A long, tiring, walk presented itself to the duo as Blackthorne refused to take the road directly to town. There was no way to know whether or not the kidnappers rode through the area during the day to keep tabs on their investment. So, he opted to wade through the sea of grass while keeping the road in sight at a great distance.

"Are you alright back there?" asked Blackthorne as he pushed through another section of grass and came upon a large ditch.

"Yes. I am fine," said the little girl softly.

"Good. I think we should be back to town soon. There were a few houses far ahead of us, I think. We have to cross this ditch first, though," he said.

"There is a ditch? Is that why I smell water-soaked earth and moss?" she asked.

Blackthorne glanced down into the ditch then noted the tiny specs of moss on a few rocks. There were small pools of water here and there, but the ditch was mostly dry. Elven senses were amazing. "Yeah. I'll have to let you down and help you across, alright?"

"Yes, thank you," she replied politely.

He knelt down and allowed her to hop from his back, and then slid down into the ditch. "You'll have to follow my voice. It's not steep, but you'll have to slid a little and let me catch you."

"I see..." she said softly.

The little dark elf girl moved forward timidly at the sound of Blackthorne's voice. He directed her slowly to the edge, and then caught her when she slid down the side of the ditch. Briefly he held her tightly to his chest to steady her, eliciting a crimson blush from the young girl.

"I'll carry you across and help you up the other side," he told her gently. She nodded against his chest, but made no sound.

Blackthorne took her across to the other side, and then hefted her upward. She crawled to the top of the ditch and then a bit further away to make certain that she did not fall in while her benefactor climbed up to join her.

"Alright, ready to get moving?" asked Blackthorne.

She nodded her head then stood up. Blackthorne directed her toward him with his voice once more and put her on his back again. She sighed softly after he hefted her up.

"What's wrong?" he asked her before taking a step forward.

"I am a heavy burden to bear, am I not?" she asked.

"No," said Blackthorne without hesitation. "You weigh far less that my conscience would if I had left you there."

"I see..." she said slowly, "You're the sort of man who takes on the burdens of others so that he can sleep at night?"

"I prefer to let people handle their own business, actually," he replied while continuing to move through the grassland.

"Yet, you broke into a cellar, rescued a sun-blind little girl, and now carry her on your back across the grasslands..." she said in a curious tone.

"Yes," said Blackthorne.

She waited for him to continue, but he merely kept walking. The girl made a curious noise and spoke again. "Do you fancy yourself as some sort of hero? A champion perhaps?"

Blackthorne closed his eyes briefly. Thoughts of his little sister and his failure surfaced inside his mind. "No. I'm not a hero."

"I see," she said thoughtfully.

They were silent for a time, nothing but the buzzing of insects to distract them. Monsters did not pop out of the woodwork to bother them as Blackthorne believed that they would. But that might change if they did not reach town before dark. He picked up the pace after a while.

Eventually, a truly disturbing sound echoed through the air. "Is that a samurai?" asked Blackthorne confused. The noise sounded to him like an angry samurai that he'd seen in an old movie.

"I do not know what a samurai might be, but I do apologize for my foolish stomach," said the girl just before her belly growled once more.

"I don't have much of a variety of food, but if you like fruit and such we can stop for a quick meal break," said Blackthorne.

"You've moved so tirelessly across the grasslands, you should indeed take a break," admitted the girl.

"Can't stop for long, though. I'm a dreamer, remember," said Blackthorne.

"Yes, what of it?" she asked him curiously.

Blackthorne found a likely spot and knelt down so that she could slide down to the ground. Once he stood up again, he began to flatten the surrounding grass with low sweeping motions of his foot. "I don't want to risk waking up back on my world, while you're still out here."

"You are concerned for my well-being if you awaken?" she asked. "I thank you."

"Yeah, if I wake up and you're left here I'd worry," he admitted.

She lowered her head slightly, a timid smile on her lips. "It is sweet of you to say such a thing."

Blackthorne didn't respond, but he did sit down on the somewhat flattened grass and pulled out a few edibles. "Let's take a break," he said while offering an apple.

She sniffed the air and then her blush returned, "You offer me an apple?"

"Uh, yeah?" he asked confused.

"I see. You are a dreamer, and do not know the customs of my people..." said the little girl.

"Is there something wrong with offering you an apple?" asked Blackthorne.

"Well, I am a bit young for such a thing," she said cryptically.

Blackthorne withdrew the apple in a flash. No matter what she might have actually meant, a little girl saying such a thing could not lead to anything good.

Her stomach rumbled once more and she frowned a little. "It is quite rude to offer and then snatch it away, however."

Blackthorne sighed and offered the apple once more. "It's just food to me, whatever it might mean for you."

She actually managed to giggle a little before scenting the air and reaching out to take the offered apple into her hands. "I'll treasure it, beloved."

"Beloved...?" asked Blackthorne curiously.

She merely smiled a little then bit into her offering. Blackthorne could not help but smile in return. She'd managed to grow comfortable enough with him to make attempts at humor.

"So, going to tell me about the apple thing?" he asked her before biting into one of his own.

