novelraw Chapter 122 – The Start of Something
Chapter 122 – The Start of Something
Chapter 122 – The Start of Something[Ava POV]
Elenia’s idea of morning was clearly quite different from my own, as by the time I had woken up, she was already hard at work, even when still by Kierra’s side. Cattleya woke up not long after I did, having finally calmed down after the events of yesterday.
In fact, she now looked perfectly fine… which I unfortunately couldn’t join her in. It took forever just to get her into a bed, and even then, she kept asking if I was still there through most of the night, keeping me awake. I could understand her being scared when we were inside that cave, but she just couldn’t move past something, and it kept her on edge.
Kierra, on the other hand, still hadn’t woken up. I was very concerned, but Elenia said that there was nothing to worry about; she just panicked a little the night before because she was so surprised… not that she actually explained what it was that had happened. But I was sure I could trust her with whatever it was… not that I really had a choice in the matter…
Aside from that, the morning was quite noisy, with people hauling large crates filled with a number of the stolen items from across the last month. They had apparently been found stashed inside hollowed-out trees, and a lot of them at that. It was honestly a bit of a mystery how no one accidentally stumbled on any of them before now.
The artefacts themselves, though, weren’t all coming back in the condition they were stolen in. There were quite a few that Elenia said were now ‘just some pretty jewellery’ as they had somehow lost whatever properties they had before.
But none of that really affected us at all; it was all for Elenia to figure out at the end of the day. There really wasn’t anything I could do. Rya had left, saying something about deserving a big reward; Kierra was still asleep; and then Fallere, the magpie, had been abducted by Umbra shortly after Rya left, so there wasn’t even that for me to deal with.
…
I really didn’t do much this time…
I spent most of the time blind, huddled together in a cave…
Elenia, however, seemed to notice that I was feeling just a little down, as she encouraged me to leave Kierra to her for the time being, wanting me and Cattleya to go and do something to wind down properly. She even told us that she had gone and reserved a place for us… which made it all the more difficult to turn her down… even if I really didn’t want to leave Kierra’s side…
There was even a small voice in my mind telling me to take her pendant for a moment, just to see if the twin Goddesses would tell me what was going on… but it just didn’t feel right for me to do that to her.
Cattleya was even given a gift, or maybe a bribe, a wooden box that immediately made her eyes light up, getting her entirely on board with Elenia’s idea.
…
…
I reluctantly decided to go along, deciding it was probably better not to let her go out by herself… At least that was what I told myself.
The place Elenia had booked for us wasn’t too far away, which I was grateful for, so that if anything did come up, we could get back to Kierra quickly. Although outside of that one good point, I was left with quite a few questions about her choice of venue.
She had managed to book out an entire bar, well, a small one, but it was more than obvious that this was still a high-class establishment, probably one of those hidden places people keep to themselves while subtly bragging to anyone who would listen. There was no one there but us, not even a bartender, so it was hardly more than a room with a particular atmosphere… but that was probably for the best.
It could be the only place she could book out on such short notice… although knowing her, she probably also owns this place.
Both Cattleya and I sat on two stools next to each other at the bar, with Cattleya placing the wooden box down in front of her.
…
“So… finally feeling a bit better?” I asked, trying to start up a conversation so we didn’t just sit there in silence.
“Mm,” Cattleya hummed quietly in response.
“Then… would you mind telling me what it was that got you so worked up?” I decided to tease her a bit, if only to lighten my mood, “Our ‘short break’ in there ended up lasting quite a while after all.”
“That was…” She looked around the room for anything else to look at by me, “It was because of that monster!… That is all it was, nothing more.”
“Really now?”
“… Really…”
My instincts just knew she wasn’t telling the truth, but…
That moment was when I thought of something. Something just a little bit silly, but if I was right…
“Was it maybe something particular about the monster? You weren’t scared at all when we thought it was a corpse, so it must have been something that came after,” I asked, leaning a bit closer, “Maybe something it looked like?”
“N-no…” She went red, averting her eyes once again.
“Cattleya, could it be that you’re scared of frogs?” I could help but giggle slightly as I asked, “Of all things, the all-mighty Cattleya could be afraid of.”
She didn’t answer me, but she didn’t need to; the way she turned away was enough to tell me I had hit the mark.
On the first try? I hoped this might go on a bit longer.
“Alright then, keep your secrets,” I said, deciding it would be better to move on now that I was feeling a little better about everything, “So, what are you going to do now? We’ve solved the ship issue, so you don’t really have a reason to hang around here much longer.”
“I…” she paused, “What are you going to do next?”
Hmm? Another secret?
