4. A Little Detour.

***Willow’s POV.***

“Stay here.” He says and leaves to attend to his needs.

I tighten my new navy blue cloak around me, which was courtesy of Ryker, as I stand under a tree. We have been travelling north for the past one week now. During this journey I tried to look for some clues about this place and everywhere I could only find positive things. And it is making me suspicious.

Ashenalp is too positive to be true. Even though the small town we passed by had people who had calm futures, there was something which was getting in my way of vision and sometimes I feel the reason for it is the man I am walking, eating and sleeping beside.

I have tried so many times to find something about Ryker, but I have yet to find anything about him other than where we are going. I tried all my five senses to help my sixth one to get any information I can about this man, but the only thing I have seen so far is a black castle and nothing else.

“Let’s go.” He says and I nod.

I stopped holding his hands a long time ago when he bought me some stuff. He has been caring and mindful of me during this journey, which has put my suspicions to rest but only a little. This is the first time I am blindly following a person and not by my choice.

As we take a different turn than the capital, I turn to him and ask, “Why are we going this way?”

“I have to make a detour, if that’s okay.” He says.

“To where?” I ask, even though I know.

“Bleakstar. It is my home. It would take two days for us to reach there.” He says.

“What is it like there?” I ask, giving up depending on my powers finally, but just for now. I have to chat with him to know more about him. During the past week, even though we talked, it was not a conversation. Maybe because I was too cautious around him and he thought I would think of his words as some kind of carnal approach.

“It is black and covered in snow.” He says, looking surprised that I am talking.

“But why the name Bleakstar?” I ask.

“Because gray clouds hover above it all the time. And the only light we get besides sun, which comes only for a few minutes in a day, is from a star which shines open the small town all the time.” He says.

“Oh! So, how do they survive there?” I ask.

“It has vegetation. The dragons who live there grow it and make sure to keep snow away from those lands. It is very advanced. Also, we have livestock and as the ocean is not that far, we do the fishing and hunting.” He says as he looking around.

“Does someone from your family live there?” I ask.

“Yes.” He says as I see for the first time his slight soft smile.

“Who?” I ask, hungry to know more.

“My Grandma.” He says.

“You must love her.” I say with a smile as I remember my own Granny.

“She is the only sensible person in our family.” He says with a dry chuckle.

“Really? You mean to say you are not sensible?” I ask with a grin.

And he grins back, “I am anything but that.”

“I think you are a good man, though.” I say, and his brows furrow.

“And can I ask how you reach that conclusion?” He asks.

“Because you took care of me.” I say and he looks at me for a few seconds, lost deep in thoughts then shakes his head and keeps walking.

“By the way, tonight you can have a warm meal, bath, and bed.” He says, and I look at him with gratitude.

“Really?” I ask, just to be sure.

“Yes. Exactly, in that order. One of my friends lives there and I always take shelter there whenever I am traveling towards Bleakstar.” He says with a smile.

“That is good news. My back is screaming for me to find a good bed.” I say and he looks at me. “I mean to say I would like a soft bed to sleep in.” He looks away, and his shoulder shakes. He is laughing at me, so I ask, “Now how can that have double meaning? I said in simple words. Where did I go wrong?”

“I am not saying anything.” He says and keeps laughing at me, “You are so gullible.”

“Hey!” I say with my hand on my hips while he keeps laughing, but I lose my stance and shake my head as my lips turn into a smile, too.

We walk for an hour and only take a break near a stream to eat something. Ryker takes out some fish and, as I have some spices left, I cook them for us. He used to eat it raw, but when I emptied my guts in front of him, he stopped doing it as he said seeing me sick would make him sick too. Now he eats cooked meals like me.

After we are done with lunch, we start our journey again. By the time we reach the small town name Fallen, the night has fallen over us. The town is lively and we can hear music in the distance. Children are running around, giggling as they play. Shops are open and bustling with customers, and knights in the distance are having drinks. When I see ‌them, I cover my hair properly so I don’t get unwanted attention.

Ryker guides me towards a tavern at the end of the town which has all the rush. People are drinking and ordering food and maids are rushing from one end to the other with trays to fill up the glasses and deliver the dishes. A bulky man is standing behind the main counter watching over them and serving some drinks.

