Chapter 79 Seventy-nine.

Chapter 79 Seventy-nine.
I smiled widely when we reached Jamila and Dendera, who waved enthusiastically when they saw us.

"Aeryn! Ayla!" Dendi called out, pulling us into a hug as we neared, and I let out a giggle as we pulled away from each other.

"It's so nice to see you!" I let out over the music, and I was being honest. With everything going on, it was nice to see some sense of a routine in our otherwise unpredictable schedule.

"Where's Saf?" Ayla asked, looking around with a frown, and I watched as Jamila's and Dendi's gaze snapped to one another, both of them smirking. I smiled knowingly at this, folding my arms.

"She's with Caius, isn't she?" I guessed, making Ayla gasp dramatically as she looked to the two girls in confirmation.

"Well, it's not all that surprising. They've been inseparable since last week," Dendera huffed out, flicking her chocolate brown hair back.

The concept of time had long since both puzzled and intrigued me. I could hardly believe that less than a week ago, we were at Bomani's residence. It felt like an eternity had passed since that time. And to think in the times where we were fighting The Ammit or the Sirens, Saf had been living her normal life. That was me, once upon a time, before I was thrust into the unknown world of Aurelion.

"By the gods, I hope they last," Jamila muttered, a hopeful look in her eyes, and we all nodded in agreement. A small silence passed before Dendera lit up, her grip tightening on my arm.

"Ooh! How could I forget?! The Hareeq!" she exclaimed, which was shortly followed by the squeals of the other girls as they rushed forward, pulling me with them. I let out a yelp as we walked, turning to look at Ayla.

"Hareeq?" I asked curiously, and Ayla nodded with a wide, inconspicuous smile as we walked towards the edge of the center, where there were a few stalls selling trinkets, food, and the like.

"You'll see," she said simply, and I rolled my eyes playfully at her vagueness. Nevertheless, I kept quiet as we bustled towards the stalls, narrowly avoiding the crowds of people who were strewn across the center. In actuality, there could not be more than 500 people, but when most were standing in congregation to celebrate, it looked to be a lot more than that. I smiled politely at them as we slipped past before turning my gaze to the front as we came to a halt.

"Evening, girls. What can I do you for?" I looked to the speaker to see a boy about our age, with a curly mop of sandy brown hair and brown eyes. He was tall, but not quite as muscled as the males I had come to know, showing the vast difference in their livelihoods and his. I looked around at the stall he was standing behind, specifically to the rows and rows of long silver sticks that glinted against the lights.

"Don't act like you don't already know! Four of your finest Hareeq, please!" Dendi let out, her hands flailing exaggeratedly, and Seb,as she had put it,merely rolled his eyes with a small smile before reaching over and grabbing the silver sticks I had been looking at before from their place on the shelf in his small stall. She placed some coins down on the wooden surface of the stall in response.

"Well, it doesn't hurt to ask, Dendera. But why four?" he asked as he turned back, looking to both her and Jamila in confusion, to which Dendi merely rolled her eyes and snatched the sticks out of his hands.

"If you must know, then it's for Ayla and Aeryn," she mumbled, gesturing over to us distractedly with a quick point of her thumb while handing a stick over to Jamila, who uttered a small 'thanks'. It was then that his gaze flitted over to us, and his eyes notably widened before he nodded his head in a gesture of respect.

"Oh, leave the formalities, Seb. It's nice to meet you," Ayla interrupted his pleasantries in a small, soft voice that she often used when speaking to the males outside our circle. I had long since realized that this was just how Ayla was. Having been raised in the small, run-down village in Olea Province, Ayla had become so accustomed to the ideology that she needed to be married in order to help better her situation,at least, that's what her parents had led her to believe. From this, she was taught how to sit, dress, and talk so as to come off as a coy bride; men did not appreciate women who talked too much, was what had been ingrained in her. Her parents had been very skeptical about allowing her to come here in the fear that it would affect her chances of marriage, but didn't dare go against the Gods and their intended wishes for Ayla's fate. She was chosen for this, and no mere mortal could obstruct the wish of the Gods. It seemed, however, that their teachings had stuck, and Ayla would often reinforce this whenever she spoke about males or the imposing importance of needing to get married soon.

I watched with a small smile as Ayla bowed her head slightly in respect to him, her eyes averted, before I nodded in agreement.

"And thank you for inviting us," I added kindly, and his gaze flitted to me as he smiled at the two of us.

"Well, there would not have been a call for celebration without your help. It is I who should thank the two of you." He smiled yet again, and Ayla and I merely shook our heads bashfully, looking to Dendi as she reached the stick out towards him, another hand on her hip as she tapped her foot impatiently.

"As much as I'd like to waste my night here talking to you, I'd rather watch cattle graze," she muttered out roughly, but Seb merely laughed in response as though he was used to her insults, just as we were used to Rhydian's or Maya's. Instead of responding, he grabbed a small oil lamp from the side and placed it onto the tip of her stick. I watched curiously as nothing happened for a second, before letting out a small gasp as the stick began lighting up with a colorful spark at the end, very much like fireworks.

