Chapter 25: Fuzzy

The next time my eyes flew open, I jolted awake to find myself in a weird shack. It was morning, and the sun shone through the wooden boards of the house.

Where… How… What?

Every thought was muddled as parts of my body stung while I struggled to find my way out of the bed. The texture and waviness of my movements made me wonder if they made the mattress out of water. In my battle to climb out of the seas that made the bed, I knocked over the lamp on the nightstand.

The loud noise of it crashing onto the floor caused Alijah and an ocean elf I had never seen before to rush from the other room. When my companion saw me awake, he smiled happily as a glimmer of light shined in his eyes.

"Rem—" He started only to be pushed out of the way by the eld, who grabbed my hand.

He checked my pulse before placing his forehead against mine to feel for a temperature, which triggered the wolf to growl. Upon closer examination, the elf had beautiful icy-blue eyes that matched his aqua-colored hair perfectly.

His tanned skin was typical of ocean elves who loved to be out in the sun. A smile slowly arose from his lips, glancing over at Alijah, whose eyes twitched.

Why can't I remember anything after falling asleep in a forest? Maybe a campfire? How did I get here?

"Her pulse's stable now. Be proud. You got her here just in time." The elf announced.

Crap… I must've done something wrong.

Alijah stepped into the room, recovering from the shove he had endured without saying a word.

Huh? Why aren't you talking back? Are you sick?

I cocked my head, unable to put the pieces together. "What?"

What do you mean by getting me here on time? In time for what, exactly?

The elf quickly picked up on my cues since he knew more of what was happening to me than I did.

"Ah... Yes, you must be very confused. The medicine used for luxorite poisoning has a common side effect. You probably won't remember what happened before and after the exposure for a bit, but it should come back to you later." The elf tried to clarify to me.

"Luxorite? What?" I mumbled.

"You don't remember anything? Not even touching one?" Alijah sighed, sitting next to me.

Does this mean I fucked up when we went into the cave? Oh no…

I knew way before even getting into the cart with the merchant that we were headed there, but the only thing I remembered clearly was up to a campfire.

We had a campfire, right? Were we talking about something? Everything's so hazy, though.

All I remembered clearly was setting up the fire when Alijah went hunting for some food for us after an embarrassing morning. The unknown elf picked up the fallen lamp as I focused on Alijah. There was no shine to be found on his expression like before.

Have I done something wrong? I… I have to speak. Figure out everything…

"No... I think we ate a bunnies at a campfire, but I'm not sure." I tilted my head.

A sharp growl left his lips with a pout, "You think?" 

Ah… why did I find that cute? What did I say to you for you to become this way?

I felt like I was missing something big.

What is it, though?

However, the elf wouldn't allow me to find out.

"She may remember later after the effects of the medicine wear off a bit. By the way, my name's Wyatt, a junior medic here in Lokul." He introduced himself.

Wait, we're in Lokul?! Huh… Where the heck is that?

I nodded, acknowledging him and his credentials. This man was an ocean elf healer, a rare thing since only moon and sun elves had potent healing magic. Well, all elves had the potential to heal with their magic.

However, only sun and moon elves could seal wounds with their magic, while the others had magical potions to help. These soothed and speeded up the healing of most afflictions. The medicine the elf had used to heal me was an antidote to ward off the effects of the crystal within my system.

"Ah... Thank you." I smiled, grateful for his help.

You seem like a nice guy.

He smiled before heading towards the door and turning to me once again.

"Now that'll be ten gold coins. Don't worry about it now, though. I'll go get some tea to help with fatigue." Wyatt suddenly announced, leaving me with my jaw dropped and eyes opened.

Or not… That'll eat a chunk out of our budget.

Of course, it would be expensive since that medication was hard to produce and was only made in the Earth elf nation. When Wyatt left the room, something other than money became the priority. After all, I had enough for it in my bag.

Shifting my gaze towards Alijah, I fiddled with my fingers. "So... what happened yesterday? Did I fall into a gem, like the dumb ass I am?"

I expected him to get snarky, but instead, he winced, turning his gaze away from me.

Wait… Did I hurt you somehow? I… What did I…

"Hah... No, you didn't fall into a crystal." Alijah sighed, biting his lip.

I reached for him, only to flinch thanks to an ache from the wounds.

How am I… still what?

"Hey, does it hurt?" He reached for my face to remove some of my rogue bed hair.

A blurry memory arose—one where I pushed him down onto the cave's floor. Shaking my head, I tried to concentrate on what he had asked.

"A bit. What happened?" I mumbled, trying not to focus on the flash of pictures that had popped into my head.

What was that? No…

"I had to carry you out in my wolf form, so… My teeth did a number on you. They weren't deep, but…" He tugged away from me, leaving me gazing at the mattress.

"They still slow down my healing." I finished his sentence, knowing fully what Lycan's injuries consisted of.

Though it hasn't hit me yet how much that meant for him to have penetrated my skin, even though the spell was active

"Yeah..." Alijah shook his head, shifting his weight on the bed.

"I'm Sorry for being a handful." I clasped my hands together to keep them from touching him by mistake.

A sharp sigh left him, "I... am just glad you're alive, Rem," he sighed.

Ah… I'll… It's because of the bond, Rem. Don't misunderstand.

"I know. You would be in trouble if I died, huh? That would've been a bad thing," I blurted out without thinking twice.

He winced, shaking his head before biting his lip.

Just what did I do to you?

"Yeah, I would be in deep shit," Alijah breathed, getting up from the bed with a sharp frown on his lips.

"I-I'll be more careful, I promise." I tried to salvage this, only for him to sigh yet again.

If not that, then what do you want me to say?

"It's fine," He closed his eyes before shifting his gaze towards the side.

"I see. Well, thank you for saving me," I added, sluggishly moving to the edge of the bed.

He shook his head, turning his glance onto me.

"We're partners, aren't we?" His voice cracked, triggering me to meet with his stare.

All I wanted was to make it right, but I couldn't remember what I did the previous day.

"We are?" I mumbled, scratching my head.

My words caused Alijah to growl loudly, triggering me to freeze up.

"Oi, you forgot that too?" He snapped, clenching his hands into fists.

Uh oh... I shouldn't have said that.

"Maybe? Everything is so fuzzy." I sighed.

Why is it all I remember is the campfire? Wait, did I fall on you there, too? Argh, Rem, why…

"Stupid girl… you know what, how about I get your bag that fell in that mess." Alijah huffed, eyes twitching.

 I had failed to salvage the situation. Perhaps it would be better if I stayed quiet, but...

"There was a mess?" I tilted my head, prompting him to growl loudly before abruptly leaving and slamming the door.

"Okay, okay... You're so fucked, Rem." I muttered to myself.

There was no way out of this mess, though.

Why did I forget such a momentous occasion? We became partners! How did that happen?! Argh!

I rolled around the bed, unable to contain my emotions within me. Not that it did any good to my wounds, as each movement stung. However, memories slowly returned to my empty mind with each passing minute.

The feeling of his…

Did Alijah kiss me yesterday?

I tried remembering how it felt, passing my finger through my lips. The memory left me with a warm feeling within my core and an itch I couldn't quite quench.

Just... how did that happen? Why does everything have to be hazy?

An hour passed without the grumpy wolf's return, but Wyatt did, and he held three teacups in his hand.