's just eat."

"Are you not angry?" Lazano sat beside her and took a spoonful of rice and fish. He was still irritated but not as much as a few minutes ago.

"Getting angry will not get us out of here," Thea simply answered. "Just tell me everything that you had observed from Miyara. Maybe I can compare it with the information I gathered."

"It only happened once," Lazano gulped beer from his mug. "Nothing much had changed in her aside from that one instance. She spends a lot of time in the greenhouse but that is normal for her. She was visiting Mona and Mina once in a while, but I never thought that she would ask the twins to give her a spell and that she will use it on us. She became bolder," the irritation in his eyes turned into anxiety. "Is it related to her confinement in Southern Peaks?"

"It is too early to say," Thea leaned her head on the backrest. "You should observe her more carefully."

"I will," Lazano promised and also leaned his head on the backrest. They were both staring at the window where they could glimpse the starlit sky. There were a few moments of stillness before Lazano muttered, "I'm still irritated at what Miyara had done. But I think… she has a point."

"What point?" Thea asked, getting a bit drowsy.

"That I should gather some courage and follow my heart."

The seriousness of those words punched Thea awake. She glanced at Lazano who was gazing back at her with disturbing graveness.

"Hey…"

"I want to try," Lazano straightened up on his chair.

"My heart will not change towards you," Thea said with the same gravity of seriousness. "You are my friend. It will always stay that way."

"I still want to try," Lazano had already made up his mind and refused to back down.

"I don't want to be the cause of your pain," Thea was still striving to change his mind.

"I know but suppressing my feelings is not helping me at all. I'm still hurting. I'm still thinking about the possibilities. What if I do this? What if I do that? Will her heart change? Will she finally fall in love with me? I don't want to think about those things, but I can't stop myself. The longer I hide those thoughts, the more persistent they become. I want to let this all out."

"Will you promise me one thing?" Thea was still hesitant, but she could no longer pretend not to see the point in Lazano's words.

Lazano smiled as he said, "I will never go back to the old me. I promise."

Somehow, Thea felt relief and was able to relax on the chair and return her gaze to the starlit sky.

Lazano did the same. They waited for the time to pass by in comforting silence.

^############################^

"Thea is suspicious of me, doesn't she?" Asuren looked upon a branch of a mango tree where Aldrin was comfortably sitting.

"Southern Peaks wants you dead. They will not stop sending assassins until it is accomplished," Aldrin had his eyes closed as if he were meditating. "She wants to give you additional protection. That's the only reason she had sent me here."

"I cannot win over the curse your princess had given me. That is the reason my mother wants me dead," Asuren walked away.

"Thea did not curse you," Aldrin hopped from the branch of the tree and landed in front of Asuren.

Asuren glanced wearily at the bodyguard and said, "You don't have to defend your princess."

"Darkness had been your companion since the day you were born. It's normal for you to get confused after encountering a blinding light. I reacted the same when I first met Thea. I thought it was all in illusion. I had this fear that if I dare touch that light, it would be extinguished and let me plunge in darkness more miserable than before. I tried to turn away, but Thea followed me until I can put enough faith in her. You can push her away many times, but for as long as she sees hope in you, she will never give up."

Asuren frowned as he remembered something, "Did Thea… kiss you on the lips?"

"Why are you asking that question?" Aldrin shot a deadly glare on him. "Did she kiss you on the lips?"

"I asked first."

"She didn't," Aldrin answered while gazing suspiciously at Asuren. "I never saw her do that to anyone. Not even to Lazano. She would kiss her family and friends on the cheek but not on the lips. So… did she kiss you on the lips?"

"Why will she kiss me on the lips?" Asuren said those words as coldly as he could then walked past Aldrin.

When he could not see nor feel the presence of the bodyguard, Asuren hid behind the fruit-bearing trees. At first, it was only his heart that was pounding painfully. When he reached that place, his brain throbbed excruciatingly as the voice of his mother thundered in his head.

Kill her, you useless fairy!!! Or I will kill her in the most horrible way. And I will do it while you are wide awake!!!

"No…" Asuren coughed out blood and to make things worse, he heard footsteps approaching. It was not Aldrin but a group of ex-assassins.

"What is this?" the voice was from Nathan, a young assassin that obviously wanted to kick him out of the farm. He was the one who asked Asuren to clean everything that can be cleaned on that farm. "Does working here make you so sick?"

Despite the nauseating pain all over his body, Asuren walked away from the ex-assassins.

"Why are you walking away?"

Asuren winced when Nathan pricked his injured shoulder with a poisoned needle. His body immediately felt its dizzying effect and he coughed out more blood.

Let me help you, Asuren.

But he would not allow Ugong to fly him out of that place. No mortal should see him flying. He could not risk being discovered.

Summoning his remaining strength, Asuren crawled away from the ex-assassins. But they were not content in poisoning him. They came after him and beat the hell out of him.

"What are you doing?!"

Asuren could hardly open his eyes from the beatings he had received but it was enough to get a glimpse of the fairy who had interfered. It was Albert.

"We are saving Princess Thea. This devil will only kill her in the end. We should kill him now," Nathan landed another punch on the face of Asuren, nearly knocking him unconscious.

"You will only disappoint her!!!" Albert angrily bellowed and pushed every ex-assassin away from Asuren. The not-so-old fairy grabbed Asuren by his waist and wrist then helped him up on his feet.

"As long as I can keep her safe from that devil, I don't care if she kicks me out of this place. You cannot trust that fairy. He will only be loyal to his mother!" Nathan grabbed Asuren's arm, but Albert kicked him away.

