--- Roric

The two weapons clashed together, wooden thuds echoing in the fields.

Roric had absolutely no problem keeping up with Elise, but he also had to admit that the girl was a much more diligent student than he could ever imagine. Guided by sheer determination, in more than one occasion she had asked him to go on with the training despite being clearly exhausted. The young warrior started to notice that he couldn't really say no to her. Day by day, session after session, he found his mind off track. Whenever Elise grabbed her spear, abandoning the looks of a simple farmer girl, she began moving with such a mix of crudeness and grace that sometimes Roric got lost into it.

A disciplined person like him could handle more than a pair of pretty green eyes, of course, but he conldn't deny his growing admiration for that girl. Everything in their duels revealed a hidden combat prodigy, a student gifted with the same strong will that had allowed the boy to overcome his training days when he was just a recruit. Not to mention that Elise seemed to notice her own progress as well and was constantly pushing forward, each time more daring and ambitious. All of a sudden, without giving any signal, the girl had surprised him with quick, precise movements that had probably figured out all by herself.

She looks cute while she fights.

"Got you!"

Roric dodged at the last possible moment, aided by his superhuman reflexes, sending Elise's spear flying with a rapid twist of his own. The girl smashed her fist on the ground, panting.

"Damn it. I thought you were falling for it this time," she complained.

"You did well. That was a good feint," the boy commented. "A month of training on you looks like six on the other people. I have never seen anyone improving this fast."

And that was true. The girl blushed at his praise, and recovered her pointy stick.

"Enough for today," declared Roric. "We have to head back or Dominic will become suspicious."

They hid the spears in some bushes where they were used to leave them and took the road back home. The boy had lived for three months between those mountains, at that point, but it felt like a lot more. Everything seemed so easy compared with his mercenary days. He was seriously starting to believe that going back to his old life would have been impossible.

Is the time of blood and battles really over for me? If I can start a new life here...

He observed Elise from the corner of the eye. She was whistling a tune as they walked, apparently untroubled by the lack of conversation. During the last few weeks, Roric had caught himself in the act of looking at her more and more. Due to his powers one short glance was enough to absorb a lot of details, but the time he spent doing it wasn't the issue there. Being with that girl was changing him. He had begun caring for her, and for Dominic as well. Like they were his own family members, or something similar.

Roric shook his head, pushing those thoughts aside. He still needed to figure things out.

"I never asked when were you born," said Elise, abruptly breaking the silence. "It... It's not like I'm dying if I don't know, but I was thinking it would be good to celebrate your birthday together."

"My... My birthday?" wondered the boy. "I've heard about people celebrating it in the Republic, but we didn't have that in Spjaldir. Everything moved according to the seasons there, so the only important event was the end of summer and the harvest."

The girl made a surprised face. "So you don't know? Not even the month?"

"Now that I think about it, it must be somewhere in June. How about yours?"

"A couple of weeks before we met," she replied. "I'm older than you."

Roric chuckled. The proud way she had pointed it out was quite funny.

"Hey, June is only a few days away," proposed Elise. "We should decide for a day and at least have something nice for dinner."

"I like the idea."

The two stopped near the river, where they washed the sweat away. Soon, the heat would have made hiding the training from Dominic even harder, especially for Elise. In addition to that, Roric was starting to find difficult to resist the urge to peek at her while she splashed water on her arms and legs. It wasn't like she was naked, of course, but being constantly around a male farmer she had never received any womanly education and lacked most of the shame that was common to see in girls.

Nevertheless, Roric considered himself a good boy and kept those emotions under control.

***

They arrived at the farm at sunset, had a meal and wished each other a good night early because Elise was tired. On his way back to the barn, however, the boy found Dominic peering to the distance.

"You two have become good friends, I see."

"We did, mister. Does this trouble you?"

"It's fine, as long as you don't make a move on her."

"There won't be any problem, then."

The old farmer often brought that subject up, and who knew if he was serious or not. It was almost like everyone there expected Roric to marry that girl just because they lived close by. He joined Dominic on a freshly repaired bench they had taken care of just a week before, while the man lit up a pipe. After a couple of seconds he was already surrounded by a white cloud. It was a regular habit of his, and the young warrior didn't mind. A good share of people did it in the company, after all.

"Do you smoke?" asked Dominic, offering him the pipe.

"No, thanks. I tried it in the northern valley and didn't go well. I coughed up for five minutes or so."

"Classic," commented the man. "They have bad tobacco there, as well. You didn't miss any valuable experience."

"Just out of curiosity," inquired Roric. "I've actually wanted to ask this for a while... The thing is, you don't seem like a farmer at all. Plus, you clearly know the Free Kingdoms pretty well. Where did you come from, mister? What did you do before coming to this place?"

"You haven't been here for long, but I knew it was just a matter of time before you would ask this. Still, I don't want to trouble you with such unnecessary details."

"Is it because of Elise?"

Dominic turned around for a moment, checking if the girl's window was closed shut.

"Perceptive as always. Indeed, it's because of her."

"Why don't you tell her who her father is, at least? She told me you are hiding that name on purpose."

"Because I can't," the man explained. "I vowed not to reveal his identity under any circumstances. Maybe one day he'll find this place and get his daughter back. And I don't really want that day to come, to be honest. She deserves a quiet life."

"He is alive, then. A dangerous man? Or someone too dangerous to stay with?"

"I already said too much."

