“Oh, now I’m really getting worried,” Jean whispered as he and Ayanna trekked through the dampness that was the northern forest.

He recalled there being a vast farmland north of Sùith.

Well, that’s what his old maps indicated.

“This night just keeps going on and on. I wonder if it has anything to do with the madness that’s going around.” Jean whispered.

Ayanna then suddenly stopped, prompting Jean to stop as well.

She slowly raised her dagger-wielding hand and quickly threw it to the east.

A cry broke the relative silence of the forest and was followed by a thud.

Jean and Ayanna then to where Ayanna had thrown her dagger to find it lodged in the side of a deer.

It slowly bled away as it took its last breaths.

Ayanna knelt by its side before removing her dagger, causing the deer to let out a pained groan.

Ayanna then stabbed it in the temple, ending its life.

Jean remained quiet as Ayanna eyed the deer.

She gently ran her hands along its hide before nodding to herself and standing up.

With a single arm, she picked up the deer and placed it on her shoulder.

The two then walked southwestward and it wasn’t long before they exited the dark woods.

They returned to the main path that led back to Sùith and passed by a certain broken house as they walked.

.

..

Jean and Ayanna eventually returned to Àlainn’s little home.

Jean entered to find everyone seated. Their bodies bathed in the strange yet gentle purple light from the purple flames of the fireplace.

“Ayanna caught a deer, we should have it ready in no time,” Jean said before exiting the house again.

Ayden sighed as he looked up at nothing in particular.

“Is something troubling your mind again?” Àlainn asked.

“Yes. It’s this night. It feels as though time is indeed passing by, but nothing is really changing. The winds howl and the clouds soar, yet the night persists.” Ayden said.

“Perhaps this night was not meant to end,” Àlainn said, her hands on her lap and her eyes locked onto Ayden’s.

“What do you mean?” Ayden asked as strange fleshy sounds came from outside.

“Perhaps we should do this a little bit further from the house, no?” Jean suggested, his voice sounded muffled as he was outside.

“I think that what is, was always meant to be,” Àlainn said softly.

“Oh? Like fate or something?” Ayden asked.

“Perhaps,” Àlainn said as Jean entered the house again.

“Umm… you wouldn’t by chance have any clay pots, would you?” Jean asked, his hands bloody.

“I do,” Àlainn said as she got up.

“Thanks. Oh and boy, Ayanna says that you should go take a bath. I don’t know how, but she deduced that a considerable amount of time has passed since you last cleaned that red hair of yours, so get going.” Jean said as Àlainn handed him a rather large clay pot.

“Aww, what if I get attacked?” Ayden asked.

“Take Fea with you.”

“Hey!” Both Fea and Ayden exclaimed.

“Oh and take this.” Jean offered Ayden one of Ayanna’s daggers before leaving.

Ayden sighed as he stood up.

“Come on,” Ayden said as he waddled toward the door.

“Allow me to accompany you, Prionnsa,” Àlainn said before promptly heading upstairs.

“I suppose I could get some dust off, but in all seriousness, bathing would greatly hinder my flight capabilities,” Fea said.

Àlainn then returned with a small bucket in hand.

“Shall we?” Àlainn asked.

Ayden nodded and the three left the house thusly to find Jean and Ayanna just down the street.

Ayden shuddered as he watched his mother hack away at a dead animal under the light of the crescent moon.

“Mrs. Àlainn, you do have spices, right?” Jean asked, his voice a cautious yell.

“Yes! They're in the cupboard next to the stove.” Àlainn yelled or tried to yell.

Her soft voice barely made it to Jean, much to everyone’s amusement.

Ayden and company eventually arrived at the bathhouse and It wasn’t long before Ayden filled the tub inside with water from the well.

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Although his hands ached from all the pulling he had to do.

Ayden sat on his stool and playfully splashed some water on his curly hair, to no practical effect.

Àlainn saw this and pulled him closer before applying soap to his head.

“Hey! Cut it out, I can bath by myself.” Ayden cried as Àlainn vigorously washed his hair.

Meanwhile, Fea sat cautiously on the tub’s rim.

Ayden saw this and gently kicked him into the water.

Fea let out a caw as he frantically flapped his wings.

“Idiot! Fool! Never do that again.” Fea yelped as he floated in the water.

“Hey, if I’m going to suffer, I might as well drag you down with me,” Ayden said as Àlainn moved his head back and forth while scrubbing it meticulously.

“May I tell you a story?” Àlainn asked as she let Ayden go.

“Sure,” Ayden said with a pout.

“This is a tale my husband once told me many years ago. I’ll do my best to tell it as best as I can since it's been some time since I heard it. Anogramma was the first. An idle and compliant being, he sat with his head high as time carried him along.” Àlainn said as Fea soaked his feathers in the cool water of the tub.

“Meconopsis would never see the light of the stars again as his petals were hidden from sight. Even now, he wilts beneath cold gazes.” Àlainn said.

At this point, Fea and Ayden had completely forgotten that they had to bathe and they focused on the words that left Àlainn’s mouth.

“Thunbergia was a restless one. She endlessly looked to the sky in search of something. What she sought and whether she found it remains yet to be seen.” Àlainn said as she soaked her towel in the tub.

“Dahlia was forgotten. His petals have yet to be seen by any eyes, although it is entirely possible that he was found and nursed by a selfish yet loving botanist.” Àlainn said. Her words echoed out into the darkness of the night.

“That was… confusing,” Ayden said.

“I had a similar reaction when my husband told me the story.” Àlainn giggled as she bathed herself.

“Mmm… that sounded less like a story and more like a cryptic observation,” Fea said as he floated about in the tub.

