Accidental Encounters

Jonas wasn't sure how long Elin would be, but he also didn't think that anything would really happen. Not when they were already so far away from where Douglas would likely look for them.

Although, if he did come looking for them where their camp was, he'd be more likely to come from the opposite direction that Elin had gone.

Which Jonas wasn't too worried about. If he did show up while Elin was gone, it wasn't like he knew who Jonas was.

Besides, just because the roc had attacked them up here, that wouldn't mean that they'd still be there. Or at least that's what Jonas would think if he was the one doing the hunting.

As he was confident that Douglas knew that they knew he was looking for them.

As such, remaining in the same place would indeed be foolish if they didn't consider the probability that he'd actually take a look. Which Jonas considered that probability to be rather low.

Plus, Jonas hoped that he wouldn't encounter Douglas until his MP was fully restored. Just in case he needed to hide in the shadows for whatever reason. Even if it was to keep Douglas from finding the pendant, which Jonas noticed that Elin had left behind.

Which meant that if Douglas did show up, that their entire plan would be in jeopardy. Or at least if Douglas noticed and was able to retrieve the pendant.

Jonas wasn't sure what the deal with the pendant was, but since he didn't have anything else to do at the moment, he picked it up and turned it, examining each creature for a moment. He wasn't sure what he was really looking for, or if he was looking for anything at all, but when he reached the orange color, the sun broke through the trees in the distance, sending a spear of light through the crystal, casting its shadow on Jonas.

Jonas didn't pay it any attention, which was a mistake as he then found himself in a small forest a moment later, the orange stone that he was standing on appearing dull and lifeless.

Jonas could only assume that he'd entered the pendant somehow and that he could get out just yet. He at least hoped that the others wouldn't turn the crystal to another color before looking in to see which one it was on. As if they did, then maybe they'd see him as well.

So they'd be able to help him get out and not remain stuck inside here for who knew how long. Which could be quite a while as he suspected that Ember wasn't going to want her family getting released until they dealt with Douglas.

Which wasn't likely to be for a while at least.

Jonas sat on the stone he'd arrived on, playing in his mind what happened to get him there, since the sun generally didn't rise up above the mountains and trees for another half hour or so. As such, it could be considered a fluke that he'd ended up getting caught in the light that had ended up with him being put inside the crystal.

"Who're you?" a voice asked, sounding both young and curious. "It's been a while since anyone else came here. Are you a caretaker or are you just passing through? Did you see my parents, brother, or sister? I've been looking for them for a while and haven't seen them."

Jonas looked around and saw another bird, with the same coloring as Ember, only this one was giving off light in the darkness. Like it was from the heart of a campfire itself.

While Jonas had a feeling he should stay quiet and not converse with this bird, he also had a feeling that he'd be able to get more answers that would help him out with so many things. Though, a few he wished the bird could help with, but had a feeling the bird wouldn't know details about the challenges in the competition in the first place.

+++

"What're you doing here?" Elysia asked Elin, her tone a cross between curious and outrage.

"Sorry," Elin apologized again. "I heard a splash and came to see what it was about."

Elin heard a sigh from Elysia. "Well, I guess part of this incident is my fault, since I didn't listen for anything that might be approaching. Though, the splash probably was me dropping the soap I'd made for myself."

"Soap?" Elin's ears perked up. She hadn't been able to use soap since they left the capital when she bathed. She was certainly interested in any soap if some was available. "Where'd you get soap?"

"As I said, I made it," Elysia replied, the movements she made that Elin could hear made her suspect Elysia was putting some clothing on. "That brother of the flames mentioned that they'd killed a giant bear, so I stopped by and got some of the fat and mixed it with the ashes of a campfire."

Elin wrinkled her nose at that idea. Of the soap she knew about, she'd heard that kind wasn't really the best. Though, she had to admit that soap was still soap.

"Do you have any more?" Elin asked. "I'd be willing to trade something for it." She paused for a moment as a sudden realization hit her. "Uh, I mean with either what I can do or what little I have on me."

"Don't worry about it," Elysia said, though her tone made Elin wonder why she shouldn't worry about it. It felt almost like there was something else going on. As it almost sounded like she felt like she owed it to Elin or something. "I'll have some ready for you in a moment."

Elin kept looking away, not wanting to risk seeing any more of Elysia's body, just in case she took it the wrong way. While Elin would be interested, she didn't plan on trying to push Elysia into anything she wasn't already into.

Besides, she didn't want Elysia to run off again. As the last time she'd hardly been able to say anything to her and Elysia had hardly aid anything in response.

"Wait," Elin asked, suddenly wondering what Elysia meant by 'brother of the flames.' She had a feeling she could guess who it might appeal to, but at the same time, she couldn't be sure unless Elysia confirmed it. "What did you mean by 'that brother of the…'" Elin had to pause as her mind blanked on the last word, "uh, flames!"

"He was one of the people you traveled with," Elysia replied, as if that should have been obvious to Elin. "He was very nice about helping keep me safe from the three who looked like they didn't care if they killed me or not."

Elin wasn't sure who Elysia was referring to then, but that didn't really matter. What mattered was that she had felt that way. Or at least in Elin's opinion it did.

"Would you come back to my camp with me?" Elin asked, suddenly feeling like she'd had conversations with Elysia before, but couldn't place them. It just somehow felt so familiar talking with her. "There's a talking falcon that's been helping us out. It's feathers are much like your hair. So I thought you might like to meet it."

"I'm dressed," Elysia announced almost immediately after Elin finished her statement. "But, no, I'd rather not talk with this falcon o f yours."

"Uh, it's not 'my' falcon," Elin protested as she turned around to see Elysia fully dressed, though it certainly wasn't as neat as the last time Elin had seen her, not sure Ember would appreciate being referred to in that manner. "Ember is just a bird that's been helping us out."

"Who's 'us?'" Elysia asked, as if she was seeking information from Elin. "Last I saw you, you were by yourself then. Did you decided to not be around those you had been travelling with? Including the brother of the flames, I mean."

"Me and Jonas," Elin answered, but couldn't shake the feeling that Elysia already knew that. That she already knew several of the answers to the question she was asking.

Which made Elin wonder: Just who was Elysia? What was there about her that she just didn't know? That allowed her to be so knowledgeable, yet so skittish at the same time?

Not to mention how she didn't seem inclined to really join them, even though it would help her stay safer.

"Oh!" Elin exclaimed, suddenly remembering something. "Your brother was looking for you. He came by where our main camp is before I lost my memory and asked about you."

Elysia's face darkened. "How do you know he's my brother?" Elin felt surprised at how much of a threat was lying under her words.

"Uh, he said he was," Elin said, not sure if that actually counted or not. "He said hi name was Grisha Violet, he knew your name, and seemed interested in me when I mentioned that I'd seen you."

Elysia shook her head, almost like he was giving a warning. "No. What did he look like?"

Elin blinked, not sure how to react to that last question. However, she still described what she remembered about him. A that was the best she could think of to do.

Afterward, Elysia looked rather annoyed. "Either he ha my brother or he doesn't know where either of us are," Elysia mused.

"Uh, what do you mean?" Elin asked, feeling rather lost.

Elysia looked at Elin like she'd forgotten she was there. "Don't worry about it. I'll see you later."

Elysia started to run off, her stride moving faster and more gracefully than Elin would have expected. Though, in the end, she found herself alone, with the hot springs and soap. Elysia had disappeared again, but Elin knew what she should do right then.

Bathe.