When he notices Ryker, he nods his head and gestures to the stairs with his eyes. Without another word, he takes my arm and rushes me towards the stairs. We go up and come in front of a long hallway. He knocks on a door right in front of the stairs. A woman opens the door and I see a little girl behind her.

“Ryker, it has been a long time. To do what we owe the pressure of your presence?” She asks, and I look at her in confusion. Maybe she misspelt it.

“She literally means it. I am more of a pressure to them than pleasure. Right, Cyra?” He says and waves at the little girl who gives a toothy grin.

“Who is this lady with you? New Mistress?” She asks, and I look at Ryker to see his reaction.

“Yes. I gained her from Mortalian. They didn’t have money. The poor thing begged me to take her in. And you know I can’t say no.” He says and I am so close to bashing his head for making up such a stupid story.

“Of course, they are more valuable than money. Bet you are onto making babies already. Reaping the benefits, I mean.” She says teasingly.

“Of course.” He says with a big smile while I look at them in astonishment.

“The last one was a fake, wasn’t she?” She asks with a frown.

“Yes. She was a dragon of the lower class in need of money and kids. Obviously I couldn’t give her that even after six months, so she just left with the next dragon she found interesting.” He says without an ounce of shame and hurt.

Before they could continue, I interrupted them. “I would really like to rest.”

“Sure.” The woman says with a nod, “This man must have tired you. Come, I will show you to your room and then I will send your meals and bath to it. While I do that, Ryker, why don’t you ‌help your friend?” She says and takes my arms and walks towards the right hallway.

I look back at Ryker, who smiles at me to assure me that he is here and not going anywhere. I don’t know why I turned to him to rest my fears. All my life, I have been looking over my shoulder to protect myself. But for the first I did it to assure myself that I have someone.

Am I starting to depend on someone? That is not good. I have learned the lesson of being alone harshly and I can’t afford to forget it. Because I fear if I had someone in my life, I would always doubt them or if I trust them, I will lose them. And I don’t know why, but the thought of losing this stranger is making me feel uneasy.

“I hope this is to your liking.” The woman says as she opens the last door at the end of the hallway.

The room is simple but is very cozy, too. The bed is below the window, which is closed shut right now. On the left of the room, is a table and two chairs, along with a large casket. The hearth is on the right side and the little girl throws some woods in them and literally spits fire.

“I am sorry. Cyra is little and very enthusiastic. Kids at this age love to show off. Oh, I forgot to introduce myself. I am the mistress of this tavern, Freya.” She says and straightens the bedsheets.

“My name is Willow.” I say and look down at the girl who is tugging at my skirts.

“Pretty.” She says and I smile down at her.

“You are going to be more pretty.” I say as I see a glimpse of her future.

She giggles and runs to her mother, who turns to me and says, “If you need anything, just pull that string. One maid would see to your needs.”

I nod as I look at the string behind the door and wave them bye. As soon as they are gone, two maids come in with a tub. Then they opened a small panel beside the hearth, which I hadn't seen before. They take out the pipe and from it steaming water comes out in the tub and while another maid comes in with soaps and towels.

When she goes to help me out of my clothes, I stop her. “I can bathe myself.”

She nods and puts the stuff on the chair. They all leave, but one maid stops outside in case I need anything. I can’t lock it as I don’t have the key. After I remove my clothes, I step into the tub and a small sigh leaves my lips. It feels so good to be in a hot bath. It has been ages since I had one. When one is on a run, hot baths are rare luxuries.

The last time I had one was because of Ryker, but it was just for a minute, so that doesn’t count. I check the bump on my head, which has receded and is almost healed. I washed my hair, then my body and was leaning back to relax when the door opened suddenly.

I turn around to see Ryker standing at the door with his golden eyes turned black. As he looks at me, I hide my body under the water. The room is buzzing with some kind of energy and I can feel it. The distance between us seems to lessen as he walks towards me. He comes to stand in front of me and puts his hand on my cheek. Just as his thumb caresses my lips, I get the vision which makes me catch my breath.