Elia lay sleeplessly on the couch with a light blanket draped over her body. There was no guest room in the house, so Jaden and Dahlia made the lounge room suitable for the warrioress to sleep. Jaden brought Elia's sword in its back holster as he had promised earlier where it was now sheathed, resting by the flickering dripping candle on the table. Rolling over on her side, Elia stared at her brand new falchion that was protected in its holster. The hidden beautiful weapon was now hers and would become a part of her. It was a comforting feeling to know that she at least had something that belonged to her.

Recalling the day, Elia's thoughts turned to Ruby. She could not rest peacefully knowing that her childhood friend and past admire refused to see her. However, it hurt the most that Ruby lied about not recognizing her name. Although Elia's interest had dissipated since Ruby had moved, it was not completely gone since she still cannot deny some feelings that still lingered for her. Perhaps that is still why I hurt, Elia thought silently, but I should've moved on.

Closing her eyes, Elia tried to remember Ruby's countenance. Ruby must had been twelve when she moved out of Rayinton while Elia was eighteen years old. When the red-haired girl hit womanhood at the age of eleven, she surprisingly towered Elia at a height of five foot eight. Elia was five foot five then and thought that she stopped growing. However, it turned out that she continued to grow throughout her sword training. She was now a little more than five foot eight, probably almost matching Ruby's height if she had not grown. Despite height, it was not just Ruby's firey hair and height that was most memorable. It was those round, dark green eyes that can sometimes manage to lift gloom from Elia whenever she stared at them. Perhaps her dynamic personality reflected in those green eyes.

If she still is energetic and optimistic, Elia thought. She could not imagine how one single thing could destroy the lovable friend she had known.

The sound of a creaking door echoed from upstairs, alerting Elia to sit up. Was Ruby awake as well? Hoping it would be the redhead, Elia grabbed the candleholder and headed upstairs.

The silence of the hallway recorded Elia's own breathing. Ruby's door was halfway opened, revealing the dim-lit room. As Elia approached closer to the door, a sudden voice startled her.

"What do you want?" The voice was cold and edgy, hinting clearly that she did not want any visitors.

Shaking off the intimidating greeting, Elia pushed back the door to see Ruby. Ruby's thin back was facing away from her as she seated on the edge of her bed. The candlelight caught her nightgown and red hair which was tied back messily into a bun, revealing it was unkempt for days.

"Ruby? It's Elia…" The warrioress waited for a response, hesitating to step closer to her.

"I know," Ruby replied bluntly, "but I already said that I didn't know who you are."

The warrioress tried not to flinch from the hostility in her voice. "Well, I know who you are, Ruby. What happened to my friend?"

The redhead remained silent. Elia continued to stare at her back, wishing she would turn around to face her. After several moments of silence, Ruby started to shake violently.

"Ruby…?" Feeling a bit worried, Elia grabbed her shoulder and turned Ruby around.

Ruby's inflamed angular face was stained with tears. Angry blemishes found their way on her forehead, cheeks, and chin which were already blotched by deep-layered scars. Her dark green eyes, which were swollen from crying, pierced Elia's. They froze on the warrioress's face, never leaving the sorry grayish-blue eyes. Newly-formed tears weltered from her green eyes and soaked the dark eye bags that stretched into upside crescents.

"Are you satisfied now?" Ruby barely whispered as her eyes rained more tears. "How can you stand to look at my hideous face?" she cried, breaking into a sob.

"You are not hideous, Ruby," Elia replied softly. She reached out a hand to stroke the sides of Ruby's cheek where it was not red, but Ruby flinched away.

"Don't touch me!" she hissed as she blocked her face with her hands.

Elia frowned and placed the candle down on the table. She sat next to Ruby and tried to comfort her. Ruby's face was inflamed with blemishes, which made her pretty features stand out less, but she was not ugly. Ruby was far from ugly. Through those scars was a beautiful woman imprisoned by self-hatred. Placing an arm around Ruby's shoulder, Elia held Ruby to her chest. Ruby did not protest and sobbed her eyes out until Elia's clothes became soaked with her tears.

Despite it saddened Elia that Ruby was crying, it felt pleasant to hold her in her arms. Nothing else matter in the world except making Ruby happy again. Stroking her back, Elia held Ruby close to her for the rest of the night.

~~~

The sunlight entered Ruby's small bedroom through the window. Elia awoken to realized that she had fallen asleep with Ruby last night. She glanced over to see the redhead, but Ruby was missing in bed.

"Where is she?" Elia muttered. Quickly getting up, she headed downstairs to look for her.

Elia found Dahlia and Jaden eating in the kitchen. The married couple was chatting cheerfully but stopped when they saw her.

"Good morning, girl," Jaden was the first to say. "You woke up just in time for breakfast."

"Where's Ruby?" Elia asked. She was worried last night could had scared Ruby away. Also, where did the redhead go if she did not go outside that often.

"She went out to visit the herbalist," Dahlia answered as she slid a plate of cheese and bread toward the young woman. "Elia, don't worry about her. Please eat."

"Our girl always visits the herbalist once a week," Jaden said chewing through mouthfuls of bread. He ignored the disapproving glance he received from his wife for eating and talking in front of their guest. "I bet you two made up, eh?" he asked with a wink.

"Well, kind of?" Elia had hoped. "Do you know when she'll be back?" She had a lot of things she wanted to talk about with Ruby. Staring at the plate of food, Elia wanted to pass eating, but she did not want to disappoint Dahlia and nibbled on a piece of bread.

The red-haired man tapped his fingers against the table. "It really depends. Sometimes she's back in noon or gone for the whole day."

Just to see an herbalist? Elia thought, arching an eyebrow. Maybe I should look for her. 

"When do I begin work?" Elia asked. If her shift was going to begin in a couple of hours, she would be able to look for Ruby.

"Morning," Jaden answered. "But today, I know you're itching to my find my girl, so I'll let you off the hook. You can help me in the noon when I get the most customers."

Elia smiled and thanked Jaden. Abruptly pushing her chair back to stand up, she also thanked Dahlia for the breakfast and left the two to exchange curious countenances.

