Unusually Affectionate

Daisy had never really traveled anywhere unless you counted crossing state lines for day trips into Kentucky or Indiana. She had always wanted to explore, especially natural parks, but had never quite managed to justify the travel expenses since she had been trying to save up for a house in the country with a couple of acres where she could garden to her heart's content.

She had been to Cuyahoga Valley National Park since that was still in Ohio and had been close enough to drive to. She had been meaning to go to Great Smoky Mountains National Park too but since it was nearly five hours away, she would have had to pay for a place to stay and food if she wanted any meaningful time to explore.

Unfortunately, that trip never happened. Or any to the plethora of national parks out west she had always wanted to see.

Traveling by yourself wasn't much fun anyway. On the rare occasions she made long drives alone, she listened to podcasts to pass the time. Having some of those to listen to as she made the long trek to the capital of Mirea would have really helped.

Daisy wasn't completely bored though. She ended up traveling with a merchant caravan most of the way after walking or hitching a ride with a mail coach for the first little while moving westward. She spent a good chunk of time listening to the merchants tell stories of their travels around this continent.

She had discovered a little more about the fantasyland she was living in because of Ira and the many, many books he read. He would often tell her facts from them as they worked side by side doing chores since he spent all of his free time reading.

Mirea was smack in the middle of this continent. It was the biggest kingdom to be sure and specialized in agriculture since it was strangely capable of growing a lot of different crops that shouldn't be able to grow in the same place. She had wondered about that before but having it confirmed was odd.

The merchants told her about the small northern provinces and their animal pelts, the desert nation of Zel to the southwest and their colorful clothes, and Oxalis to the west with their bountiful mines. Every country they traveled to specialized in different exports and needed different imports.

Daisy was rather fascinated by all of this. She had taken some economics classes as part of her major in college so learning about how international trade worked in a fantasy world intrigued her.

She was sure Ira would want to know all about this when she got back too. He knew geography from his books but not specifically about what sort of items were traded between countries. He was very bright for his age and loved learning new facts about anything.

The journey was still long and bitterly cold—she could really use some of Leo's fire magic about now—but at least her mind wasn't as numb as her fingers and toes. When she finally arrived, she didn't so much as check into a boardinghouse (this world's version of a hotel) before going off in search of her friend.

After asking several people for directions, Daisy was able to make her way to the Mirean Royal Army's headquarters. The man at the front desk's professionalism briefly slipped as his eyes widened, wondering what this tiny young woman was doing at a military compound.

"…may I help you?"

"Yes, I'm looking for first-rank soldier Leo May of the Silver Wolf Squadron," she told him.

"I believe he is in the middle of training at the moment. I'll send someone to speak to his commanding officer. What is your name?"

"Veronica May."

The man nodded before barking orders at someone passing by who immediately scuttled off in search of the captain of the Silver Wolf Squadron. She set her trunk down while she waited and got curious looks from other people passing through the building. It seemed they didn't get female visitors often.

Several minutes later, the messenger returned and said Captain Bridger had given his permission for her to come to the training grounds. The man at the desk then had him escort her there after saying he could temporarily hold onto her trunk.

When they arrived at the training grounds, Daisy thanked the messenger and scanned the area to find Leo. It took her a moment to recognize him because he had cut his hair and was now wearing an eye patch, likely to hide his blue eye in the absence of his bangs.

He looked much more grown up this way—had he gotten taller too?—and her heart felt fit to burst. He was actually here!

She called out for him and he was momentarily stunned but still managed to knock his opponent into the dirt before sprinting at her with a wide smile on his face and spinning her around as if she was the younger one.

Oh, it was so good to see him! He was being unusually affectionate but she realized why a moment later when everyone began crowding them wanting to meet her. They were all under the impression that the two of them were engaged like the people back home were.

Daisy supposed it made sense. They must have asked who was sending him letters all the time so he stuck to their cover story.

Leo had to return to his training all too soon but finished way faster than she would have anticipated. She knew he was strong but hadn't realized exactly how much before today since she hadn't seen him in action before.

It was plain as day that all of these people respected his sword skills. And yet he was as humble as always. He rarely talked about his accomplishments without being asked point blank.

He had clearly been holding back in his letters so she convinced him to tell her more about his life out here. All this time she had been worried about him but he was obviously doing very well off on his own.

Daisy should have expected as much. This was Leo they were talking about. He had been the adaptable sort the whole time she had known him.

They spent a wonderful afternoon and evening catching up on each other's lives and it felt as if they hadn't been apart at all. Leo was still Leo even if he was some military hotshot now.

Far too soon, he had to head back to the compound for the nightly roll call, explaining that it was surprising his captain had given him as much time off as he had. "You can come by tomorrow during my free hours from four to six. The day after, I'm off so I can take you around more then."

She nodded. She could enjoy sleeping in a bit for once before heading out in search of some new books for Ira. The capital was sure to have a better selection than Cloverfield.

Leo hugged her tightly and murmured into her hair. "I've really hated being apart from you, you know."

Daisy smiled as she hugged him back. "Yeah. Me too. I'm really glad I get to hang out with you for a while even if it is on a limited basis. Things just haven't been the same without you around."

"Even though you've had Ira with you?"

She barely bit back a snort. He sounded so much like a pouty little boy when he said that. But she understood that he, as someone who had found a home with her, was worried about being replaced.

"No one could ever replace you, Leo. Like I've said in my letters, Ira is more interested in his books than hanging out with me. Now that he has them, all the time we do spend together is in the context of doing chores. Besides, you were my family first."

Leo stared at her blankly. "Do you mean that?"

Daisy couldn't understand his reaction. Had she truly never told him she thought of him as family before? Come to think of it, maybe she hadn't. She had told Ira that while they were talking about him but she might not have said it to him directly.

"Yeah."

His expression unreadable, he asked, "Does he know you aren't Veronica May?"

The temptation to laugh was back but she managed to hold it in. Once again, he was feeling like his position as the most important person in her life was threatened. He was so cute sometimes!

"Nope," Daisy said with a shake of her head. "I don't go spilling my secrets to just anyone, you know. You're the only one. He and everyone else back home think I'm her."

Leo let out a sigh of relief. "Good. For the record, you're the only one who knows about me too."

"I figured. What's with the eye patch, anyway?"

He had taken it off while they were alone but had worn it the whole time they were out in public. He shrugged. "There are too many variables involved when fighting. My bangs wouldn't have been able to hide my eye properly so I came up with this instead. Does it look strange?"

"Not strange, just different. But isn't it uncomfortable? Can you see out of it at all?"

"Somewhat. I got rather lucky; I found one made of an airy material that's mostly see through even though it doesn't look like it. My eye isn't affected negatively by it if that's what you're worried about."

That was what she had been worried about. Covering an eye with your hair was a lot different than doing it with a piece of cloth.

"Oh good. Anyway, I don't want you to get in trouble so you should go. I'll see you tomorrow, okay?" Daisy said with a smile as she briefly hugged him again.

Leo gazed at her softly on his way out the door. "See you tomorrow, Daisy."