Dalia

Pant Pant Pant

The darkness of the cavern makes it hard to see. A violent screech from close-by. The seismic march of two Insania B.ogres. A dead end lies ahead of me. Only a Mana-knife at my disposal.

“Come at me, you beasts!” I steady my hand and take a firm stance. The B.ogres close in on me. Right where I want them to be, “Amel!”

Amel springs from his hiding spot behind the boulders and thrusts his Mana-swords into the B.ogres. They collapse.

My legs lose balance and I lean on the wall, “Was that the last of them?” I gasp for air, my hands on my knees.

“Pretty much,” Amel prods the dead B.ogres. He faces me, “If the info we got was correct.”

“What? No,” I whine, “Please don’t suggest the idea of more beasts.”

“I’m just kidding,” Amel chuckles, “99.9 percent sure that was the last of them.”

“Meanie.”

“Thank you,” he flashes a self-satisfied smile, “Let’s head back now, shall we?”

“Fine,” I pout. “Amel?”

“Yeah?”

“Can we return to the boarding school tomorrow? There’s something I’d like to buy,” my voice quietens, “for Vivi.”

“ Of course, why not,” he beams me a grin, “For her birthday?”

“Mmm”

“I guess the both of us can buy her gifts together then.” He waits for me to catch up and pats me. When he does things like these, I’m reminded of my family, ever doting on me and making me aware of my vulnerabilities, even though that’s not their intention.

I’ve always scorned the frail part of me; the feeble me who can’t fend for herself. The despicable, incompetent me who’s reliant on others, who makes Vivi worry over her without cease. I wish I could do something to stop Vivi’s incessant fretting for me. I don’t want my shackles of incompetence to restrain her from her dreams, to hold her back from blooming into her own person; I want her to be break from her shell, meet new people, make new friends, live her life without her having to obsess over my well-being.

“Dalia?” Amel interrupts my introspection, “Are you okay?”

“Huh? Oh…” A realization hits me, my eyes are watery.

He slings his arm around my shoulder and strokes my hair, “You wanna talk about it?”

“No, no, it’s nothing.”

“Okay,” he gives me a benign look, “If you want to talk about it later, or anything else that’s been bothering you, feel free to tell me. I’m here for you.” He offers me his handkerchief.

“Mmm” I wipe my tears.

It’s these reassuring acts of him that remind me of my family. To me, Amel’s like an annoying but lovable older brother who knows when to be idiotic and when to be serious. “Thank you,” I return his handkerchief.

**********

Amel

(The following day)

I’m with Dalia at the marketplace. We look around the shops for a befitting gift for Vivian. I’m the bargainer while she’s the seeker; we make a good shopping duo. An hour has passed since we began our search but all the suitable presents are beyond our budget and all the things we can afford to buy are not gift material.

Dalia guides the way. This is going to take a while. The simplest items catch her attention and she wastes a minute or two marveling at each object she finds cute. Dalia, for me, is like a remarkably curious, spoilt child in a teen body, yet sensible and perceptive. That’s the conclusion I’ve come to after years of friendship.

This takes me back to when we first met. Our school’s annual inter-school sport’s week was being held. The games of the day had wound up. My friends and I strolled along the East Hub (a commercial centre of Eirenaius East), window-shopping with sweat dripping off from all over our body. Past noon, I waved my friends bye-bye and trudged along the streets to my home.

I came across a wailing girl who I recognized to be from the other school. No amount of consoling would stop the streams of weeping. We stood there for a substantial period of time. Onlookers gave me bitter looks as they passed. I think they thought I was a friend who’d upset her. She calmed down after a few minutes. Thinking about this has made me realize that it’s been so long since I’ve seen Dalia cry.

“Excuse me but may I know your name?” I inquired.

“Dalia,” she uttered, “You?”

“I’m Amel, Amel Daevers. Are you lost? I can help you find your way back.”

“No, I’m not lost,” she rubbed her eyes.

“Oh, I thought you were crying cause you were lost. Sorry for assuming.”

“It’s just that my friend and I had a fight and she refused to explore this neighborhood with me and now, I can’t find her and I don’t know where she is, and I’m not sure about the way back to our hostel.”

“Doesn’t that mean you’re kinda lost?” Is what I thought but kept to myself lest I made her sob again. “What’s she like? I can help you look for her.”

“Really?” Her eyes sparkled, “She’s err taller than me, flaxen hair, she’ll probably be wearing our school’s uniform,” she fiddled with her fingers and twirled her hair, “she’s uhh charming, thoughtful and protective. Oh, and she has this captivating way of smiling which you can’t take your eyes off-”

Before she could ramble anymore, I interrupted, “Taller than you, flaxen hair and your school uniform. Got it!” I led the way as we went about asking people if they’d seen anyone matching our criteria.

After hours of searching, Dalia and I found her friend at the very same spot I found Dalia. What luck!

“Vivi!” Dalia leaped at her friend and hugged her tight.

