This work was last updated April 7, 2016

“Have you seen these leaves? The colour is magnificent, I can’t believe I found the plant in this region.”
Aodhan rambled at Zathuras, who stood in the middle of the road with his arms crossed across his
chest.
“I’m certain that they’re of great quality.” Zathuras replied, tapping his foot impatiently. “But we were
supposed to reach the Plains more than a day ago.”
“I know, I know.” Aodhan said quickly, the brown-haired man standing up as he slipped the samples of
leaves into his travel bag.
The two continued on down the dusty road, most of the time in the shade from the suns by the towering
forest around them. The two had been surprised to find trees of that height so far south in the Kingdom,
but it had now been nearly a dozen times that they had passed through and the irregularity of the forest
around them didn’t surprise them anymore.
“What are you going to use them for?” Zathuras asked, mildly interested.
“The leaves make some of the best tea in the land. The stems can be turned into a powder once dried,
which I’m not sure what I can use it for yet. I’ll ask Zacaro once we find him again.”
The two men continued their conversation all throughout the journey towards the Enzilit Plains. They
began to see the trees clearing once the suns had begun to set past the treetops. Even as the sky went
dark as clouds rolled in to cover the stars, the two didn’t feel any danger. The two were both skilled
adventurers, having traveled together since they had met when they were much younger than that point.
They walked on the dusty path up until it turned to the familiar tall grass of the Plains, and even past
that point. Before long they were surrounded by grass as far as their eyes could see.
It was underneath that darkness when Zathuras spoke of something that had troubled him for many
days.
“Aodhan, you know me very well.”
Zathuras could almost feel Aodhan’s side-eye bearing into his head.
“Well, not really. I mean, you barely tell me anything about your childhood…”
Zathuras sighed. “And you don’t tell me about yours, what’s your point?”
“Fine, fine, go on.”
The blond-haired man didn’t hesitate as he let his words spill into the open.
“And you have to understand why I didn’t tell you about this before now.”
Aodhan remained quiet, listening intently as he ran his fingertips over the tall grass around them to feel
their little pinpricks of energy.
“But I think I know who killed your mother.”
Aodhan stopped in his tracks, staring towards where Zathuras’ voice had originated from.
“Aodhan?”
“Who.”
His tone was deep and dark, cutting through the air like a knife. Zathuras didn’t answer immediately; the
air became heavy between the two beneath the cloudless sky.
“His name is Seith.” Zathuras answered, his voice soft and dripping with guilt.
“And why did you not inform me until now?”
It was Zathuras’ turn to remained quiet, even if his guilt hung in the air in betrayal. The men didn’t move,
each refusing to back down. However, as it always was, Aodhan won. His Strayi stubbornness always
shone through when he was in need of it.
Zathuras spoke quietly after a while. “Because I knew that if I told you while we were in Kalthazar, you
would leave without a second thought to go after him.”
“And why wouldn’t I do that now?”
“His trail is long gone. It was buried when we were in Kalthazar, but it was still apparent enough that you
would’ve run off on a wild quest that would lead nowhere. Even if it’s unlike you, you’re still capable of
not thinking straight when those you love are in danger. You’ve done it for me, you did it for your
mother, and you’ll do it again if I wasn’t there to stop you.”
The two stayed in their heavy silence after that. Eventually Aodhan began moving again, his steps
seemingly loud in the still vastness of the Plains. Zathuras followed him, allowing his best friend to move
forward and be alone in his thoughts.