Damien cleared his throat. “I guess I could show you around, if you’d like.”

“Sure,” Sylph said, rising to her feet.

Damien led her out of the house and into town. There were a fair number of people out, but it took him longer than he would have thought to recognize them. It was hard to match the faces he saw with the ones that were in his memory, even though it had only been a little over a year.

“That’s the school,” Damien said, nodding at a large group of flat buildings surrounded by a fence. Several students milled about between them, playing various games and laughing. “I think I spent most of my time there, actually.”

“You didn’t strike me as the type that ran around and played games a lot,” Sylph said, a smile tugging at her lips.

“Well, I might have spent most of my time inside the buildings,” Damien admitted. “The teachers didn’t have a lot of students that actually liked Rune Carving, so that worked a lot in my favor. And don’t even get me started on the number of books I read about summoning companions. I thought I was an expert.”

“It turned out well in the end,” Sylph said. “I couldn’t imagine what would have happened if you didn’t get Henry. For one, I’d probably be dead or crippled.”

“That’s true,” Damien said, his face brightening. “Even if he is an insufferable idiot.”

“Hey!” Henry snapped.

Don’t even get me started. You just scared a bunch of goats half to death.

“…half?”

Damien groaned and pushed Henry back. The Void creature laughed the entire way.

“I wish I could do that,” Sylph said.

“Huh? Speak with Henry?”

“Not specifically with Henry,” Sylph said. “My companion. I can send general desires, but it’s not the same. You have perfect communication with Henry. The more communication a mage has with their companion, the stronger they can be.”

“I’m sure you’ll learn to communicate with yours pretty soon,” Damien replied confidently. “You’ve had your Companion for way less time than everyone else, and you’re already using their powers really well. That wind armor is pretty strong.”

“It’s an endless struggle to keep up with you,” Sylph said, flicking Damien in the forehead. “Let’s get back to you showing me around unless you want the teachers to start wondering why we’re standing outside the fence.”

“Oh, right,” Damien said, flushing. “Let’s go more into town. There are a few interesting stores.”

Sylph followed him down the road and toward a dense cluster of buildings around a fountain that had long since stopped running. There were several wagons along the outside of the town circle with tables laid out before them. Wares of every type covered them.

“Traveling merchants,” Damien explained when he noticed Sylph examining them. “They come by every week or so with stuff they’ve bought from other cities. It can occasionally be pretty cool, but it’s usually overpriced.”

They walked up to one of the tables, where a tall man in multicolored robes watched them approach with a wide grin.

“Ah, you have seen the quality of my wares and wish to partake, yes?” he asked, a heavy accent placing his origin from somewhere in the north.

“We’re mostly just looking,” Damien said diplomatically. “Is there anything of particular interest that we should check out?”

“It depends what you seek,” the man replied, rubbing his hands together. “You are students coming home from school?”

“Mages,” Damien confirmed. “And I’ve studied Rune Carving.”

“Then I fear many of my wares will be below your standard,” the merchant said reluctantly. “I am not foolish enough to try to sell a runed item to someone with knowledge of the field. Most don’t spend their time or effort on it. However, I do have a few pieces of art and jewelry that are sure to catch your eye.”

He reached under the table and took out a small wooden box. Placing it before them, the merchant popped the cover off to reveal several rows of beautiful rings, necklaces, and brooches. They ranged from plain silver bands to gaudy pieces covered with so many gems that there was no way a normal merchant could have afforded them – if they were real.

“Please, feel free to take a look,” the merchant encouraged. “Some of them have some basic runework as well.”

“Like what?” Damien asked, intrigued as Sylph picked up a ring and examined it. “Shields or weaponry?”

“Nothing so advanced. Some of them can generate light or store a very small amount of Ether. Not enough to make any real difference, but it can be a fun little party trick. They do interfere with each other if you have too many, so stick to one or two. Many couples get matching storage rings and infuse it with a type of Ether that the other can’t control.”

“Why?” Sylph asked. “It’s not like someone could use a different type of Ether if it was in their ring, could they?”

“It’s about the thought,” the merchant defended. “You can’t use the Ether if it isn’t one of the types you can see, but it’s like carrying a part of your lover around even if they aren’t there with you.”

Henry let out a mental snort. “It’s like carrying around someone else’s fingernail. Gross.”

I’m this close to telling you to go find more goats to torture.

“Please do. An excuse is all I’d need to go scare a few more of those moronic creatures. It’s the most fun I’ve had since coming onto the Mortal Plane.”

Damien shook his head and brought himself back to the present. The merchant eyed him warily, his hands hovering near the box of jewelry.

“He zones out sometimes,” Sylph explained. “It’s nothing to worry about.”

“Ah, of course,” the merchant said. “Is there anything else I can get you?”

“I think we’re good,” Sylph said. “Thank you.”

The merchant nodded and Sylph grabbed Damien’s hand, pulling him away from the merchant before the man could get any more suspicious.

“Sorry about that,” Damien said. “Henry distracted me. Do you want to check out the local bakery? If I remember correctly, it’s better than a lot of the food in the mess hall.”

“It’s fine,” Sylph said with a grin. “And that sounds great.”

The bakery wasn’t hard to find, even for someone who hadn’t ever been to Ardenford before. All they had to do to follow the scent of freshly baked bread and warm spice. A small crowd sat amongst a dozen tables scattered around an open fronted shop.

A large man wearing a stained white apron and a floppy chef’s hat stood on the other side of a counter, kneading dough with enough force to shake the table he worked on. He turned as Damien and Sylph entered the shop, a kind grin crossing his face.

