Chapter 18: Friends in the village
Lucien could remember his mother's exact words on the topic of marriage, "You should not even think of getting a lover at that age. You have to be an adult at twenty. Only then are you even allowed to look at anyone romantically? Got that? If you break this promise, you might as well forget being a man in the future."
Her expression at the time was serious enough to leave an impression on him. He would certainly never fall in love before twenty years. At the very least, he believed so.
"Lucien! Lu! Can you hear me?"
He was brought back to his senses by an overreactive Mikaela beside him irritating his eyes with his waving hands over his face. He stared at him and dismissed his other thoughts.
"Hmm?" Lucien tilted his head.
"What do you want to try first? We will join the rest after we get some food!" said Mikaela just short of screaming in excitement.
His legs were already hopping.
"Whatever," replied Lucien.
"Ahh! You are always like this. Cheer up, have fun a bit. Let's try the fried fish sticks," said Mikaela excitedly.
Lucien nodded and followed along. He still liked his aunties cooking better. He was only here because of the endless pestering and because Mikaela was like a little brother to him that he had to keep a close eye on. Even his parents gave him this duty that he took in great pride.
After servings of different cooked fish varieties, Gustav led them to a rock where Nora and Jamie were waiting.
Nora was a six-year-old frail little girl. She was short for her age so she was slightly shorter than Mikaela. Her light brunette curly hair fell to her waist as her eyes shimmered with bright brown innocence. She was the chief's youngest daughter's child.
In other words, the chief's granddaughter. Nora and Gustav were cousins by blood relation. Jamie was five and he had dark hair and dark eyes. He was plain with rough features. He was a local farmer's son. He was good at fitting into crowds and groups so he naturally joined the group. Lucien and Mikaela had been invited into the group due to being unfamiliar with the village. They slowly became friends over time. Their bond was stable as they would spend time together almost every day.
Lucien was very quiet thus Mikaela became the more talkative of the pair, giving opinions for both of them. As he was used to Lucien's cold moods, he would often even things out in the group before it formed a bad misunderstanding.
At least that's what Mikaela thought of it.
The group of five ate up as they eyed other delicacies to try out next.
"I heard that Lee ate up so much, he barfed. It was so~ stinky!"
Nora grumbled, pinching her nose slightly and making a funny expression.
"That is not something to say when we are eating Nora," Gustav whispered to her but everyone heard it.
Nora was not pleased with being rebuked in public and crossed her arms in defiance with an arrogant harrumph. Her pout came off rather cute contrary to her aim.
"Then tell a better story than mine!" Nora dared Gustav.
Mikaela watched this expectantly in the hope of seeing Gustav have a defiant side. Gustav's next words crushed that hope.
"I don't do gossip, Nora. I can't tell any interesting story," said Gustav in resignation.
Small talk continued until the children were inflated by eating so much.
They had tried foods from many stalls before leaving the town square and heading to the open fields. They were running and chasing each other in cheerful laughter. Lucien was influenced by the atmosphere and found himself having fun as well.
"We have to go back now Kaela," whispered Lucien.
Mikaela looked very reluctant but he thought of his mother's warning. Despite his playfulness, he wasn't disobedient.
"Okay," He whispered back to Lucien before he shouted to the rest group, "We'll be going back now guys! See you tomorrow!"
"Awww! How fast, see you tomorrow Mikaela!" said Nora.
Her puffed cheeks looked very pinchable. Her bright eyes looked slightly downcast before lighting up again.
"Sure, you know where to find us. See you later guys!" responded Gustav.
"Mn!" Jamie nodded signifying his understanding. He was the quietest of the group, even when compared to Lucien who was just not interested in conversations.
"Bye! Bye!" waved Mikaela and left running with Lucien.
When they were in the distance far from the group, their expressions turned odd. Their cheer was wiped off their face.
"They are inseparable. I don't understand why Grandpa wanted us to be friends with them," grumbled Nora.
Her bright eyes were filled with discontent and unhappiness. She wanted to vent on someone.
"You know Grandpa just wants the best for the village, they are the only outsiders to ever come from the mountain ridges. You have to remember the words our ancestors left for us. Depending on fate, outsiders might bring liberation or downfall to our village. Grandpa just wants us to be safe." explained Gustav with more maturity and understanding of the situation.
He was patient in doing such things and had the most control over his emotions. After all, he was raised as such. As someone bearing the burden of the village chief's predecessor, he had to be at the very least this much.
Jamie looked at this silently. He knew his position well within this play-house group. He was here to make the group more balanced and natural, nothing more. He would do his duty to his very best, after all, his family was relying on his performance.