“Dales,” she returned her hug even tighter, “Who’s this?”

“He’s Amel. He helped me search for you.” Dalia faces me,” Amel, this is Vivian. My friend.”

“Nice to meet you,” I stretched out my hand for a handshake.

“Nice to meet you too,” Vivian shook my hand, “Thank you for helping Dalia.”

“Oh right! Thanks for helping me,” Dalia chimed in.

“Hey, it’s getting dark so why don’t the two of you rest at my house today! My parents won’t mind and they can inform your teachers about your whereabouts.” I offered, “Moreover, it’d take a long time for you guys to reach your hostel by foot.” Their school had rented a hostel for accommodating the students as our schools were far away and it would be an inconvenience for the students to traverse such long distance everyday for a week.

“That’s great!” Dalia bounced, “Right Vivi?” She looked at her with puppy-eyes.

“Dales…” Vivian huffed,” Right, it’s not safe for us to be roaming at this hour.”

She turned to me, “I’m sorry for the inconvenience we’re causing you and your family.”

“No, no. It’s fine. I’m the one who offered help. And my family won’t mind. I can assure you!” I grinned, “Let’s get going now.”

When we reached my home, I explained the whole situation to my parents. They welcomed Vivian and Dalia without any hostility, and my siblings got along with them, especially Dalia whose energy matched my hyperactive siblings’, a commendable feat. Vivian, on the other hand, found solace by herself and read a book by the kitchen fireplace. During dinner time, we got to know about each other. Vivian made a casual remark about her parents being half-breeds. In some other places in Eirenai, such a disclosure would be met with mixed responses but our province was one of the progressive ones so Vivian must’ve revealed her half-breed descent under the presumption that we wouldn’t judge.

On hearing Vivian’s remark, I disclosed my half-breed descent too on an impulse. A familial connection had been established between us. Meeting other half-breeds, for me, is like finding a long lost family member even if it may be a common occurrence now.

We also got to know that my mother and Dalia’s both studied and graduated from the same school and were kind of close friends but lost touch with each other after graduation.

The following day, Vivian and Dalia returned to their hostel after the day’s matches.

Form then on, our friendship sailed. I introduced my friends to them, Dalia’s mother reconciled with mine, my parents would invite them during inter school events, we’d chat if we saw each other in the Hub or anywhere else, I noticed them more often whenever I went to hang out with my friends; strange how you can go your whole life not noticing people and once you get to know them, you start seeing them everywhere. Dalia was open to interaction while Vivian remaining enigma for a while. I only got to know her better after relentless attempts.

“Watch out, will ya?” A cranky man bumps into me and grumbles, snapping me out of my reminiscence.

Where’s Dalia? I can’t find her anywhere. Oh no.

Mental images of a lost Dalia come flooding. A frantic girl scampering here and there, not knowing where to go. I have to find her.

“Amel!” A voice from behind makes me jump. It’s Dalia.

“Dalia! Where in the world did you go?”

“Come with me, I found a gift shop.” Dalia drags me along and I’m forced to follow.

“See?”  She gestures vaguely at all the goods being sold.

It was indeed a shop with desirable gifts. Dalia bought an embroidered brooch for Vivian while I chose a perfume which my sister and mother preferred and figured I might as well but it for Vivian.

We’re heading to the train now, but Dalia ‘s eyes dart to the stuffed toys lined up in the shops. The look on her face, there’s no mistaking it. It screams a desire for the plushies, yet an inability to purchase on account of being broke. And there’s this puppy plush she can’t take her eyes off. Fine, I yield. I’m buying it for her. Those eager eyes are too adorable to be ignored. Vivian might bite my ear off and feed it to the beasts for spoiling her more. Gulp.

“How much for the puppy plush?”

“750 E” The seller mentions in a drawled manner. [E (Eirenes): Official currency of Eirenai]

“You’re gonna buy it?” Dalia’s eyes glisten.

I nod. 750 E. Sheesh. I now get why the customers are flocking to the other plush shops. I’m not faltering though. Time to put the years of bargaining skills I’ve accumulated over the years in this battle.

Words hurl from my warship to his. I pull out my most formidable weapon – “Look at the other shops. They’re selling at prices much lower than yours.” His trump card – “Take it or leave it. I’m not lowering the price anymore.” Is he serious or merely a bluff. I’m playing a risky card – “Fine, let’s leave, Dalia. We’ll find some other shop.” I glance at him, he’s undaunted. He’ll yield though, I know he will. “Wait,” he concedes, “450 E.” Heh. His weakness – desperation. Fell right into my trap. “450 E ?” I inquire just to rub the sensation of defeat in his face. “ 450 E.” he reiterates with a crushed spirit. The exchange is made and I handover the plush to Dalia.

She cuddles the puppy plush and heartens up, “Thanks, Amel. The best pseudo-big brother!”

“No problem,” I flare a smirk at the seller, “Let’s head to the train now.”

Dalia leads the way and I follow with a victory under my belt.

**********