"Leave him alone!!!" Albert strongly commanded that the rest of the ex-assassins had frozen with fear except for Nathan. His hatred for Asuren was stronger than his fear for Albert. He lunged towards the not-so-old fairy, but his fist had been stopped by a gust of wind that shielded Albert.

Asuren finally allowed Ugong to help since he was too weak to move.

"Are you… that desperate… to kill me?" Asuren coughed out blood and his knees buckled. Fortunately, Albert was strong enough to support him. "If you want… to kill me… just… come at me… Do not hurt… other fairies…"

"How dare you tell me what to do?!" Nathan had thrown more than ten needles towards Asuren, but it had been easily deflected by Ugong, Albert, and Aldrin. There had been a triple layer of wind protection in front of Asuren.

"Stop this," Aldrin grabbed Nathan's arm and lowered it. "Princess Thea will not like this. All of you had been given a second chance. You and Asuren are the same. The princess brought him here because she thought you would understand him. She expects you to support him. Help him out like Princess Thea did to each of you."

Asuren coughed out blood and held his tightening chest.

"Give me the antidote," Aldrin demanded, and Albert had no choice but to hand it over. "Leave."

Aldrin gave the antidote to Albert as he watched the ex-assassins walk away.

"Drink this," the not-so-old fairy opened the bottle for Asuren to drink.

When he gulped the last drop, he felt a little better. The poison had been treated but his head was still throbbing with pain.

"Thank you," Asuren swayed but managed to stay on his feet. He walked slowly back to the storage room but after taking a few steps, his vision blurred, his knees buckled, and he finally succumbed to unconsciousness.

^#########################^

Asuren opened his eyes and found himself lying on a mattress inside the storage room. His body was still hurting all over but at least, his head was no longer throbbing.

"Drink this."

It was Albert. He was comfortably sitting between Ayhan and Juliann.

Asuren sat up and took the mug that Albert had offered to him.

"I can smell a sleeping powder in this drink," Asuren wearily informed the three fairies.

"Miyara dropped by and gave me a jar of teabags," Ayhan informed him. "She told me that Thea wants you to sleep well."

"Princess Thea doesn't want to harm you," Albert assured him.

Asuren did not say anything. He just emptied the mug and laid back on the mattress. He instantly felt sleepy.

"Albert, you don't have to stay here," Asuren muttered as he closed his eyes. "I'll be fine. My cousins will keep me safe."

"Fine. Go back to sleep and I will leave."

Asuren was not comfortable falling into a deep slumber. Whenever he did, blood would spill. But because his body had been relentlessly beaten from inside and out, he had no more strength left to fight the effect of the sleeping powder.

^##########################^

Thea remembered falling asleep on a chair but when she opened her eyes, she found herself comfortably lying on a wide and soft bed. A white and silk blanket was covering her body fully clothed body. She looked around the room. The wall was painted white. The curtains were thick and white. Each piece of furniture was made out of white marble.

A smile curved on Thea's lips. The room was as white as it had been in her memory. Lazano preserved the guest room that she had used years ago.

She stepped out of the room and smelled something deliciously familiar. She entered the kitchen and saw Lazano filling the table with platters of pancakes and a jar of hot chocolate.

"Good Morning, Princess," he glanced in her direction with a stunning smile.

"This is… surprising," Thea took a seat and filled her plate with pancakes.

Lazano sat beside her and poured hot chocolate on their mugs.

"You can cook well," Thea was delighted as she finished her first serving of pancakes. "Do you also like pancakes and hot chocolate?"

"Of course," Lazano was eating with the same enthusiasm.

"Have you tried leaving the house?" Thea inquired while chewing some pancakes.

"Yes. The spell had faded. We can leave the house after breakfast."

"Have you seen Miyara?"

"I found her sleeping at the greenhouse," Lazano emptied his mug of hot chocolate as if it was a cold drink. "I tried waking her up, but she was sleeping so soundly. I had to carry her upstairs. She's still sleeping. But we can try to wake her up again."

"Let her sleep," Thea finished her second serving. "I'll just drop by the Rainforest Farm. I will return here by dinner."

"I'll cook more pancakes for you."

"That will be great."

^##############################^

Asuren was lying on a stone-cold floor. He was covered by absolute darkness. He could not see nor hear anything. His mouth was covered by a thick cloth. His hands were stretched over his head and tightly constrained by something cold and heavy. His feet were also tied together by the same thing. An icy cold wind had blown on top of him, scratching his chest. After a few heartbeats, the icy cold wind had blown again and left another painful cut on his chest. He wanted to scream but his voice was muffled. Tears began flowing from his eyes, but the icy cold wind was not showing any mercy and kept on ripping his chest open.

The agonizing pain only stopped when a familiar voice thundered around the darkness covering him.

"Ask again about your father and I will pull your heart out and rip it into pieces!"

Asuren jerked awake from that painful nightmare. He held his chest and rubbed the pain away, but it was not going away.

"Why are you crying?"

Asuren glanced up and saw Thea approaching.

"Hey! Why are you crying?" the Gailbreeze Second Princess knelt beside him. "Is your chest hurting?"

She held his hand that was rubbing his chest.

"I'll take you to Mountain Fairy Hospital."

"I… I'm fine," Asuren shoved her hand away. "It's only a nightmare," he wiped his eyes dry then got up on his feet. "I have a lot of work to do."

"Asuren!" Thea dashed in front of him and gave him a light kiss on the lips. "Have a nice day!"

She waved at him before marching out of the storage room. Asuren had seen it coming but, for some reason, his body refused to move out of the way.

Was it because of a spell? Did she cast it on me when she held my hand?

Asuren held his chest that was no longer painful.

That kiss… did she cast a healing spell on me?

^#######################^

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