“Well, I’ll be! Damien is back from college!” he boomed. “And he’s brought a girl with ‘im.”

“This is my roommate, Sylph,” Damien said, stressing the word and doing his best to keep his cheeks from heating. “Sylph, this is Bael. He’s a great chef.”

“Hmm,” Bael rumbled, setting his dough down and brushing his hands off on his flour stained apron. He walked over to the counter and peered over it, examining them. “Sure, whatever you say. I was starting to think you weren’t coming back. College has treated you well, Damien. You’ve gained some muscle.”

“Thanks,” Damien said with an embarrassed grin. “And we were just delayed. I had no intention of staying away this long.”

“We, huh?” Bael asked. He grinned as Damien started to sputter, then knelt to reach inside a small display case. He pulled out two large triangular pastries and set them on a small plate. “I’ve got your favorite here. Kept making them just for my favorite customer.”

“Those are everyone’s favorite,” Damien accused. “And everyone is your favorite customer.”

“Shh, don’t say it so loud,” Bael said. “One of my other favorite customers might overhear and get cross with me.”

Damien rolled his eyes and pulled a few coins out of his travel bag. He slid them across the counter and took the plate. “These are filled with apple. Did you want to try something else, Sylph?”

“Apple sounds good to me,” Sylph said.

“Of course it does,” Bael rumbled. “Apple is delicious. Then again, everything I make is. When you get hungry again, come back and try my cherry turnovers next.”

“We’ll do that,” Damien promised, fully meaning it. He hadn’t realized how much he’d missed Bael’s Bakery until the smell had reached his nostrils. They sat down at a table outside the store and he handed Sylph one of the pastries before taking a large bite out of his own.

The food didn’t last long after that. Both pastries disappeared down their gullets in record time. Damien licked his lips and used more than a little self-control to stop himself from running back into the bakery and buying more. If he showed back up to school shaped like a sphere, he didn’t think Delph would be very pleased.

“That was fantastic,” Sylph said. “It might have been the best pastry I’ve ever eaten. Not that I’ve had a lot.”

“Bael knows what he’s doing,” Damien agreed. “I don’t know why he sticks around here. He could make a crazy amount of money in one of the larger cities or a college campus.”

“I just like it here,” Bael yelled at them from within the shop.

“He’s got good hearing,” Sylph muttered.

Damien shrugged. “He worked as a mage before he became a baker.”

Bael snorted.

“Stop eavesdropping on your customers,” Damien said. “You’re going to scare everyone away.”

“To where?” Bael asked with a laugh. “I don’t see any other bakers in Ardenford.”

“He’s got a point,” Sylph said. “And some very dangerous pastries. Delph will have our heads if we spend too much time here.”

“I was thinking the same thing,” Damien said, sending a longing glance back at the bakery. “There are a few more interesting things in Ardenford. Now that we’ve had something to eat, we can go check them out. I bet Bael can’t hear us there.”

“Don’t be so sure,” Bael said with an evil chuckle. “Not that I want to hear everything that two college kids are doing. I think I’ll keep my attentions within the vicinity of my bakery, thank you very much.”

Several people chuckled and Damien rolled his eyes. He and Sylph left the bakery and headed past the buildings toward the edge of town.

“Ardenford is built near a pretty large waterfall,” Damien said as they walked. “It’s the only thing out here other than grassland, but it’s impressive enough.”

“Where is it?” Sylph asked, glancing around. “It looks like we’re mostly surrounded by small hills and grasslands. Not much room for a waterfall.”

“Underground,” Damien replied. “Come on, I’ll show you.”

They wrapped around the side of the town. A second hill rose up across from them, creating a small valley. Damien led Sylph into it, then into a large group of boulders that housed a cave entrance that was just large enough for them to walk through.

The sound of rushing water in the distance greeted them as they headed into the tunnel. Small patches of moss grew on the walls, and the air smelled fresh and earthy. The path wound into the earth for a few minutes before opening up above a sprawling cavern.

A rushing waterfall fell from the opposite side of the cavern, cascading into a pool of crystal blue water far below it. The area was large enough that the dull roar of the water, while present, wasn’t so much that Damien couldn’t hear.

Rays of light entered the room from several thin holes in the ceiling, illuminating portions of the cavern and leaving others in the shadows.

“Wow,” Sylph breathed as they walked out onto the ledge and sat down a few feet away from the drop. “This is incredible. I never would have thought that something like this would be out here.”

“It’s pretty impressive,” Damien agreed. “Most of the town has an agreement not to share any information about the waterfall with outsiders so we don’t get overwhelmed with tourists. It’s not law or anything, but don’t go telling other people.”

“I won’t,” Sylph promised, not taking her gaze away from the water. “I’ve never seen something like this. It would be a crime to let it be ruined. There wasn’t much in the way of waterfalls in the woods.”

“Did you really never leave them? I don’t mean any disrespect, but you’re much more eloquent than Mark.”

“My old Master was very insistent that I maintain every skill I could in the best shape possible,” Sylph said, her face darkening. “He taught me a lot about the outside world, and the mages brought me up to speed on anything he missed when I joined Blackmist.”

“Oh,” Damien said with a wince. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to bring up bad memories.”

“No, it’s fine.” Sylph shook her head. “I’ve been meaning to tell you anyway.”

“Tell me what?”

“About my life before Blackmist. You’ve already told me just about every one of your secrets, so it’s time for me to do the same, so long as you’d like to hear.”