[b]Chapter 6: Truths and lies[/b]

It was raining that day. Nicolas and Edgar had evaded it just barely because they had been lucky and encountered a carriage that was heading to the same direction as they were, and so, escaping the dark clouds, they had got a ride to the next village: the Village of Drowned Maiden. A rather dark name for a town. According to the stories, the founder of the village had had a beautiful daughter. A certain young man fell in love with her and wanted to marry her. But both the maiden and her father denied him. Heartbroken, humiliated and furious, the young man decided that if he can't have her, no one can. And so, on one moonless night, the man drowned her in the river that flows through the village, splitting it in half. The founder was so broken because of this tragedy and executed the young man. It is told that because of his sorrow for losing his daughter, it rains often in this village. Also, there's a rumor that on some rainy days, the spirit of the maiden can be seen lingering over the bridge that crosses the river, ready to take some poor soul to the watery grave with her.

Such a dark tale had gifted Nicolas with a melancholic mood. Or at least it was partly responsible for it. The other part found its way to his mind because of the ride on the carriage. It reminded him how his journey started with Oliver and thus, leading to thoughts about his home. Currently staying at inn, Nicolas was in a room he had reserved with Edgar, watching out of the window that was being whipped by the rain, while the older man was hanging out at the bar. The young wizard didn't mind being alone.

As the sky was crying, Nicolas fell deep into his thoughts. He wasn't sure how long he had traveled now, but he was still wondering how much the lives of the people familiar to him had changed. 

His sister Evelyn was married by now. Oh, how he had desired to attend her wedding. Was she happy with her husband? Nicolas hadn't really known that man.

How were his other siblings doing? And his parents? Were they missing him at all?

What about the rest of the village? Did he happen to be in the minds of anyone? Or was everyone living their life like he hadn't even existed?

And then there was of course Kevin. His best friend. Had he finally confessed his feelings for Angie? If so, what could be Angie's respond?

A heavy sigh escaped from Nicolas' mouth.

It would be a lie if he said he wasn't feeling homesick. And with that came the anxiety and insecurity.

So, when he would reach Violet Hillock… What if they didn't want him in there? He was just… a simple country boy. And even if they would allow him to stay and teach him magic… What if he wouldn't learn anything? He had never been that good in focusing at studying. Then he would have to leave and become a huge disappointment to everyone. Nowhere else to go, he would have to return to Rose Path village, bringing with him only shame. He would let down everyone who had dared to believe in him. And who knows what would happen next…

Nicolas stood up slowly. He gave one last glance at the window that was stained by raindrops and dragged himself to one of the beds in the room, taking off a little bit of his clothing and then laid down. There was still plenty of time until the darkness would fall and the young wizard wasn't really tired yet. But he was feeling quite miserable and wanted to sleep away his bad mood. So, there he was lying, waiting for slumber to come, and when it finally did, he gladly surrendered himself for the dreams that wanted to take him away to a place of wonder.

And well he slept.

When the morning had dawned, Nicolas got woken up by his older companion, Edgar. The young wizard yawned, cranked himself up from the bed and stretched his limbs. He was actually feeling pretty good now; the sleep had done miracles to his foul mood. With a swift movement he put all of his clothes back on, double-checked that he had his money with him and then followed Edgar out of their humble room and began to descend the creaking, narrow stairs. Few other guests of the inn were up as well, some of them making their way out of the building just like Nicolas and Edgar, and some had decided to spend some time in the hall. A hostess was getting prepared for the new day, buzzing around the hall like a busy bee, and before the two travelers exited the inn, Edgar did give her a flirtatious look. Apparently, they had become acquaintances last night. Or that is how Nicolas felt like. And with that, the travelers walked out of the door.

Rain had stopped at some point last night, leaving a fresh scent lingering in the village. The morning sun had started to climb to the sky and was only a matter of time before it would begin to dry the puddles. As Nicolas breathed in the fresh air, he smiled a little. The tiny puddles that now dotted the streets of Village of Drowned Maiden suddenly reminded him of his childhood and how he and some of his siblings and Kevin had enjoyed to play in the water, then getting scolded by their parents for dirtying their clothes. Oh, the good old days.

