Chapter 42 - Journey to Perivion

Naian and Emelinia sat in the carriage with Sharumez at the train station. It was raining outside and their train had not yet arrived. After waiting for a little while, they finally heard the train arrive. Sharumez and Naian got out of the carriage, each with a suitcase. Emelinia opened her umbrella and got out too.

Naian looked at their tickets when they were safe in the train and led Sharumez and Emelinia to their seats. It turned out that Jenu bought second class tickets. The second class tickets had two seats that were enclosed in private cubes. In addition to the seats was a bunker bed and a toilet. Naian placed the bags inside while Emelinia got accustomed to the cube.

The train's departure horn sounded.

"Well, I must be heading back now. I wish you both a safe journey." Sharumez smiled at them.

"We will write to you as soon as we arrive." Naian grinned.

Naian closed the slide door for their cube as soon as Sharumez left. He sat down opposite Emelinia. She was looking out the window. She couldn't see much because of the heavy rain but that didn't stop her from looking out.

"Naian," she suddenly said without taking her eyes off the window.

"Yes Emelinia?" he answered.

She turned to him. "Do you think that we will get the chance to see Sharaina?" she hopefully asked him.

"It will be difficult considering that the gates are only opened during the weekend." he answered and she frowned. "We can always hope for the best." he smiled at her and her frown turned upside down.

After several hours on the rail, the train came to a stop in a town known as Jilamia. It was a big and busy underground town. Emelinia was sleeping on the bottom bunk. Naian looked at her as he thought of going to go and buy them some dinner.

He knelt next to the bed and gently woke her up. "I'm going to buy us some food. I won't be long." he told her.

Emelinia sleepily nodded her head and went back to sleep. She heard Naian close the slide door, turned to her other side and slept. She felt like she slept forever when she heard the slide door open.

She listened to the sound of footsteps but she didn't turn her back. The steps sounded close to her and next thing she felt was a hand on her bum. Her body became stiff and she shot her eyes open.

Naian never touches me like that!

Emelinia quickly turned and came to face to face with a drunk man.

"What are you doing in my cube missy?" he hiccupped, his stench of alcohol, sweat and smoke disgusted her.

Emelinia grabbed onto her dress and backed away in fright.

"Oh I get it. You must be the girl my brother hired for my birthday!" he laughed. "Come on don't be afraid. I am a gentle lover." he laughed.

He got hold of her legs and forced her down. Emelinia let out a scream but he silenced her by forcing his hand over her mouth. His other hand stroked her hair.

"What's with all this screaming? Haven't you been paid enough?" he whispered to her and chuckled softly.

Emelinia sank her fingers in his eyes and he loosened his hold on her. She kicked him in the balls with her knee and ran into the bathroom where she locked herself. She sat on the toilet and covered her mouth with her hands. The man remained groaning on the bed.

Naian was surprised to find the door open and when he saw the drunk man on the bed, he became baffled. He took out the tickets and checked to see if he was lost but no, he was at the right cube.

He angrily walked into the cube. "Emelinia!" he called out.

Upon hearing his voice, Emelinia felt so relieved. She rushed out of the toilet and hugged him, shaking in fright.

"Naian I was so scared." she said, almost in tears.

"Did he hurt you?" he asked her and she shook her head. "Did he do anything to you?" he asked her again.

"He thought that I was a prostitute." she explained while fighting back her tears.

Naian put the food on the table. He roughly picked up the man and punched him hard in the face. He went stumbling backwards but Naian caught him by the collar and punched him to the floor. Naian furiously dragged him out.

At that point another man came and knelt down begging for forgiveness. The drunk man wiped the blood off his mouth in a daze. Naian angrily looked at the both of them while Emelinia took refuge behind him.

"Please forgive my foolish brother. He got so drunk that he lost his way to our cube. Please don't report this or else we will be kicked out of the train. We used our last money to board it." the man begged.

"How could you let him out of your sight in his condition? I can't imagine what he would have done to my wife hadn't I got here on time." Naian sternly spoke to him.

"Please I am so sorry for everything. I will take my brother away now. Please ask your wife to forgive us." he begged.

