Under The Lights

The forest we landed in was far from the castle and close to the city. We were out of sight because we were moving in the evening. As the moonlight illuminated our path, we continued walking. Our primary goal was to find food for our hungry stomachs.

Another reason for heading to the city was that I needed a place to stay. There was still a lot of time until the tournament and Rose knew of a motel in the city that the soldiers rarely checked. I needed to stay out of sight until the kings gathered, so we followed Rose's lead and headed back towards the city.

As we walked, I couldn't help but wonder about Rose's catapult system. She had used it so expertly, launching us out of the palace in one go. I had to ask her about it.

"How did you know the soldiers weren't looking at that spot at that time?" I asked.

Rose answered my question after a brief pause. She turned her head to look at me as I followed behind her.

"Sometimes I leave the palace to relax," she said.

"That's why you went to the forest where the creatures were," I said. "To relax."

"Yeah," Rose replied. "You could say that."

"I'm not gonna lie," I said. "What you did at the palace was pretty cool and clever."

Rose smiled at my compliment. "Thanks," she said. "You're not bad for a fugitive."

"Seriously though," I said. "Are you sure we'll be safe in the city?"

"Don't worry," Rose replied. "The feast will continue until the tournament and the soldiers won't interfere much with it. Since the elite soldiers aren't here, you can manage in the motel until the tournament."

Her words were enough to put me at ease, but there was one more thing I wanted to know.

"Is the food good here?" I asked.

"Have you ever had carne asparagus?" Rose asked.

"What's that?" I replied.

"It's a local specialty," Rose said. "You'll see when we get there. I'm sure you'll love it."

"It would be impossible not to love it with this hunger," I said.

After a bit more walking through the forest, we finally arrived at the feast in the city. Despite it being evening, the place was still bustling with activity - which was good for us.

The lamps hanging around us provided enough light to illuminate our path. It was as bright as the morning sun. The lamps continued to hang from the beginning of the feast to the other end. A little further down the road, we arrived at a restaurant for dinner.

The smells were tantalizing and the food was delicious. As I ate, Rose could tell from the look on my face that I was enjoying the meal.

"I told you you'd like it," she said with a smile.

"Yes," I replied. "It's as good as you said it would be."

Rose continued the conversation, wanting to know more about me. "What about your parents, Ryuu?" she asked. "Are they still alive?"

"They died when I was young," I replied. "But I grew up with my uncle."

"What's your uncle like?" Rose asked.

"He's very strict," I said. "But he's been like a father to me all these years."

"He sounds like a nice guy," Rose said.

"He disappeared not long ago," I said. "That's another reason why I started this adventure - to find my uncle."

"I hope you find your uncle soon," Rose said.

I wasn't sure if I was going to find him, but I turned to Rose and said."Thank you."

We continued to stare into each other's eyes for a short while. As I looked at her, I felt something I hadn't felt before. Then Rose stood up from the table.

"Let's go," she said. "I'll take you to your motel."

As we left the restaurant and walked down the road, we noticed a familiar face approaching us rapidly. It was the little girl I had rescued that morning. She approached us with admiring eyes.

"I've been looking for you all day," she said. "Where have you been?"

"Are you alright?" I asked. "Did they bother you again?"

"No," the girl replied. "I just wanted to give you something as a thank-you gift."

She reached into her pocket and pulled out some sweets, offering them to us.

"Here," she said. "For you."

The girl was young, but she was smart enough to understand generosity. We took one of the sweets so as not to offend her and thanked her. Then the girl asked a question because she saw us standing side by side.

"Are you two lovers?" she asked.

Rose and I started talking at the same time, momentarily panicked.

"What? No," we said. "We're just-"

At that moment, music caught the girl's attention and she suddenly grabbed our hands.

"Come on," she said excitedly. "They're starting the song. Let's dance."

We didn't realize what was happening, but the girl was pulling us strongly towards the source of the music. She held my hand in one hand and Rose's in the other. Even though we asked her nicely to stop, we found ourselves in the middle of a group of dancing people before we knew it.

At first, we thought we would leave immediately. But since we were standing still, all eyes were on us. We were the only couple not dancing in the middle of the street. Rose took my hand and started to dance, keeping up with the crowd so as not to attract more attention.

I had to keep up with her until the crowd dispersed and the song ended. But it wasn't at all what I had expected. As we danced, I realized that I had never been this close to Rose before. The brightness of her eyes looked even more beautiful from here. My feet began to move eagerly to the rhythm of the music.

For the first time in a while, I saw Rose smile. She seemed as happy as I was. We danced joyfully until the song ended. It was as if neither of us wanted to leave that place.