"Wow," I muttered to myself as Dendi pulled back with a smile before moving away. Jamila moved in then and lit up her own stick in the same manner as Dendi had done. She muttered a small thanks, to which he responded with a smile before she followed Dendi.

"My turn!" Ayla exclaimed, outstretching her hand and allowing the stick to be engulfed by flames. It began sparkling with wonderful colors, and she held it cautiously at arm's length.

"Hurry it up, I'll wait for you," she muttered out before handing me a spare stick, seemingly more focused on the fiery stick in front of her. I let out a small giggle at her actions before turning and outstretching the bare stick towards Seb. He placed the flame next to it, and I waited in anticipation, letting out a small breath when the familiar sparks came in sight.

"Thanks," I muttered, looking to the stick before retreating towards where the girls were standing, but the sound of my name being called made me turn. I looked questioningly at Seb as he reached behind him before exiting the stall and moving towards me.

"Yeah?" I asked politely, looking up at him as he shrugged his shoulders, reaching his hand out to me. I looked to see another stick in his hand, making my eyebrows draw together in confusion.

"Take another one, free of charge," he offered kindly, jutting his hand out to me yet again, and I shook my head, smiling at the offer.

"I couldn't. It wouldn't be right, but thank you," I responded politely, but this time he shook his head, a small smile on his face.

"For what you all have done for this village, I'd say a Hareeq would not quite compensate," he said with a small laugh, his curls bouncing, and I giggled, opening my mouth to deny the request yet again. But he raised a hand to stop my words.

"Giving me the pleasure of setting my eyes on your beauty is payment enough for me," he said simply before smiling, and I tensed up rigidly at the foreign look he was giving me,one that I most definitely was not accustomed to. I had spent my whole secondary school and university years seeing this action, but never with me. I was not experienced with the nuances of flirting, or even with any social interactions, for that matter. Nevertheless, I tried to force a small smile on my face as I looked to the male, his hand on the back of his neck in a somewhat nervous manner.

"Oh, thank you," I managed to edge out, and he shook his head at my 'thanks' before placing the bare stick to an oil lamp and letting it light in sparks. When it was finally lit, he passed it to me, his fingers grazing my own, to which he mumbled out a small 'sorry'. Again, I had to remind myself that this was nothing like Earth and things like physical contact were viewed differently.

"Don't worry about it. Thank you again for the free Hareeq," I responded when he had retreated his hands back, and he dismissed me with a wave of his hand, holding the oil lamp close.

"No need to thank me. Remember, if you want another one, you know where to find me," he said, gesturing towards the stall, and I nodded gently as I made to leave. He stepped back towards the stall where a couple of people were waiting in line.

"I pray I see you again then, Aeryn," he called out, my name sounding foreign on his tongue, and then he smiled,one that was kind yet so carefree. It was such a simple action in itself, but it made me think of the oddities of life, specifically in comparison to the other males I had come to befriend.

Here, he lived in the village, unbeknownst to the responsibility of protecting Aurelion. I remembered the frequent moments hanging with Abrax, Rhydian, and Kael, and the way in which their eyes held the storms of their roles. When he smiled, I saw the absence of that complexity in his eyes, and I knew that, in that moment, he was worlds apart from where they were. He could not quite compare to the weight that they held, and I could see that when they smiled. There was a difference.

He turned back then to tend to the other villagers, and I let out a breath I did not know I was holding, basking in the small silence that surrounded me. It didn't last for long, and I cringed as Ayla squealed in my ear, her hand gripping my arm, making my fire sticks shake up and down as she jumped.

"Oh, by the Gods, I think he likes you!" she exclaimed, and I shushed her, hoping no one heard. She dismissed my hushing with a small flick of her petite hand before pouting, nudging my arm yet again.

"Why did you not allow him to take you for a dance? You looked like a dead vegetable when he tried to court you!" she scolded as though she was my mother looking for potential proposals for me, and I let out a deep sigh, turning away from the stall and making our way to the center.

"I'm not used to all that yet. It never happened to me back on Earth. I wouldn't even know how to respond, even if I wished to," I muttered out, kicking at a pebble so as to not look into Ayla's eyes, which I knew would hold some sense of pity or a strange look for me not having any male contact. Instead of that reaction, she placed her head against my shoulder.

"And did you wish to respond to him?" she asked in intrigue, her blue bauble eyes burning a hole into the side of my face, and I let out a small, tired giggle, shrugging heavily.

"No... yes... I don't even know," I said hesitantly, and Ayla pulled me closer into a side embrace. I smiled slightly as she let out a yelp when she got too close to one of my firesticks, making her glare at me for a split second before her expression softened.

"Do not ever rush anything that you don't feel ready for. You'll know just how to respond when you are ready, trust me," she reassured me, looking to me with a smile, and I gripped tightly to her, a grateful look in my eyes. The air was thick with emotion for a moment, and then I heard the pattering of shoes behind me.

"Aeryn, run!" Ayla screamed out before I could even turn to look, and I slammed into emergency mode as I ran past through the crowds of people, Ayla hot on my tail. I felt my heart pattering against my chest, and I moved as fast as my legs could carry me.

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