Surprise Visit

Couple of days passed, and we encountered a dirt road on our way. "I've checked the map, we are about a week away from Savala Town. This road should lead us there, or do you prefer to use the forest path?", I asked. "I'm getting kind of tired of that forest already. Why does everything have to be so far away?", Tara complained. "We've practiced a bit on our way, let's just head to the town", Dawn proposed.

"Sure, we'll go with the road then", I agreed. The road was pretty much empty most of the time. Sometimes, we crossed our way with a cart or a group of travellers, but no incidents occurred. People usually gave us a weird look, due to the Tauruses. One merchant and his group even asked us about them, but we only gave them some generic answers.

Tara was really interested in that merchant though. She asked him what sort of stuff he sold and transported. What sort of prices would he ask for the items, and so on. She was a business woman after all. "You business people always find a common language, eh?", Dawn commented. "I'd like to know more. Maybe we can adapt some of these practices back at home. Hehe, such stuff is never useless", she replied.

"Hehe, why don't you move to this place permanently? Me and Anna can surely take care of ourselves back home", Dawn proposed. "Pah, you'd like that, wouldn't you?", she replied. "Give it a rest guys. Learning more isn't a bad idea. Maybe she'll get better prices for us back home, hehe", I added. "Another leech. I didn't learn trade for you people to use me… but, if you ask nicely… I'm sure Master Tara can do something for you", "Hahahaha, talk about leeches", Dawn mocked her anyway.

A few days away from Savala Town, we encountered more people. At some point, the road became paved with stones as well. We were getting closer to the town, and the town was connected by these main roads with other villages. With more people around, we had to cease our practice or training. At least the very active ones.

"You guys are making improvements with your cooking skills. Though Tara, why don't you take it a bit more seriously? Dawn's leaving you behind. Her cutting skills are already good, she got used to using the spices too", I said during the dinner. "Get off my case, will you? I'll learn at my own pace, rushing leads to mistakes". Her reply was a bit surprising. What she said was true, but in her case… She was simply not focused on improving.

"I pity you Teri, you got yourself such a lazy girlfriend", Dawn teased. "Stop it, Dawn. Tara's trying to improve, and I'm glad with that. I don't care if it takes her a month or a year. She's trying, and will get there eventually. No one's racing you", he defended his girlfriend. That was a good choice, because Tara's mood improved substantially.

Dawn gave up her attempts at teasing Tara, and helped me with the dinner instead. She was still scared of fire, but got a bit more used to it thanks to cooking. "I wonder what this town looks like. Do they have walls and towers? Do they live in a huge cave? Or perhaps inside a forest surrounded by plants, trees and greenery?", Teri asked after dinner. "You'll see, by the way, Humans don't live in caves. You probably had Obsidian Mountains in mind, right? Hehe, nope, but you were close with the city and greenery stuff", I replied.

"Do you plan to stay long?", "Well, my family there is quite big. Besides, my uncles and aunts live in different villages. Not everyone lives in the Savala Town, but you'll get a chance to see a village too. They aren't that far away from each other", I explained. "Then we'll see the difference between a village and a town, I assume?", Dawn asked. "Hehe, yea. That's the idea. Moreover, you'll see that life is quite different between the two places. Have patience, we aren't that far away anymore", I replied.

A few days later, we finally arrived at the Savala Town. "Heh, so that's a town? This place looks a bit like Sedon", Tara said. "Yes, the walls are of course thinner and smaller. They don't have towers either. Instead, archers sit atop these walls as a means of defence. You'll see the difference between buildings, once we step inside… Though you can make some buildings out already", I replied.

We arrived at the gate shortly after, where two warriors stopped us. They didn't recognise me at first, but one of them asked, "Do we know each other? You look a bit familiar", "I'm Anna Wintersteed. I came to visit my uncles and aunts". "That's why you were so familiar to me. Hehe, little Anna grew up a lot. Come on in, guys. I'm sure old Finch will be surprised", the warrior let us in.

"Finch is my grand uncle. In other words my father's uncle. He's responsible for this town", I explained on the way. "Man, your family holds positions everywhere. Your father and mother, your great uncle…", Tara commented. "Why, are you jelly?", "Yea, yea, you have a great and powerful family. Must be great", Tara gave up.

"Anyway, what do you guys think? The buildings have a certain look to them, right?", "It's definitely different from Sedon. They used a lot of wood, but there's no shortage of wood around here. The incorporation of stones looks great too. They also have all sorts of designs for roofs and outside walls. Not something you usually see at Sedon", Tara replied.

