Return to Jorgaldur Volume II: the druid archer

Caravan (I)

When she got into the cart, the boy was the one who said goodbye to her with the greatest fervor. Not only had the elf let him visit her floor, and see everything in it, but she had shown him other weapons and armor. She had even displayed some skills, and even the lynx had covered herself with fire.

Her parents, for her part, not only said farewell with the devotion, respect and gratitude they had always felt towards her, but also with affection. The kind and understanding attitude of their savior towards their son had moved them.

She had even given them a full low-level outfit, with bow, dagger, and sword.

"Give it to him if one day he decides to be a warrior," she had told them. Thus, she was offering her help, but not encouraging him to follow that path, since he didn't know about her gift.

In the past, their relationship with her had been stranger, more distant, fuzzy. Only during a few moments had they felt a certain proximity. It wasn't always easy to approach a visitor. It wasn't always easy to see her clearly.

Now, there was even a start of friendship. They only regretted that she had to leave so soon. However, they could sense her anxiety to get to wherever her destiny was.

The elf also regretted her farewell a little. Having a child who looked at her with those eyes was largely comforting, though it could be a bit tiring.

She liked that couple, though the distance she felt between them bothered her a little. To them, she was almost a goddess, which made them too respectful, too reluctant to be closer. It was something she wasn't comfortable with. Nevertheless, she was convinced that, with time, they could shorten that distance. Unfortunately, right now, time was something she lacked.

The elf sat at the end of the cart, mainly because she had an animal with her, a quite large one. She was wearing an elven dress that had bought that morning, for she was going as a passenger, not as a warrior.

She wasn't the only one with an animal. There was a demihuman with wolf features, who was accompanied precisely by a wolf, which seemed to be intimidated by the lynx. There was also a reptilian woman, perhaps the same species as Crogall, the mage with whom she had shared a group a few weeks ago. A huge reddish snake was coiling around her, perhaps out of habit, or perhaps out of fear of the lynx.

They both looked impressed at the elf and at what they thought was her pet. They were tamers, and they knew how difficult it was to subdue such an animal. Both wondered if perhaps they could learn something from her, but they weren't the first ones to start a conversation.

"Hello. My name is Vlanmio. I was wondering if you wanted to come hang out with us. This isn't the place for such an elegant and beautiful elf. You can leave your pet here, you can watch it from there," invited the young man, an attractive elf with greenish hair.

Goldmi frowned. Her experiences caused her to dislike that kind of attitude. It wasn't only from her native home, but also from the prince. Besides, the drelf had explained the latest events associated with him. So, not only did she prefer to avoid another similar situation, but calling her sister a pet was something that had irritated her.

"I'd rather stay here, with my sister," she replied coldly, and emphasized her last word.

This caught the young man by surprise, who wasn't used to being rejected so quickly and decisively. He had even noticed hostility in the elf's words. Also, that she had called that animal sister had puzzled him.

"As... As you like," he said goodbye and withdrew, so assuming that he had no chance with that elf. He was also somewhat intimidated by the lynx gaze. It had been an instant, but those yellow eyes had stared into his.

The two tamers looked at her in surprise and fascination. The difference between taming an animal and being able to call it sister was abysmal. The owner of the wolf was the most astonished. He was quite close to his pet, but far from being able to consider themselves brothers. Their relationship was hierarchical.

Of course, they could doubt what she had said, but the lynx's attitude had already made them suspect that their relationship was somewhat different. Now, the pieces had fallen into place.

Thus, the two soon struck up a conversation with the elf, who felt somewhat overwhelmed. It was largely because she was finding it difficult to answer their questions. She didn't know how to explain how she had gotten her to be her sister.

"I'm not sure. I'm not really a tamer like you. I suppose that, to be accepted as a sister, you have to be one first," she replied, though she wasn't quite sure what she was saying.

However, to her surprise, they both looked at her reverently, as if they had been inspired by those words, enlightened.

"Of course! That's it!" exclaimed the reptilian.

"You're amazing," the other tamer praised her.

"It's not obvious," she asked her sister, without raising her voice, somewhat confused.

"It is," she confirmed, without giving it importance

Of course, neither of them had experience as a tamer of magical beings. Before even approaching their future pets, they must be beaten, their skills sealed, and then, little by little, their trust must be gained. At least, their respect was needed, sometimes their fear.

For them, the brotherhood relationship was something that only the most expert among them could achieve. After all the instruction in the way of taming those beings which served them, it was very difficult to consider them as equals, as brothers. To accept that they had their own thoughts and wishes, or even accept that they might want to leave, was unimaginable.

Only then, only if they were willing to give up on them if this was their will, only if they really considered them brothers, did they have a chance that the feeling would be reciprocated.

However, it was not only difficult to accept the risk, but to change one's mind. Besides, this change of mind wasn't free from suffering.

Being a brother wasn't just accepting that your partner was on the same level as you, that they could decide for themselves, that they could leave, that you could lose them. It also meant bonding with them emotionally, and assuming that your attitude in the past might have hurt them. It meant accepting their resentment, and that guilt wasn't always easy to bear.

Few were willing to take that step, at least not with whom they had tamed before. Despite that, it was the only way that a brother could reach their full potential, and become a loyal companion rather than just a tool.