Cirrus walked down the hills from where his home was. Crossed the tall grass by the same spots. The trail began to carve itself where he stepped. No other voice but his, mumbling and slapping trees with a branch he had found on his garden.
The weeds covered completely the pavement, so he stomped on them harshly. Tiny wildflowers grew covering the low grass, and he remembered when he collected them and placed them in a cup of water for Surella to look at.
Lately he didn't bother crossing her sight. She looked at him with resentment, so much that he wondered if her current state could be attributed to him in anyway.
She sat on a chair by the kitchen, nonverbal and with a sour expression. Ravens delivered funny rocks and coins near front door for Cirrus to find, and she had grown sick of them. She despised them peeking in and scratching the glass with their peaks. As is they were spying on her, letting her know she was being watched.
She meant to keeps the curtains drawn keeping the insides from sunlight but was unsuccessful. Every time Cirrus walked by, he pulled them to a side. She glared at him, but he was unfazed, instead, he continued to go his way leaving her behind as they always did. He had Agari's bad traits as well as the good ones.
Cirrus walked a while before arriving to town. There, by the sign with the name Ryomen, Stolas sat on a rock. He yelled his name, and he faced his way with a wide smile of both upper and lower teeth.
"Did you go to Mo's house?"
"I did, but I couldn't bring myself to knock, I'm sorry." Stollas rubbed lava rocks together with nervousness.
"I thought so." Cirrus responded, firmly walking ahead of him.
Cirrus continued to walk thinking of a way to drag him out of the house. He was badly hurt and revoked of permission to be out.
Cirrus sighed. "If I go, she won't only not allow me in, she will yell at me and might even vanish me, but she doesn't know you, she might not be mean to you. Although she might, in that case there is no way we'll get him out. We just have to leave it at time. She will forget about it eventually. She can't keep him in there forever."
"I don't like talking to old ladies" Stolas lamented.
"Go, say that you want to see how he is, that you brought something for him, and then show her the flower. If she knows what it is, she will receive you with admiration. If she doesn't, she will think you are his lover in which case, it is even better for us."
"I think we have time to think of something that won't put him in an embarrassing spot?"
"Thats what he gets" Cirrus responded with a smirk.
They continued to walk until they arrived to school. Cirrus entered and Stolas walked away. Some kids yelled his name from inside. That would make his heart flutter but not that day. He felt uneasy.
The road to Mo's house was also far from town. He was not the kind to get tired from a walk, but he knew a child his size would stand out. He owned a donkey, or so he said. It was tied outside of a firewood storage. He was friendly and easy to burrow.
He walked it across a field of tall grass and eventually got on his back. He rode it until he could see the small white stable covered in bougainvillea. There he tied the donkey and walked towards the big house. He walked under the hibiscus to a big blue door.
The woman was probably inside. He still had a couple of stairs ahead but once again, he stepped down. He walked back the same trail and stopped. He turned to the house slowly and the blue door seemed bigger. He felt drowsy, he was salivating like before, he could feel his throat contract. The smell of flowers mixed with stagnant water was strong. The sound of water flowing and crashing by the fountain and buzz from insects flying by him intensified and swirled something in his brain, it was unpleasant. He wanted to throw up.
He stomped his way up the stairs and knocked aggressively. Of all the times he could be a wuzz, it had to be for something so humiliating. Holding his breath, ignoring all the different ways his body was telling him to flee. He was fed up with that feeling, if he would cross that barrier, it would be for his friends.
Daenneri opened the door with a frown.
"Did you need something?" She said looking down on him who had reversed to the edge of the corridor.
With his eyes wide opened and lips tightly shut, he released air through his nostrils. She squinted her eyes and then rolled them turning away from him into the house.
He chased her inside and pulled her dress. He held the tiny flower he pulled out of his pocket up to her chest.
"I brought it for you." Stolas said with a stutter.
Daenneri looked at it only for seconds.
"It should be enough"
"Is this bribery?" Daenneri smiled with her eyes.
Stolas looked at her in the eyes confused.
"No?. It's a healer flower, it's wild so it should be strong enough."
"You. You mean you found this yourself?"
"Yeah, I stole it myself."
Daenneri stared into his eyes and not once did he blink. He seemed like a trouble kid; his clothes smelled like dirt and his face had green stains. Regardless, there was a feeling about him, an aura that evoked genuine peace. She turned away and pointed a set of glass stairs.
He rushed up with a smile.
Mo's smell was different to most boys; he smelled like pines and cinnamon. Stolas would bury his face on his chest if they were close enough, but they weren't. He lifted his face to green and yellow lights coming from an opened door. Floating particles danced on the light that illuminated a fragmented square in the floor. His smell was stronger than ever, that made him happy.
He walked towards the light and peeked inside the room. He was drawing a tree with light strokes of graphite. He seemed bored rather than in pain. He slowly faced him.
"Where is Cirrus?"
"He might come later today, when your mom is sleeping."
Mo chuckled. "He's probably worried, seeing he sent you; he might blame himself."
Daenneri entered the room with a cup of tea and the healing flower seating on top of it.
"How do you guys know each other? I imagine you don't go to the same school."
Stolas was silent for a second and then replied. "The first time I saw him; he was growing orchids in a trashed lake. I thought he would like it if I cleaned it a bit. I waited around to see if he noticed but he didn't return."
Mo was pleasantly surprised; he never expected a thoughtful action out of the so-called weapon of Cirrus. He almost felt guilty of having misjudged him.
"And so? did you notice?" Daenneri said with hope.
"Ah no, I didn't return, that wasn't a lake, it was a puddle. Made from an overgrown river flow that later shrank leaving that behind." Mo said ashamed. "I'm sorry."
Daenneri turned to stolas worried Mo had hurt his feelings but instead he found stolas strangely joyous.
"I had wanted to ask you to go see it before, but I was shy."
Daenneri's heart fluttered, she was sure she understood what kind of relationship they had. "Would it be okay if I leave for a second, I'll give you guys some space, I'm sure you want to talk about lots of things." She placed the cup on the drawer next to Mo and stepped out the room.
"Cirrus asked me to get that for you, it will cure a common cold for sure."Stolas said looking at his bed hair.
"I sprained my ankle" Mo said pulling the blankets up to his chin.
"Did you? I thought you were anemic." He said while pulling the blankets off of him. "Does it hurt?" He said grabbing on his foot and lifting it up to his lips.
Mo moaned lightly. "YES! What are you doing!?"
Stolas opened his mouth and licked the bruised skin around his ankle. Mo was shocked out of words, only watched in disbelief. Stolas looked at Mo's eyes with is tongue still on his skin.
The pain will go away, but the damage will take time to heal, so even if you don't feel the pain, don't put your weight on it yet.
Mo rotated his foot and was surprised to see that he didn't lie. He remained shocked but Stolas only smiled. He could be more similar to Cirrus than he allows to see. In the way that they are both savages.
"What kind of creature are you, some kind of Healer? Why would your saliva have any pain reducers?" Mo said flustered, his face turning red.
Stolas stopped smiling for a second. "I can only imagine, the reason for that is eating something that can still feel pain."
Mo wondered if he had touched a difficult subject. "I wonder what if feels like to kiss you in the mouth." Mo asked as an attempt to change the subject.
Stolas suddenly lifted his face. He wondered what he meant by that. Do you want to kiss me in the mouth?"
Mo turned red completely. What are you on about, I was just asking the good questions, you are being weird.