“I don’t know,” I said plainly, “I can’t say I have anything in mind beyond following my sister with what she wants to do at the moment… But I must admit, I was a little sceptical about leaving Mom, even if I didn’t tell her. But, it’s probably been more of a good thing than a bad thing, even if it’s still a work in progress.”
“So you do not know? You are just going to follow her no matter what she decides?” She asked, “What if she does not want to do anything at all?”
“Well, Elenia did make an offer to Kierra a little while ago now,” I leaned forwards onto the bar, “And I have a hunch Kierra’s going to take her up on it. So I guess we’ll be going to the main continent… well, after resting for a bit, I hope.”
I smiled, but the room was left pretty much silent, with the two of us just staring at the colourful bottles lined up behind the bar.
…
…
Cattleya shuffled around a bit, but it was mainly just her playing with the box on the table, at least until she finally decided to speak up again.
“C-Can…” She started sheepishly, “Can I join you too?”
“Hmm?” I hummed, impulsively wanting to tease her some more.
“I-I… I am asking if it would be possible for me to join the two of you?”
“Miss Cattleya Astrantia wants to follow the so-called special investigators now? Weren’t you already doing that?” I smirked a little, “Do you even know how dangerous this job is? I just don’t know if you’re cut out for it. It wasn’t a dragon this time, but who’s to say about the next?”
She went a little red, “I know that I was wrong about that… now anyway… and… and I am sorry for making that mistake.”
It was true that Cattleya was a bit of a nightmare, but I couldn’t say I particularly minded her being around; maybe even saying that I enjoyed the company… a little anyway. It just made things a little more interesting on the day-to-day.
“I think… as long as you learn to listen a bit better…” I hummed, watching her eyes, trying to figure out what I was going to say next, “I think I could be on board with the idea.”
“Really?!” She lurched towards me, stopping just before she fell off her stool.
“Hey now, I just said I was on board, there’s still someone else you’d have to convince, once she wakes up anyway.”
“That’s fine. That’s more than fine!” Her eyes once again fell on the box in front of her, “A-actually… there was one more thing I wanted to ask of you.”
“Go on then.”
Despite my encouragement, it still took her a moment to build up the courage to actually ask me what was on her mind.
“Y-You can just call me Catt!” She shouted so quickly I almost missed what she had said, “I think I would like that…”
“That wasn’t exactly a question, now was it?” I just couldn’t stop myself from laughing, “But if that’s what you want, Cattleya.”
For the first time, she pouted at me instead of trying to say anything back… which was a surprisingly eye-opening experience. It was always a little fun to tease Kierra a bit, but it wasn’t quite as satisfying as this.
“Catt,” I followed up after a brief pause, “So, what now?”
She didn’t say anything to me in response, instead pulling the box closer to her, hesitating a little before sliding one panel out, opening it. What was inside was a beautifully crafted bottle with a delicate imprint of a rose etched into the glass itself, and a telltale red cork in the neck.
“This… is my way of saying thank you,” She said as she grabbed a corkscrew, preparing to open the bottle, “… and sorry.”
Suddenly, it made an awful lot more sense why Elenia had booked out this place in particular for us.
“So, this is what it was all for?” I asked, remembering what Catt had mentioned inside the cave, “This is what was worth nearly starving yourself out on the streets and diving into a dragon’s nest blind?”
“It is blood rose wine, made by the Astrantia family,” She said as the cork came out, releasing a sickeningly sweet scent, “Mother drinks it all the time… but she never let me, no matter how much I asked…”
“So, it’s some kind of special vampire wine?” I asked as I walked behind the bar and pulled out two glasses.
Cattleya immediately poured for the two of us… Although even I could tell that she probably poured a little too much.
“Well, all I can say is I hope it was worth it for you,” I sat back down and took the glass in my hand, “As for me… I think something like this is probably the perfect choice for my first drink.”
“First drink?!”
Before Cattleya could do anything else, I raised the glass high, drinking the whole thing in a matter of moments… which I immediately regretted. But maybe it was a little worth it in the end, as Catt ended up copying me beat for beat.
The wine… was incredibly unpleasant. It probably wasn’t much different to just eating the whole flower itself, only that it also came with a very strong burn in the back of my throat. If this is what alcohol was supposed to be like, I truly couldn’t understand why so many people loved the stuff. It was honestly more like medicine than a drink.
At least I wasn’t the only one going through it, as Catt’s face contorted, along with a distinct blush coming across her face.
“You know, you’re really not that bad… But by the gods, I need to try and work some common sense into you somehow,” I said, feeling a heat coming over my own face, “Still… I’m glad you’re going to stick around a little longer… I can’t say the same for the wine though.”
The last thing I could remember from that time was bursting out laughing before jumping on top of her.
I’m sure she was ecstatic.