~~~

The only herbalist in Serendi was the middle-aged woman in the 'mystical' side of the market. The mystical side of the market sold dried herbs, tallow candles, incenses, amulets, talismans, and crafty items. Elia had visited the herbalist once when her throat was bothering her. It didn't take long for the herbalist to list the herbs to brew as tea from the top of her head.

Just as what Elia thought, the herbalist's green tent was still next to the same candle stand. She pushed back the flap and recognized the long dark-haired woman cloaked in forest green. Her cat-shaped brown eyes looked up at the warrioress, reminding Elia of the ranger Sable.

The herbalist smiled. "Welcome, miss. Do you need my services, or are you looking for something else?" she asked in a light accent.

"Do you happen to have a patient named Ruby Royce?"

The herbalist nodded. "She just left minutes ago," she replied eyeing the short-haired blonde curiously.

Minutes ago? "Thank you!" Elia quickly left the tent to search for the redhead. She passed through many people and stands, but she could not find Ruby amidst the crowd. The town's garden soon came into view. Without hesitation, the warrioress entered through the gate hoping to find Ruby.

The Serendi Gardens, one of the main attractions in Oihana, was very large. The chances of finding Ruby would be luck, but Elia was determined to find her. Since Ruby doesn't leave the house so often, Elia thought, maybe she's wearing a hooded cloak….

A brown hooded woman caught Elia's attention, disappearing into a trail of lush trees. Elia blinked hard by the coincidence. Could it be her? There were not many people wearing cloaks in the sunny weather, so it made sense it could had been Ruby. Taking her chances, Elia followed after the hooded woman.

The hooded woman stopped at an isolated glade where shrubs and blooming flowers painted the scenery. Elia made sure she was a good distance away from her; it would be embarrassing to get caught for stalking the wrong person.

Hiding by a thornless pink rose bush under a tree, Elia watched the brown-cloaked woman reveal twin daggers from the folds of her cloak. The steely blades reflected under the sunlight as she positioned herself into a fighting stance: left leg bent out and right leg in. She practiced thrusting and blocking imaginary blows in the air. Her fiery graceful movements flowed like the wind; the sight made Elia forget to breathe.

Elia tried to get a closer look at her hooded face, but the woman was facing sideways. All Elia could do was watch the woman practice using her daggers; she was well trained in using such weapons. A sudden itch tickled Elia's nose, forcing the warrioress to hold her breath. No, she could not sneeze now… the sneeze escaped from her nose.

The hooded woman froze toward Elia's direction.

Before Elia could curse her allergic reaction from the roses, she choked out a gasp when a dagger flung into the tree bark behind her.

"Show yourself now!" the woman demanded.

That familiar voice; it was Ruby. Elia jumped out of the bush.

"E—Elia?" Ruby choked out as she stepped closer to her, standing a few inches shorter than the warrioress. "I'm so sorry! I didn't know it was you. Why were you behind that bush?"

Elia smiled awkwardly, smoothing her sandy hair with a hand. "I was looking for you…?" The hood shaded Ruby's inflamed face, but Elia could still see her bewildered green eyes piercing back at hers.

Ruby stared hard at her grayish-blue eyes. "…Why?"

"Well… I was worried why you left before telling me," Elia replied. "Besides, I wanted to spend time with you; I haven't seen you for a long time, you know."

Elia flushed, moving her dark green eyes away. "Oh, I'm sorry. I just didn't want to wake you up." She found Elia deep asleep in the morning and decided not to wake her up. It was also the fact that she had cried herself to sleep, especially in Elia's arms. It was embarrassing recalling that night.

Elia smiled and patted her shoulder. "We have a lot to talk about since we've been apart for years. I especially want you to tell me how you got into daggers. I always thought your main hand was the sword, but it seems you're exceptionally good at these," Elia remarked as she pointed at the single black-hilted dagger in Ruby's hand.

The redhead flushed even more by the compliment.

Elia chuckled at the blushing young woman. She found Ruby cute for blushing so easily. Turning around to pull the dagger out from the tree, Elia handed it back to Ruby. "You almost killed me," she remarked sarcastically.

Ruby hid the daggers back inside the folds of her cloak. "Sorry. If you didn't spy on me, it wouldn't have happened."

"That's true," Elia replied with a grin. Her grayish-blue eyes wandered to the pink rose bush beside them. "Do you like roses?"

"Roses…?" Ruby asked questioningly.

Bending down, Elia gently snapped a pink rose from the bush. She handed it toward Ruby. She had no idea what she was doing, but she had an urge to give her a rose. Though, it was an impulsive action to show her subtle affection.

Ruby stared dumbfoundedly at the rose. Realizing it was for her, she gently moved her hand to take it from Elia's. Ruby received a smile from the warrioress, and she smiled back in return. It felt nice to smile again.