She swallowed her most recent bite of juicy goodness then licked at her lips a little. "My people have many stories about apples and immortality. A young man offering a lady an apple can be considered similar to a marriage proposal."

"Ah, I see. Since apples are symbols of immortality, it is like they are asking a lady to be with them forever?" asked Blackthorne.

"Yes," she said softly before biting into her apple once more.

"This world has interesting customs," said Blackthorne before biting into his apple once more.

"Surely, it does. However, this custom is from the people in my world of origin," she said before delicately biting into her apple.

"World of origin? Are you not from this world?" asked Blackthorne curiously.

"No. My family does business across the planes. We do not dally long in other realms, but we do visit them in order to acquire rare ingredients and further the interests of our house," said the girl before taking another delicate bite of her meal.

"I see. Are you different than a dreamer?" he asked.

She swallowed her mouthful then said, "Assuredly, it is so. Dreamers have special permission to cross into this and other realms as a dream. Those who come here of their own volition are merely powerful enough to transition between worlds."

It was not long before they each finished their apple. Blackthorne offered her another and she took it gladly. "Ah. You do spoil me, beloved," she said in her childish voice.

Blackthorne smiled at the girl. Briefly he wondered at how old she might actually be. Clearly, she was still a child but if she was anything like elves in fantasy literature she might be older than him.

"You're going to keep calling me beloved, aren't you?" he asked her with a slight chuckle. It was adorable, really. Though, it could become a bit concerning if she referenced him that way in public when people were around.

She merely offered him a smile then waved her apple at him. "Such is the contract, is it not?"

It was not long, however, before her head dropped a bit and she spoke again, "I still cannot believe that you came and rescued me."

"It does seem unlikely that I'd even find the place," admitted Blackthorne. "I was sort of led there, but still ran across that cellar on my own because I figured there had to be some reason for me to be there."

She took a bite of her apple and acquired a thoughtful tilt to her head while she chewed. After swallowing her most recent bit of apple she asked, "Perhaps you are akin to a Child of Heros? Though, it would not make sense to actually be one since you are a dreamer and not of my world."

"A Child of Heros?" asked Blackthorne, "What's that?"

"Heros, is a god of justice and heroism. He's beloved by nearly all races, light or dark, on my world. He judges people solely on the quality of their character and not on their station or means. His children and nearly immortal in the true sense of the word and deal with concerns that are of vital import to the world," said the girl.

"Ah, I see. So, a Child of Heros is a sort of champion for people in need?" asked Blackthorne. "They do heroic things and the like?"

"Yes, though they are not champions. Actual champions are something else, and widely believed to be a myth," she said before biting into her apple once more. She made a girlish giggle when some of the juice ran down her chin.

"Interesting... So, what's a champion?" asked Blackthorne. It was nice to sit down and converse with someone else from another world, even if she was a strangely adult minded child.

She took a moment to collect her thoughts then began to speak, "Ah, champions... the enforcers of the gods' will. They're basically true immortals who supposedly come to our world as a direct request from the gods themselves. They appear suddenly through glowing doors of light that no one may enter uninvited, and have powers both strange and wondrous."

"Really? I'd like to meet one," said Blackthorne with a grin. Champions sounded awesome.

"I've heard legends of their incredible power, but no one whom I have ever spoken with can honestly claim to have seen one," said the girl. "They are no doubt merely a myth, the drunken remembrance of someone who saw a Child of Heros perform an astonishing deed."

She lowered her head a little then flared her nostrils, "Though, perhaps the gods saw fit to send me one in my time of need."

"I'm your champion then? I thought I was your beloved?" asked Blackthorne with a chuckle.

The little girl made a soft gasping noise then placed her hand to her lips. "Goodness, my beloved champion. Are you so mean of character, and lacking in capacity, that you find yourself incapable of two roles of import?"

Blackthorne snorted at her then allowed his lips to quirk into a smile. "You're a dangerous little girl."

She offered him a confident smile. "I'm quite innocent of the ways of the world, I assure you."

"Hmm, I wonder," he said in a disbelieving tone of voice.

Her smile faded a little after a moment of silence passed between them. She took a few deep breaths and the smile reappeared. "I did not think that I would ever smell fresh green grass again."

"Well, there's plenty of it. Knock yourself out," replied Blackthorne.

She reached out and gripped some of the grass in her tiny fingers. A moment later she bit her lip softly then said, "This is nice."

"Grass?" asked Blackthorne.

Though her eyes were covered by cloth it was obvious when she turned her head to look toward him. "No, not the grass."

"What then?" he asked her.

"All of it..."He placed her hands to the cloth covering her eyes and suddenly sobbed a little, "Just... all of it."

Blackthorne stared at the obviously crying girl for a brief moment before moving over to sit beside her. He was terrible with people, but he instinctively recalled the sort of thing he'd done for his little sister before whenever she cried in his presence. He slipped his arm around her and gave the little girl a half-hug before resting his cheek atop her head.

Her sobbing intensified in that moment and she turned quickly and pressed her head to his chest plate. The half hug became a complete embrace not long after. Quite some time was spent during their rest stop as the tears of a traumatized little girl fell like rain atop the fresh green grass.