Emelinia peeped out and when she saw the kneeling man she gasped. "You!"

The man looked at her and gasped too. "Emelinia? Oh my goodness I never thought that I would see you again." he said and got up.

Naian was puzzled. "What is going on here?" he asked.

"He is the man I saved from Queen Lavila in Cherilisia." Emelinia explained and the man nodded his head. "It is so good to see you Ulanos. How is your family?" she asked him with a smile.

"Oh they are fine. I got a job in Perivion at restaurant. We are doing fine to say the least." he gladly said. "You saved my life. I will forever be grateful to you." he put his hands together. "I never imagined that you were a seer." he commented.

"Yes I am." Emelinia awkwardly answered when she realized that she wasn't wearing her sock hat.

"What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be in Cherilisia?" Ulanos asked her.

"Queen Lavila discovered that it was me who warned you so I ran away." Emelinia answered. "I have been in Gemhules since then." she explained.

The man extended his hand to Naian. "I am pleased to meet the husband of the woman who saved my family."

Naian gave his hand a firm grip. "The pleasure is all mine." he said.

"Please forgive my brother." Ulanos begged.

"It's alright, take him away from here before others file complaints against him." Naian stated and Ulanos smiled in relief.

"Thank you."

****

After 40 hours on the rail, Naian and Emelinia heard the last horn of the train. They had finally arrived in Perivion. They both looked out their window and admired the beautiful city. Just like Cherilisia, it had pavements everywhere. Naian picked up their luggage and Emelinia followed him out of the train.

This was both their first time in Perivion so they couldn't help but look around in awe. A short and fat man approached them and took off his hat. He gave Emelinia a bow with a smile and she did the same.

"I have a wagon just outside the train station and I can give you a lift to anywhere for a fair price." he charismatically offered.

"We are going to the Lavender hotel." Naian told him.

As the two men negotiated on the price, Emelinia caught people staring at her birthmark. She had gotten so used to not wearing a headband that she forgot to cover up. Emelinia tucked her hair behind her ear and turned to Naian.

"We are going with him." he told her and she nodded her head.

The two of them followed the man who was walking so fast with their suitcases. Emelinia saw more people looking at her weird. Naian held her hand and she looked up at him surprised. She looked around and saw the people turn away from her. None of them continued to stare at her.

The man loaded the wagon and Naian helped Emelinia into it. Emelinia was quiet throughout the ride while Naian spoke to the wagon owner. He was a cheerful man that was so full with jokes. Emelinia could see that Naian took a liking to him.

Before they knew it, they were at the Lavender hotel. Naian paid the man and he happily waved good bye to them before whipping his horse. Naian and Emelinia looked at the hotel before them and they were speechless. It was lavender in color and was on a hill. They were able to spot two swimming pools and they could see a few people in them. Most of the people walking in and out of the motel looked wealthy. Jenu clearly spared no expense when he planned the trip.

Naian picked up the luggage and Emelinia followed him to the registry. He showed told the receptionist that they had a reservation. He gave her a note of regret from Jenu where he explained why he and Naliya wouldn't come but Naian and Emelinia were to take their place.

After reading, the receptionist looked through the book and she smiled when she found Jenu and Naliya's names. She then asked for IDs from Naian and Emelinia and Naian gave her. She pulled out another book and asked Naian to sign it before finally giving him the keys to their room.

Another man came and picked up their luggage. He then proceeded to escort Naian and Emelinia to their room. Their room was one of the rooms at the top. Emelinia felt like she was going to pass out due to the flight of stairs she had to take. When she saw that Naian was fine, she pulled herself together so as not to embarrass herself.

Naian opened the door and the man put their luggage inside. He took off his hat and Naian put some change into it. As soon as he was out, Emelinia walked into the room. To her surprise, the room was decorated in red.

It had a heart shaped bed that was covered with flower petals. A bottle of wine was on a fancy silver tray. There was a huge window with a beautiful view. Behind the window was a balcony with two chairs.

Naian took his shirt off and Emelinia looked away blushing. She still hadn't gotten used to seeing him without his shirt on. She heard him go into the bathroom and she assumed that he wanted to take a bath.

