Athelisa Sylthana Hellspirit Ashbrook was numb. She didn't know why she had trusted him, why she had let down her guard and cried infront of him, why she had shown weakness to him.

Perhaps it was because she'd needed an outlet for her bottled up emotions. Four years as a slave and not a tear had she spilled, nor a single grimace pulled. Lisa had been dead inside, dead up until the point where she met him. She'd have died if he hadn't saved her. But now a worm of uncertainty wiggled around in her tummy, and she crossed her toes inside her shoes, biting her lower lip and trying not to let the tears flow freely.

There had to be a reason for his strange behaviour, some ulterior motive. Shu wasn't like that... he wasn't, right?

”The hell is his problem?” Fiona sputtered into the silent, stifling atmosphere of the room. ”He just left her? What a prick. What a massive fucking prick. How can he just up and go after...”

Lisa's heart clenched at Fiona's words, but rather than getting angry along with Fiona, she felt a defeated sort of helplessless inside.

The past few days on the road had been amazing. Shu was constantly there for her, telling her strange stories that sounded like fairy tales or making her giggle with stupid jokes.

At times, he was so mature that she wondered at his real age. Maybe he was like her, frozen in time due to a curse?

He didn't seem like a 12 year old at all, and Lisa had never thought of him as anything other than just Shu... At other times he was so childish and awkward that it was cute. She'd thought he was a bit like her, trapped in a childs body with his true age being different. Perhaps that was why she had struck it off so well with him in the first place, why she'd felt such trust in him.

What if... what if that trust had been misplaced?

What Fiona was referring to was undoubtedly the way the two of them had star-gazed every night, how she'd clung to him in her sleep.

Lisa was aware. It was embarrassing to wake up from a nightmare only to find yourself desperately clinging to another person like that, just shaking helplessly.

The awkward and fidgety Shu that got uncomfortable when they were alone and their bodies touched. Yeah... how could he just leave? Had it all been a lie? A fib? A hoax? A deception? Sometimes he was so childish, and at other times so mature. It was confusing. He was so gosh darn confusing.

Her education demanded that she be able to accurately read people and judge their motives, but with Shu she just drew a blank. Perhaps her years as a slave had ruined even that part of her, along with all the other things she'd lost. Perhaps that last shed of her former elven princess self had finally been taken from her aswell?

Clenching her small hands and fighting the tears, she took a step towards Caia's group, then another.

”Come on Lisa, let's go to the inn.” Caia said. ”I know the owner. It's a small and cozy place where we can relax and unwind after the days on the road.”

Quietly, Lisa continued onward, forcing herself to move one heavy step at a time towards the strangers. But they were friends. Shu's friends? But what was she? How did she fit in with these people? They had no reason to help her, did they?

Why did he do that... why...

Lisa startled when Vorna moved, embracing her. ”There, there. Don't mind him my child.” She said in a voice Lisa imagined the woman used to speak to her orphans. Actually, Lisa felt a little moved. Nothing they had done the past few days had merited more than a word or two from the taciturn woman, and Trevor had been much the same.

Yesterday, Lisa had briefly entertained the notion that Trevor and Vorna shared a telepathic link which they used to talk, but she had never heard of such a thing even amongst the elves.

”Aye, I be feeling a bit shit all of a sudden. Better get sum food in me belly. Feel better fer sure.” Fiona said, and Brock concurred.

Before she knew it, she was being herded outside and then towards the small inn that Caia knew of. Lisa relaxed a little, because she knew these people were somewhat dependable. However, she did not fully let down her guard.

How could she? There was only one person she had shown her weak side to, and look how that had ended! That person was now... he was...

Lisa felt a spark of something inside. It was a spark of anger. She felt anger at the slavers. But no, that was different. Perhaps her feeling towards the slavers was better described as hatred and loathing, an irresolvable hatred that knew no bounds.

But this...was clearly anger, the ordinary kind that gave one energy. Like a furnace it burned inside her heart, radiating energizing waves of anger throughout her being.

She was suddenly feeling restless. In a sea of grey sadness, of longing loneliness, a single spark of anger had set alight something strange inside Lisa.

That damn idiot!

As the party made their way down the street, Caia suddenly stiffened and turned her head sharply towards the outskirts of town. ”Oh no.” She muttered. ”What?” Brock prodded.

”He's gone.” Caia said, and Lisa almost collapsed to the ground when she heard those words. That person was gone? The person that had appeared out of nowhere and saved her, then treated her with respect and dignity and even... love? That gentle, kind person had gone away?

No, it was a lie. Shu had just been leading her along, playing with her feelings, right? He had patted her head sometimes too. How could he be kind and gentle? He was a devious and deceitful monster.

But he wasn't... She knew he wasn't. Somehow she just couldn't bring herself to believe he was a monster.

”Far away. So far away.” Caia muttered, glancing towards the horizon. ”Just what is he, to perform Space magic on that level.”

”He's gone?” Fiona shouted. ”So fucking what? That little brat, let him go. We'll see to ourselves without him. Come on Lisa, let's get you something to eat, I be starving aswell, I tell ya.” Fiona said, placing a hand on Lisa's shoulder and squeezing.

”Okay.” Lisa replied, trying to bolster her voice and make it sound confident. ”So what if he is gone? I don't need him. I don't...” her lips quivered involuntarily.

