“I-we met in the forest. General Sophia sent you to survey the Ellenian forest for any trace of ADAM’s trials.” Elwin said. Seeing that Lumie was interested in what he had to say, Elwin quickly described the rest of the shared history he remembered.

After all, was said and done, Lumie lowered her blade and sheathed it in its scabbard. “General Sophia? King Rolynd? What an interesting story. You’ll tell me the rest once we’re safely back in the city.”

“Agreed. But I must say, I’m very surprised that bandits are so active so close to the city. Just what are the patrols doing?”

Lumie gave Elwin a confused look as she strode past him.

“What on earth are you talking about?” she said, “Don’t you know that the guards all take bribes? It’s far more beneficial for them than actually doing their jobs.”

Elwin was flabbergastered for a few moments, snapping out of it upon realising that Lumie wasn’t slowing down or waiting for him at all. He ran to catch up to her.

Drawing close, Elwin could not help but notice the smell of blood lingering about her. Dried flecks of it still peppered her cheeks like morbid freckles. The knight, who had been so pleasant to Elwin last he met her, was awfully silent.

“…Lumie, why did you kill those men back there?” Elwin asked her.

Lumie scoffed. “Did you expect me to just let them go?”

“No… probably not. Maybe just wound them.”

Lumie glanced at Elwin with a look bordering on disgust. “Do you think me some weakling that can’t stomach taking another’s life?”

Elwin was shocked at these words, perhaps even more shocked than seeing his love murder the two bandits just minutes ago.

“No, not at all!” he objected. “You’re one of the strongest people I know, but you would never take another person’s life unless you absolutely had to!”

“Hmph, well, you must not know me very well,” Lumie said.

Her words rang true, though not quite the way that Lumie may have presumed. The emotions that Elwin had been bottling since seeing her take life burst forth like a tapped spring.

“By the forbidden fruit, what has happened to you? What is wrong with you?!”

The blonde knight bore an expression of disgust, disdain, and general concern. “Why are you so quick to judge that which you clearly don’t understand? You speak like a child that never grew up. Like someone who’s never had to make a hard decision in his life.”

Once again, her words rang true, but perhaps not in the way she expected.

Elwin was speechless, his lips forming words that would not be spoken, his mouth opening and closing like a fish out of water.

What was he to say?

What was he to do?

Lumie waited for but a moment, and pursed her lips upon Elwin’s non-response. Seeing he was incapable of speech for the moment, she set off once again, uneager to waste any more time talking to someone whose mind was such a mess.

Meanwhile, Elwin was in crisis. This person was not the person he had fallen for. And yet, at the same time, she undoubtedly was. Except for the fact that something was horribly wrong. Horribly different about her.

Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author's preferred platform and support their work!

Minutes passed as the innocent young elf processed his thoughts and feelings. He needed to make his next words count. To express what needed to be said, to make himself understood and clear the air.

“…I-you-” he stammered “The Lumie I know would never... She would never kill someone she could spare, even if they were vile or dangerous people. She was kind, gentle, and understanding. That was why I risked my life and travelled across the Great Basin. For love.”

Silence.

“…Huh? Love? What is that?” Lumie asked, meeting Elwin’s heartbroken gaze.

What was he to say to that?

Elwin’s poor heart had been broken.

Lumie continued to look at the Ellenian’s face, growing more confused by the second. Just what had this funny little fellow expected? “What’s with that look on your face? Are you injured?”

Elwin was at a loss for words, unable to bear Lumie’s clueless, confused, mildly irritated gaze for a moment longer.

“Nevermind.” He managed to choke out quietly, trudging along the path towards the Prime Moontree once more.

Lumie continued in step, but Elwin continued to be troubled by Lumie’s answer, nursing his fresh wound in private as they walked under a darkening sky.

Did she mean that she didn’t love me?

If so, that was fine, it was something that Elwin could accept. He could understand that being something difficult to admit, or difficult even to admit entertaining the idea of. But the way she spoke, and the difference in the way she acted now compared to the Lumie he was used to. And, the words she had used in her denial.

What is possible that Lumie didn’t know what ‘love’ was?

Was that even possible?

Elwin was afraid to ask and make the situation between them any worse than it already was. He had already insulted several of her sensibilities, even to the point that she felt the need to call him out for being judgemental.

In the dimming light, Elwin spotted a familiar fungus growing on the roots of a tree by the path.

“Wait here.” He said, approaching it and harvesting it with his Gift. He left part of the mycelium so it would be able to regrow.

“What is that?” Lumie asked.

“A mushroom that can act as a painkilling medicine,” Elwin replied, offering it to her.

“Mmh. I see why you say we were fond of each other. You could be very useful to have around these parts.”

Elwin was unsure how to reply. Was she trying to make him feel better about the rejection she had given him earlier?

“…What did you mean when you asked what love is? I get it, I’m a fool to say something like that but you seemed to be con-”

“There’s that word again,” Lumie said, interrupting Elwin.

“What word?”

“Love. You keep saying that word.”

Now was Elwin’s turn to stare at the other’s face in confusion. “You… you don’t know what love is?” he asked.

“No, I don’t. Isn’t that obvious? I already asked what that was.”

Elwin continued to stare at Lumie’s face. She slightly flinched, uncomfortable under his prolonged gaze. It seemed that her ignorance was sincere, her eyes staring back in mild annoyance at Elwin’s persistent doubt.

“Well? Do you not know how to describe it?” Lumie asked him.

How was one to describe it? How was it possible that Lumie did not know what love was?

“It’s complicated. Love is the desire of wanting the best for someone else, without paying heed to the cost. There are many varieties of it. The common tongue has mixed them all into one word. In elvish we have words for love within brotherhood, love between siblings, the love one holds for beauty, the love between parent and child, the love between romantic partners, and more. Do you mean to say that you’ve never heard of such things?”

“I don’t fully grasp what you are trying to say, elf. Are you not just describing the relationships where people most often use each other for mutual gain?”

“What? Use each other? Well, if you’re being cynical I guess you could say that…”

“I’m not being cynical in the slightest. It’s just the truth, isn’t it?”

Elwin shook his head. “Are you sure that people form bonds just to use each other? Do you not think that there’s room for something more?”

“What ‘more’ could there be?” Lumie asked.

Elwin racked his brains, struggling to come up with an answer that would satisfy his heart. In the distance, the enormous trunk of the Prime Moontree came into view. The majestic living palisades of the great elven city seemed like a row of toothpicks in comparison. They would be home soon.

“Love at its best is a beautiful thing. It’s the warm spring of the heart. A miraculous spring that overflows and brings joy to all who witness it, and fulfilment to the one who bears the love for others.”

“What’s the use of it?” Lumie asked.

“The… use of it?”

“Yes. Love’s function. Does it not have a use?”

Elwin was not sure how he should answer.

“Do not tell me that it exists just as some self-gratifying vice. You seem to speak so highly of it.”

“Wait, wait wait. I need to think. It’s not some vice. It’s… Good.”

“‘Good’? That’s the use of it? What good is something that is useless? Can it keep your belly full? Can it keep a roof over your head? Or clothes on your back?”

“Actually… It can. Love can do those things and more. It can move mountains, plant forests… It can save the world! It’s a force that is incredibly powerful… and useful too, I suppose.”