Emelinia walked out to the balcony and looked out. She could see nearly the whole of Perivion. She spotted the Great Academy and smiled at the thought of getting to see Sharaina.

Emelinia looked further away and spotted a huge building that had a Star statue. She immediately knew that it was a sanctuary for the seers. It looked a lot bigger than the ones she had come across. She looked longingly at the building before finally going back inside.

Emelinia walked to the mirror and looked at her birthmark. She sighed and pulled out a pair of scissors and a comb out of her purse. She looked at the bathroom door and when she heard Naian still showering, she looked back at the mirror.

Emelinia untied her hair and let it flow down to her waist. She combed a portion of it over her face and she began to neatly cut it. When she was done she looked back at herself in the mirror and she was pleased with her hair style. The bangs completely hid her birthmark.

Naian got out of the bathroom drying his hair. He was puzzled to see Emelinia's sky blue hair on the floor. He looked up and saw how she had cut her hair. He frowned at the reason she had decided to cut it like that. Emelinia felt uneasy and she rubbed her hand with her eyes on the floor.

"People in Gemhules have accepted that I am a seer but I can't expect the same from everyone else." she explained.

"The sooner you stop caring about what others think about you, the happier your life will be." he told her. "Regardless, you look pretty with your new hairdo." he smiled at her.

Emelinia blushed and smiled back. "Thank you." she said.

****

Light sat alone in a restaurant. A waitress came to him and placed a cup of coffee before him. Light looked at his watch before sipping on his coffee with his eyes closed. He didn't open them when he heard someone sit opposite him.

"I am so sorry Light. I got held up on my way here." Jayniss apologized as she took off her coat.

"It's alright. How are you doing?" he asked her.

"I am doing fine." Jayniss answered with a soft chuckle. "How are you?"

"I am okay. I'm just a little fatigued from my busy schedule." he smiled at her and she grinned.

"How is Sharaina?" she asked with wide eyes.

"She is okay. I haven't seen her for two months now but I am hoping to see her this weekend." Light answered.

"Two months is a long time. I hope everything is okay between you two." Jayniss rested her head in her palm.

"Don't worry everything is fine. She had to spend two months on Earth as part of her training. She recently got back. I was supposed to see her last weekend but I was deployed on a mission on Earth." Light explained.

"Oh I understand now." Jayniss said and suddenly frowned.

"What is it Jayniss?" Light asked her.

Jayniss lifted her head and sat upright. "Mama spoke to Yolin's mother yesterday. They both want you two to wed in six month time." She said and Light was astonished.

"What? Why?" he asked, puzzled.

"They feel waiting for you to graduate after three years will be too much of a wait." Jayniss explained. "However, I think that it's because mama knows that Sharaina is here. She must have convinced Yolin's mother to agree to the change of dates."

"Mama is really something." Light held his chin. "I have no choice but to tell her now that I can't marry Yolin."

"When will you tell her?" Jayniss asked him.

"She will be here in three days. She is scheduled to lecture the third years. I will tell her when she gets here." Light answered.

"Are you sure you want to still do this Light?" Jayniss asked him with so much concern in her eyes.

"I can't lose Sharaina." Light answered. "Mama will just have to understand."

****

Sharaina laughed as she happily read a letter from Akirexer. The administration had held back their letters for four months before finally delivering them. She was happy to know that everyone was fine home. She was glad to know that Naian took Emelinia to see a play. Sharaina opened another letter and she saw that they had received a large order and that order was going to help them get back up financially.

Yolin on the other hand was very quiet as she read a letter from her mother. Lalina sat with her on her bed with a picture in her hand.

"I don't know why you are bothered by this. He is handsome. He is also eager to marry you so what's the big deal?" Lalina said.

Yolin blankly looked at Lalina. "You will never understand so why should I bother explaining myself." she took the picture away from Lalina.

"Whatever." Lalina rolled her eyes. "All I know is that if I was engaged to him, I would be thankful to my parents."

Yolin ignored Lalina and thoughtfully looked at Light's photo. She put it under her pillow and tuned out Lalina's rants.

"Why is he in such a hurry?" she wondered.