“Oh? What do you think he was observing.” Ayden asked.

“I am not really sure. Although, if we consider all that we have seen tonight, he could have been talking about beings that call the reverie plane home.” Fea said.

“Mmm… Àlainn, what did your husband do for a living? If you don’t mind my asking?”

“My husband, Charlie Windfall, was a teacher and a fisherman. He said that he was born in Anvil, but he couldn’t remember much of his childhood. He said that his earliest memories are from when he awoke on the deck of a ship in the ocean. Everyone assumed that he had somehow managed to get thrown overboard on his original vessel and his near-death experience caused him to suffer from some sort of loss of memory.” Àlainn said.

“Wow… and you said he was a teacher?” Ayden asked.

“Yes. He was quite intelligent. He even had a strange nickname for himself, Yar' Ley.” Àlainn said as Ayanna entered the bathhouse.

“Anyway, let’s dry ourselves off,” Àlainn said as she stood up, revealing that she was way shorter and smaller than Ayanna.

“Mmm?” Ayanna sounded as she looked down at her chest to find that it was covered in blood that was from her gills.

This attracted the gazes of Ayden, Àlainn and Fea.

“What happened- are you hurt?” Ayden asked as he quickly dried himself.

Ayanna shook her head as Fea hopped out of the tub.

Ayden’s eyes narrowed.

He believed that Ayanna wasn’t hurt, but he needed details so, after getting dressed, he stormed out of the bathhouse and made his way back to Àlainn’s house.

He found Jean roasting a piece of meat on a fork by the fireplace.

“What happened out there?” Ayden asked with a slight frown.

“No clue. We found a house up north and at first, it seemed like a normal home belonging to a man and his family, but things went to shit really quick after the man invited us to stay for dinner.” Jean said, his eyes fixated on the purple flames.

“It was an illusion. Two of the family members were dead and the man and his son had become… strange creatures.” Jean said.

“Beasts?”

“Not exactly. For a moment as Oliver, the husband, died he told us something about a being called Oormaelor and that he had no choice in what he did. I'm still trying to wrap my head around it.” Jean said.

“Mmm… did your gills bleed during the evening of lamentation?” Ayden asked and Jean nodded.

“Mmm…” Ayden tried piecing everything together, but his mind was far too overwhelmed.

And he was hungry.

He turned around to see a flame within the stove and a pot on top of it.

Ayden sighed as he continuously tried gathering his thoughts.

He plopped down onto a nearby sofa and pursued his thoughts, although nothing meant anything in his clouded mind.

Àlainn and Fea eventually entered the house and Fea’s ink-black feathers had a rather nice sheen to them.

He hopped over to the side of Àlainn’s sofa, but she walked upstairs instead.

Jean stood up before taking a big bite from the meat on his fork.

Ayden’s mind was still in a numb state and so he closed his eyes as the smell of cooked meat filled the air.

.

..

Jean walked over to the sleeping Ayden before grabbing the bag by his side.

He then sat on the sofa near Fea and proceeded to read the journal as Ayanna entered the house.

She gently lifted Ayden before placing him on her lap and the two then slept as the purple fire burnt on.

.

..

“Have you learnt anything?” Fea asked as Àlainn checked on whatever was cooking on the stove.

“This journal… it's pretty strange.” Jean said as he looked at the several pieces of paper that were also in the bag.

“Also, there was some man named Oscar or something. Damn… this gets real dark, real quick.” Jean muttered.

“Explain.”

“Marianne, a high-born woman, was researching an ancient tribe along with Hammond Cooper and Oscar Weyland in a ruin near Dachaigh Gual. Nothing of interest happened until Marianne discovered a certain artefact. Over the course of the following days, Marianne began experiencing strange dreams where she awakened in a garden with four closed doors that had strange symbols above them.” Jean said softly as he didn’t want to wake Ayden and Ayanna up.

“She awoke in the garden every time she closed her eyes to sleep and the further she studied the artefact and the tribal site, the stranger her dream became. Then, on the sixth day, the frontmost door opened, bathing Marianne in light. She heard a voice that couldn’t possibly belong to a human, forcing her to curl into a ball in fear.” Jean said as a strange howl pierced the air.

He placed his hand over Ayanna’s dagger, which was a sheath between his belt and pants.

“Anyway, that’s all I’ll read for now. This journal is rubbing me the wrong way.” Jean said as he placed the old book back in its leathery bag of a home.

Meanwhile, Àlainn entered the living room, dressed in a new set of clothes.

They were simple and rather worn clothes, but Àlainn’s beauty was unaffected.

“The stew is ready.” She said.

Jean nodded before walking up to Ayanna and Ayden.

They slept so peacefully. So much so that Jean felt a bit guilty for waking them.

“Hey,” Jean whispered.

Ayanna opened her sleepy eyes, allowing them to soak up the purple light that dimly lit the room.

“Dinners ready,” Jean said as another howl pierced the air.

“This is the second one. It might be a beast or a normal wolf.” Jean said as Ayanna shook Ayden awake.

“Mmm?” Ayden sounded as he stretched his little arms.

“Time to eat,” Jean said as Àlainn prepared some bowls for everyone.

A moment later, everyone had taken their respective spots and had bowls in their hands.

Well, Fea had a cup.

His hollow bones couldn’t possibly carry a clay bowl filled with stew.

Nothing was said as everyone filled their stomachs.

Jean found his eyelids getting heavier and heavier, so after everyone finished their meals, he helped Àlainn clean everything up before plopping down on a sofa and closing his eyes to sleep.

Fea hopped up the stairs before Àlainn joined him on the second floor.

The purple flames of the fireplace slowly died. Casting the house in a silent, yet gentle darkness.