Elina

But it's all the same to me. With a snap of my fingers, and...

Boooom~ Heh-heh~

Maybe I should show that to Salem. What I can really do. See what he thinks.

But I suppose Salem likes this place. His mood seems to have brighten as we came closer to the city.

Larose.

He pulled on the reins. To slow the horse down. Because there was another traveler in front of us. And another traveler in front of that traveler.

A long line of carts and travelers stretched until the city walls. Horses, men and women, children, all sorts of livestock. Nobody was moving forward. Some have set up tables to share a meal with new friends. Some of the children ran around, playing, screaming.

Salem talked to some of the other travelers. Seems like there is a slowdown at the city gates. Something about the mayor of the city ordering searchers on every cart that enters.

Nobody knows why.

He came back and sat down next to me.

He said, "Pull the hood over your head."

I looked at him. He looked at me.

"Pull the hood over your head, please."

"Why?"

"People are looking at you."

"Why?"

He said nothing.

"Is it because I am too beautiful?"

"..."

"Or is it because they are wondering what a beauty like me is doing with a brute like you?"

"It's better not to attract too much attention."

Something in his voice. A look on his face. No humor. But some kind of suspicion. Instinct at work.

I said, "Fine."

I pulled the hood over my head and changed my eyes and hair to hazelnut. Darker colors attract less attention.

He said, "So what did you want to ask me."

"What is it like to grow up with a little sister?" I asked.

"Why do you want to know?"

"Because I do."

He breathed in. He breathed out.

He said, "It's a long story."

"It's a long line."

He looked ahead. A long trail of humanity.

He let out a deep breath.

"I was twelve years-old and Yulia was five when we were left on our own. My father was originally a blacksmith. I was going to take over his business after he died. But I never finished my apprenticeship. I was too young. Nobody would buy from a twelve year-old blacksmith anyway."

"Then how did you two survive?"

"It wasn't easy."

Something in his eyes changed. No melancholy, no sense of regret or tenderness for the past. But a hardened glint. A faint quiver on his lips.

"So the people of your village kicked you out?"

Salem nodded. "They just pushed us out of the hut and told us to never come back. Then they divided up the animals, the money, the food among themselves."

He gripped the reins tightly.

"My father always told me that humanity is cruel. But to actually see it happen still hurts."

A moment of silence. A breath. Two breaths. Then he continued.

"I had to steal and kill to survive. We were just getting by. Once Yulia grew a little older, I tried putting her in a monastery, but she refused. Starved herself until the nuns begged me to come back."

"Then how did you two manage to get back on your feet?"

He looked at me. A distant smile on his lips. "Now, now, that wasn't the question, was it?"

The cart in front of us moved. Salem took the reins. The horse neighed.

He said, "What is it like to grow up with a little sister?"

For a while he said nothing. He looked ahead, his eyes on the line of travelers. But he wasn't looking at them.

He said, "She's your best friend and your worst enemy. She's the one you know inside out, and yet she is a stranger. She's the one you protect with your life, and sometimes you will want to kill each other anyway."

I leaned against him. He didn't move away. Didn't say anything.

I said, "That sounds wonderful."

----------------------------

SALEM: I looked ahead. Something was wrong. Usually there is never a line and even if there was, it wouldn't be this long and this slow.

Soft breathing next to me. I looked at her. Elina chest rose and fell gently. Her eyes closed. Her lips slightly parted.

I stayed like this. No point in waking her up. Nothing to do anyway.

The cart slowly moved forward.

By nightfall, we finally made it the city gates.

But there was a problem.

I got off the cart and went up to the guy on the cart in front of us.

I asked, "What are they checking for?"

The guy said, "I think they are checking for something."

He asked the guy in front of him.

Then he turned back to me and said, "The guards are checking every cart."

"Checking for what?"

Some more talk. Some whispers. Excited whispers. I waited.