"The paved roads, and the whole atmosphere is really different. Instead of a bustling crowd, you can hear all sorts of sounds… It's quite peaceful, and slow. Not a bad change from a busy city, I kind of like it here", Dawn added. "How about you Teri?", "Hehe, I'm not that interested in buildings. I'd much prefer to challenge some of those warriors. The guys at the gate looked pretty strong", he replied. "So long you don't damage the second skin, you can go for it later", I proposed.

*Swoosh!*," Hehe, who do we have here?". The voice belonged to my great uncle Finch. He came out before we even arrived at their house. "Great to see you great uncle. I came for a visit, it's been a while, eh?", I replied before we hugged. "Yea, more than three years already. How have you been? How was your journey? Did the two old men come as well? You got yourself nice mounts, are they strong?", he asked a few questions in succession.

"Slow down, I'm not leaving today. How about we meet up with great aunt Tina first? I'll tell you guys everything, don't worry", "Hehe, old Finch got a bit excited. You guys don't visit that often. Ahem, let's go, Tina will be happy at the news", he replied and led the way.

"Anna! What a nice surprise. Come in, don't be shy", my great aunt invited us in. "Hehe, now that you and great uncle are here, let me introduce you to my friends. This is Dawn, this is Tara and this is her boyfriend Teri. Oh, and this little furball here is Curly", I said.

"I'm Tina, Anna's great aunt. This is my husband, Finch. Nice to meet you all, especially this little furball… So cute", she replied, then dragged me to the living room. "Tell us everything. We haven't seen each other for over three years", great aunt insisted. I recounted some of the events from my initial journey first. They were surprised about some things, and angry at the two masters for treating me that way.

I also told them about the North a bit, and how we spent our time over there. The most surprising part for them was my friends. They literally thought my friends were Human, but once they learned the truth, I got to see their priceless expressions of pure shock. "Nah, I'm not buying it. They are obviously Human. I might be old, but I'm not blind, Anna. Besides, I know how Shades look like", great uncle dismissed my explanation.

"Oh really? Teri, would you mind deactivating the Formation for a moment?", "... Haah. Alright, I guess", he agreed. The reluctance came from the previous experience, where me and my parents laughed at them. Nonetheless, Teri deactivated the Formation, and revealed his true form. Of course he didn't take off the second skin fully, but enough to prove my point.

"Wow… Your Formations can work miracles indeed. Haha, with such disguise, you have nothing to worry about. No one will be able to suspect anything", great uncle commented. "I'm sorry we didn't believe you, it just sounded a bit surreal. Anyway, You guys must be hungry, and the… mounts outside too. Hmm, do they eat anything specific?", great aunt asked. "Plants, grass... They are kind of like cows here, but these guys are bigger and stronger. My Turry is the strongest Taurus out there, hehe", I replied.

"What's your plan, Anna? I'm sure you'll visit your grandpa, but anything else?", great uncle asked. "That's right, our next stop will be Ortava. Then, hehe it's a secret. By the way, we'll visit my aunts and uncles too. My cousins should be there with them, I presume… How about uncle Aron?", "He's doing much better now. Actually, he moved back here after that incident. You'll get a chance to see him once he comes back", great uncle replied.

My friends didn't know about that, and there was no need to fill them in. That was a family matter, and a very private or delicate one. "Hey, can we have a look around the town? I'd like to check out your merchants, hehe", Tara asked. "Sure, do whatever you like. Maybe before you go, I'll show you your rooms… You two are boyfriend and girlfriend, right? You don't mind a single room?", great uncle asked with a grin.

"Yes, a single room for us will be enough", Teri replied in a 'as a matter of fact' way. Great uncle was slightly taken aback, but then smiled and said 'bold'. He probably wanted to tease them, but Tara and Teri shared a room so many times, they could practically be called a husband and wife. Once my great uncle showed us our rooms, Tara and Teri left to explore the town.

"You're not going, Dawn?", "Nah, I'll rest a bit. We'll stay here for a while, so there's no rush, right?". No one could fault that logic, therefore I let her be. "Anna, how about you? Why don't you visit Kara, Paul, Aran and others? The dinner's gonna be ready in about an hour anyway", great uncle asked me instead. "I might as well, haven't seen them in a while either. I'll be back for dinner then. Let's go Curly, I'll show you off to some more people, hehe", I replied, then left the house.