Nicolas and Edgar had begun to continue their journey again. When the older man had told Nicolas where their road was leading them next, the young wizard had started to feel pretty excited. It was a place called Skygold Town. When Nicolas' travel had started, he had been pretty thrilled when he had been visiting Village of Hundred Passages since it had been bigger than his home village. But according to Edgar, Skygold Town was even larger than that. So, naturally, even that only could have made Nicolas eager to see the place. But there was also more. One of the biggest interests for the young wizard was the fact that there was a port in that town. Nicolas had never seen a sea before. Or ships. Witnessing the sunset in the horizon, last rays of sunshine glimmering in the vast sea was something he wanted to experience.

And that wasn't all. What also fueled Nicolas' excitement was that there was a possibility of meeting a race called Nightfolk. They didn't always appear at Skygold Town, but sometimes they did do business with local people. Edgar didn't know much about them, but they appeared to be pretty savage creatures that weren't afraid of a battle. In appearance, they were like a crossover of a man and a boar, their fur being dark color, which was mainly the reason for their name since they could vanish in the darkness thanks to it.

Thanks to some of the tales Nicolas' big brother Darren had been telling to his younger siblings as a bedtime story, Nicolas was aware that somewhere in the world lived people that were somewhat like humans, but not quite. But he had never seen any. After all, his humble home village was located in pretty remote area, though, it was clearly part of the human region. So, meeting an entity that wasn't human, the chances of encountering such around the Rose Path was very slim. But now, Nicolas could get a chance to meet something extraordinary. Oh, how the people back in Rose Path would be excited!

The day turned out to be pretty beautiful. The weather had become sunny and quite balmy – perfect for traveling. Such condition did make the young wizard feel pretty joyful. He had blabbered with Edgar almost the whole time they travelled that day. And before they knew it, night had enveloped the world into its velvet embrace, giving an end to a rather ordinary day.

However, as the twilight arrived, Nicolas noticed something odd. He had a strange feeling in his chest. He couldn't really describe it, but it definitely didn't feel bad. In fact, it was quite comforting and warm in some mysterious way. And as he kept wandering with the older man, the feeling only got more powerful. Nicolas, though, decided to keep it to himself; he didn't really want to discuss it with Edgar, for reasons he even himself wasn't really sure. And when the men had started to make their camp for the night, the young wizard didn't utter a single word about his odd sensation and just tried to get some rest and ignore it.

But he couldn't fall asleep. He kept turning from one side to another on his moss bed, keeping his eyes shut, trying his best to chase the land of dreams. Eventually, though, he gave up and was lying on his back, looking at the starry sky through the branches of the trees that surrounded the little camp. It was a night of full moon, so the silent world was bathing in the pale light. And for a little while, Nicolas felt such peace that he didn't really remember when had been the last time he had experienced something like that, and thus, welcomed it like an old friend.

Though, he was still being accompanied by the strange feeling, it hadn't gone anywhere. Actually, it had evolved even stronger, starting to give him odd cravings. The young wizard started to feel that he should go to some specific place. He decided to get up, reasoning this act by the fact that he couldn't sleep anyway. Nicolas gave a glance at the snoring Edgar. He could leave the older man alone for a little moment, right? And with that, Nicolas started to follow his hunch deeper into the forest.

He was grateful for the moon as it helped him to navigate through the trees. Swiftly he wandered in the forest, guided by curiosity and the peculiar sensation. And, he didn't have to go far from the camp when he discovered something… something magical.

First, an outlandish sound began to resonate in Nicolas' ears. Or maybe it was just in his head? He wasn't exactly sure. It was some strange whooshing sound. And as he got closer to the source, step by step, he suddenly froze. Right there, before his eyes, was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen. It was a horse-like creature with brightly shimmering white fur and one spirally horn – it was unicorn. Or so he assumed, if he remembered anything from the stories he had heard in his childhood. The sight of this majestic animal was breath-taking and Nicolas couldn't release his gaze from it. And for a good while, he just followed with his eyes how the unicorn was pasturing.