Lisa was starting to hate her own weakness. She had been helpless for four years, enslaved without any prospect of a future other than being used then throw away like a dirty rag, but now she was free. And yet she wasn't.

She couldn't just run away from her own inner demons. The shackles that bound her were not just physical, but mental too, she realized.

She had finally escaped, because the old woman that helped her, sacrificed her life to make it happen. But then the knights came... She was like a ball, kicked around by fate, and she was tired of it!

”What say you destiny? Let me become the kicker. I'll kick the ball. I won't be moved. I will be the mover.” Lisa mouthed the words under her breath as if saying a holy pact. Once the words were said, it was as though a rock had settled in her stomach, grounding her.

It was a little uncomfortable, but it kept her from floating away like a festival kite at the mercy of the winds that blew through the forest during somerset festival. He missed that warm and sunny Elf grove... She missed it so much.

”A class?” Lisa asked. They were at the inn. It was a small and cozy place that felt more like a large family home than anything else.

There were few people there, and they all chatted jovially with one another around crackling heartfires or sat around tables playing cards as they guzzled beer.

It was an inn for adventurers, and everyone was a friend. Caia had told her so. Lisa still had a hard time believing in her, but she tried to.

That old woman with the slavers wasn't bad, she hadn't betrayed her. Lisa could do this. Part of her believed that Shu wouldn't just leave her forever. That he would come back soon.

She felt that any moment now, Lisa would turn around and he would be there. He'd say he was sorry for being an idiot, and everything would go back to normal.

That possibility gave her hope, and allowed her to push forward and ignore her weakness for now. She had to fix herself. After all, she was partly to blame for him leaving, wasn't she? If she was stronger and better, he wouldn't have left like that would he?

”That's right.” Caia said. ”We all have classes. It's like our profession, you might say. Just like that burly man over there is a blacksmith,” Caia pointed to a man in the corner who was downing mugs of beer like they were water.

”Just like him, we too have a profession. I am a mage and conversely, the mage job allows me to work as an adventurer. A class is much like a profession if you regard it this way. It's like a life-path though, and cannot easily be changed, whereas in theory, a blacksmith can change and become a leatherworker or a hunter if he wanted to.” Caia said. Lisa had asked the woman to explain about classes.

Since the strange stone tablet had revealed to her that she had none, Lisa had been wondering what to do about it. According to the adventurers, picking a class and training in it was the path to becoming stronger, and that was what she had asked for.

”So in theory, I should pick the mage class?” she asked the group.

They had finished their meal some time ago, and were nursing mugs of alcohol and occasionally looking out through the windows. Lisa too, found herself staring out the window at the night sky and wondering... what stars did Shu look upon when he gazed up at night with that strange expression on his face? No, forget it. Forget him for now. Sulking won't help her get strong and it wont bring him back.

Caia nodded.”Yes, the mage class suits you well, but in theory you should also be able to become a warlock. The demon blood in your veins would aid you in this regard, though I suppose finding someone to train you might be a little difficult. Becoming a shaman is also not out of the question. There are many variations within the magic classes, so there's no need to be hasty.” Caia advised.

”Is it wrong that I like the mage class best?” Lisa said, furrowing her brow.

”Not at all.” Caia said. ”But it doesn't really matter right now. Choosing a class is not something to be rushed. I know a place that trains the nobles of the Azure kingdom, but only those with extraordinary potential are admitted. After taking various classes for a few years, and learning skills at the academy, you can choose to specialize in spellcasting as a mage, or become a warrior or rogue or whatever you desire, really. Xuberanth has many many courses, and...”

”Xuberanth? The royal academy?” Lisa asked in surprise. Never in her wildest dreams had she considered attending that place. Before she got kidnapped, she had been homeschooled with the assumption that she would eventually attend the Evergreen Academy, then go to the bough of the Great-tree and study the ways of her people at the elven highbourne university.

But that was before the disaster, before her country went up in flames. With her lineage destroyed, did she even have the right to enter the academy or the university?

”How can I...”Lisa said, swallowing audibly, ”how can I possibly enter the Royal Academy of the Azure kingdom?” Lisa asked. It was truly absurd to think that they would let her enter, especially since it was the very same azure kingdom that had made war on her home forest and slaughtered her people.

Caia seemed to misunderstand her apprehension though, since Lisa had been tightlipped with her origin story. Only that person knew she was a princess. Maybe he left since he saw that she was cursed. That made sense. It made sense if you thought about ordinary people, but Lisa had thought he was different...

”I have a few connections at the academy.” Caia said, smiling. ”My mother is the headmistress of the school, so I think I can manage to get you admitted. We have to hide your horns somehow, but other than that we should be golden.”

Next to Caia, a more than a little tipsy Brock let out a bellowing burp and laughed. ”Yes yes.” he rumbled.

”You have a bright future ahead of you little miss. Don't be so gloomy, gloom..hick...”

When Caia slapped his shoulder in playful admonishment, Lisa allowed herself to smile. This wasn't so bad. It was okay... Fine, just fine. No problem. But something was missing. Again, her gaze drifted to the window and the darkness outside.

That night, it took Lisa a very, very long time to fall asleep and when she finally did, she fell into a restless disturbed sleep, dreaming of her time as a slave.