That counts as a yes for me. It must be the reason why he is so protective towards Elise. It's like she's been kept here while... Trouble is kept out.

"And that's why you don't want me or other boys around her," he said, hoping that Dominic would have taken the bait.

The man, instead, burst into laugh.

"So you are interested in her."

"No, I didn't mean that!" protested Roric, blushing a bit from the embarrassment. "I just find it strange, that's all."

"Strange? What's strange about a man keeping the daughter of a friend away from the hands of some good-for-nothing?" chuckled the farmer. "To be honest, I would like her to start a family here and let her lead a life without any concern, with a good man at her side. But I made a promise and that's all I will say."

"A friend..."

"Stop asking."

Roric, however, wasn't satisfied.

"I understand you won't talk about her father. But what about you? Are you from some distant land? Dominic and Elise aren't common names around here."

The farmer hit his pipe once again, glaring at him.

"We came from a distant place, like many dwellers here in the valleys. I'll spare you the details, just know that there are no plans for us to go back," he answered. "Now, it's my turn to ask you a question, if I may."

"What is it, sir?"

"I'm not trying to pry into your past or anything. Why did you become a mercenary so young isn't my concern. What I'm concerned about is Elise's safety."

"Meaning?"

"I'm asking you what lengths you would go in order to protect her," the farmer said, this time very seriously. "If you are going to live here for long, you must be aware that I won't be in this world forever. I don't even know why I'm putting all this trust into you, but deep inside my heart I still do. Many would have turned around seeing three bandits hunting down a girl, but you didn't."

"What are we talking about?"

"If something were to happen to me, would you carry on my promise and keep her safe, for some time at least? I'm not joking"

The boy thought about it for a moment.

What do I want to do? Being near Elise seems like a big responsibility, and he expects me to take it without knowing any detail? Is he desperate or...

He held his breath, cursing his own stupidity. Turning to face his landlord, he couldn't find the right words to express his guess.

"Don't tell Elise," concluded Dominic, standing up. "She wouldn't take it well."

Then the man left, leaving Roric alone with the silence of the night.

How much time does he have left?

***

Life at the farm went on without anything exciting happening for a couple of weeks.

With June starting, Roric and Elise took a break from their training, just focusing on having fun and relaxing. The crops were growing well and the boy foresaw that Autumn would have brought a bountiful and diverse harvest. Had his father been able to see him, he would have been proud of his dedication to the work. Moreover, the duo had finally decided to celebrate Roric's birthday along with the solstice, to honor the rural tradition of his ancestors and help him in keeping the exact date in mind.

"Being born on such a day is really great," stated Elise, when he agreed. "It almost feels like you are a part of nature itself, don't you think?"

Those words made him think about his Elemental powers for the first time in a while. He went alone in the woods during a rainy day to get some rust off his abilities and found out that they hadn't lost any sharpness since he had last tried to improve them. The moment sparks lit his right hand, however, Roric felt an aching pain, like a million candles were burning his skin.

Ouch! What's this? It never happened before.

After a couple more attempts, this time a lot more cautiously, the boy discovered that the issue lay with his fingers being wet of rain. He didn't know exactly how it worked, but summoning lightning during a storm could be more powerful, and dangerous for his body. Water, apparently, was able to set a reaction that could cook him alive if he didn't pay enough attention. Some drops weren't enough to produce that effect, but it would have been a big problem under a downpour.

Screw this, it's not like I plan to use this power anyway. Enough, I need to get back before the others start worrying.

***

The day of his birthday ultimately came, and Roric found himself dining with Dominic and Elise like always, only this time they had a lot more food than usual.

They ate their fill, then the old farmer said he was sleepy and went to bed. The young warrior had already noticed that he was somewhat growing weaker, but didn't point it out to avoid alarming his friend. A couple of minutes after, he and Elise were out in the fresh air of the evening, on the same old bench where he and Dominic had talked some time before.

"I'm full," declared the boy. "I don't even recall eating that much recently. There was a banquet at the end of the harvest in Spjaldir, but it usually depended on how well it turned out."

"That's what we call celebrating a birthday," said Elise. "A pity you didn't enjoy it before."

Roric hummed, affirmatively. He instinctively took out his necklace and began fiddling with it.

"What is that?" inquired the girl, stretching her neck to see better. "Some kind of amulet?"

"It's a memento of my mother. She gave it to me when she was about to die. I used to grab it all the time when I was little, because she always said it would bring me courage. Nowadays, it just remembers me of her."

"That's a good thing," observed Elise ."I wish I had something like that too. To remind me about my father, I mean."

There was a brief moment of embarrassing silence, then she spoke again.

"Why don't you make a wish?"

"What do you mean?"

"On our birthday, we always wish for something," she explained. "There must be something you want, right?"

For the first time in years, Roric stopped to ask himself what he wanted from the future. There weren't many things worth spending a wish on, but he had no difficulty to find something appropriate.

"Do I have to say it?" he asked.

"No, keep it to yourself," the girl replied. "If it's something you truly want, saying it out loud will ruin it and it will never become real."

The boy closed his eyes and did it.

"Alright. I'm done."

"I'll make mine, as well," said Elise. "Even if it's not my birthday. If we wished the same thing, maybe it will work even better. Who knows?"

***

Hours later, on the bed of hay where he usually slept, Roric thought about his wish one last time before getting some rest. Maybe it was just a childish desire, but his heart didn't crave for anything else in that moment.

He wished for a family.