“Beautiful, isn't it?”

The sudden voice startled Nicolas. But somehow, the speaker sounded familiar. Instinctively, he searched the source of the voice behind his back, but there was no one. Then, for some reason, he came up with an idea to look higher – and that was when he saw it.

A black cat, sitting on a branch of a tree.

It was the same talking cat he had met back in the Village of White Fox.

“It's… you…” Nicolas spluttered. “What… How do you...?”

“I've been keeping an eye on you”, the cat said.

“But why?” Nicolas was still dazed. “Have you been following me this whole time?”

“No, I just happened to be around here”, the cat stated sarcastically, swinging his tail. “Of course I've been following you. Someone has to look after such a wretch like you.”

These words made the young wizard feel rather embarrassed.

“What do you mean?” he asked.

“You're pretty bad at choosing your fellow travelers”, the cat said. “In addition, your capability to take care of yourself isn't good either.”

Nicolas felt even more ashamed. The cat's words were like a hit in the face.

“How do you even know?” he huffed. “Maybe nothing you say is true.”

In the dim light Nicolas could see an expression on the cat's face that resembled a smirk.

“Oh, I know few things about you”, the cat said. “You have lived a simple life in a remote rural village. However, you're also a wizard who has just discovered his magical abilities and that's why you're headed to Violet Hillock, to learn more about your powers. That makes you quite special, you know. It's also the reason why that unicorn over there has accepted your presence.”

Nicolas had almost forgotten about the existence of that majestic creature. He looked at the direction of the unicorn and saw that it was looking straight at him. There was something in its eyes that touched the heart of the young wizard. Then it let out a snort and concentrated again on pasturing.

Nicolas snapped out of the serene strange sensation the unicorn had affected. He looked at the cat yet again. A question was burning his tongue.

“So, is there something wrong with Edgar?” he asked.

“There's plenty of wrong with that man”, the cat answered. “He's a criminal and a liar. Do you know why he has lost his left hand?”

“He said he lost it in a battle”, Nicolas reminisced.

“Wrong. He is a thief. His hand got chopped off as a punishment for stealing.”

This really surprised the young wizard. Was his older companion a bad man? That optimistic and cheerful fellow? Because of the cat's revelation, Nicolas' hand automatically gravitated to the pouch of coins he had got from his mother.

Who was right and who was wrong? Nicolas couldn't tell. He felt incredibly bewildered.

“Tell me… How do I know you could be trusted? That you're not the one lying here?” Nicolas questioned.

“Simple”, the cat responded. “You don't know. It's up to you to decide.”

That wasn't helpful at all.

“Then… What are your intentions?” Nicolas inquired.

“I just want to make sure you reach Violet Hillock safely”, the cat revealed.

“Why?”

“Does there have to be a reason behind a good deed?”

Nicolas fell deep into his thought, trying to form a clear picture of his situation. He had had Edgar as his companion since he started his journey and the older man hadn't given a single reason for him to distrust him. But then, there was these things that the cat had said… And because the cat seemed to know about Nicolas' life, it's highly possible that the words about Edgar were true as well. Why this had to be so hard…

Then a sudden realization infiltrated the young wizard's mind.

The cat had already been following him since they had met. So, even if he refused to travel with him, it would be likely that the cat would continue pursuing him anyway. Whatever was his reason to do so, Nicolas felt like that he wouldn't be able to get rid of him that easily.

Nicolas scratched his back of the neck a bit embarrassedly.

“I think you can come along… If you want”, he said with a quiet voice.

The cat nodded in agreement. Then he got up and flexibly jumped down to the ground, only to hop on the young wizard's shoulders.

“So, shall we get some rest?” the cat said.

Nicolas didn't answer. His eyes had been captivated by the unicorn one more time. He had to snatch his glance back to him before he started to make his leave. Silently, he turned his back to the majestic being and walked away, toward the camp where he had left Edgar sleeping, his new smaller companion clinging on his shoulders.

Little did they know, this was a start for a relationship that would change their lives.