"Hold on," Lilly whispered as she slowed to a stop.

I obeyed, and scanned the forest ahead of us. We were in the forest where her home was located, nearing the spot where it became dark and scary. I scanned the area, the trees and bushes, and the distant darkness we were approaching for whatever had caused Lilly to make us stop but…

I didn't see anything. At least nothing too drastic.

"What is it?" I asked softly. She had whispered, so I knew better than to be noisy.

"I think that's Vim."

Hm…?

I perked up, and felt the smile on my face grow as I quickly tried to follow her line of sight. She was looking directly in front of us… and…

No. I still couldn't see anyone, or anything of note. Some weirdly shaped trees… the weird way entire rays of sunlight seemed to just disappear when they met with the darkness in the distance… some distant bugs and animals…

"There. Sitting on a rock," Lilly pointed, and whispered even lower.

I focused on the spot… and after a moment I realized what she saw. I had to step to the left a little, to get more into her line of sight, and I saw what she did.

A man. Sitting on a large boulder, his back facing us. And…

"It does indeed look like him," I admitted. He was sitting the same way Vim did. Leisurely, and he didn't look to be carrying anything. No packs or weapons. Basically not the kind of attire or getup that most men would have out here in this dense forest, far from civilization.

"Hm…" Lilly hummed softly as she glared at him, and I wondered what was wrong.

I wanted to hurry forward. To run to him. Yet she was acting so odd… it was almost more interesting to not approach Vim, and instead see what and why Lilly was acting this way for.

"Lilly?" I asked, unable to contain my interest.

"He's waiting for us," she noted.

Well… "Likely, yes?" I agreed.

Lilly crossed her arms and sighed. "The fact he's not waiting at my home means something happened," she said.

Oh.

I shifted a little and began to worry alongside her. "Right…" I agreed. That was odd. Why wouldn't he just wait with Windle and Root?

"Plus the fact he's just sitting there means he knows we're here. Yet he's not coming to us. Or is he the type to make his woman approach him and not the other way around?" Lilly asked me.

"Oh…?" I perked up again, and couldn't help but smile at her. She was blaming our relationship for the weirdness? How neat! "I don't know… Usually I run to him, I guess, but he also approaches me… I don't think Vim's rude like that, in my perspective," I said.

She smiled back at me. "I know. Just find it odd… I had kind of wanted to see if he'd hurry over to you all excitedly, like how Windle does for me," she said, teasing me as she stepped forward.

I hurriedly joined her, walking alongside her as we approached Vim. "He will get this weird smile on his face once he sees me," I told her.

"Does he now…?" she asked quietly.

I nodded. "Usually he does at least. Or he'll frown, as if upset and bothered. It's either the smile or the frown," I said as I reached up to touch my own cheeks. I had wanted to frown in the way he did, as to show her, but my smile wouldn't let me even with me pulling on it a little.

"I know that frown. Rather well, honestly. Too well," Lilly admitted.

The two of us were speaking quietly as we approached, as if we wanted to sneak up on him. I knew that we'd not be able to, and I even knew that Lilly knew it too. Yet as we drew closer… the two of us went quiet. As if to attempt it all the same.

As we got closer to Vim, I realized the rock he was sitting on was rather large. It was covered in some kind of mossy grass, so it had blended a little with the ground from a distance. He wasn't sitting on the top of it though, but one of the smaller bulges of it.

I was glad he looked okay. I didn't see any injuries on him, and his clothes from here looked decent at least. Maybe I'd be able to hug him for once and he'd not feel prickly while doing so.

Vim kept his back to us, but we were approaching him at a slight angle. I could see the side of his face, and I could see he was messing with something. He had what looked to be a small object in his hands, and he was focused upon it. Maybe he was crafting another gift?

"Vim," I greeted him upon drawing close enough, and although was going to say more… I found my voice catching in my throat.

I hesitated a moment, as I realized I was feeling rather emotional. As Vim turned to look at me, I found my eyes grow a little blurry… and I watched through the tears as he smiled at me.

"Renn. Lilly," he greeted the two of us, even though Lilly had slowed behind me. She was many feet behind… likely on purpose.

She was kinder than people realized.

"You're supposed to ignore me, Vim. Greet your wife first," Lilly said, sounding a little angry.

I laughed and glanced at her. She was still behind me, and standing still. She had crossed her arms and nodded at me as if in support.

"I'd not be happy if he ignored you, Lilly," I told her as I blinked away the tears.

"Really…? I'd be upset if Windle greeted another woman before me," Lilly said with a frown.

"I had said her name first," Vim defended himself as I turned to watch him slide off the large boulder. He landed loudly, being heavier than he looked, and he smiled at me. "The two of you look fine, though no Cat in tow… so?" he asked as he stepped towards us.

As he approached Lilly stepped up to stand next to me. I shifted a little as the three of us neared one another, and I realized I had missed the opportunity to hug him.

Really. What was I going to do with myself? It wasn't even as if we'd been separated long. A couple weeks at most.

"Cat's at home. Their village is in fact at the very spot I used to live, with Witch, near some lakes. They call it Witch's Rest," I said.

"Is that what they call it?" Lilly asked, sounding offended.

I nodded. "Cat hadn't even known. I had to ask Elaine," I said.

"Hm… and it still stands?" Vim asked me and Lilly.

"Regrettably," Lilly said.

He smirked at her as I nodded upon his glance afterward. "Elaine is a little… odd, but I don't believe her to be a threat. She genuinely sent Cat and the rest of them out to try and stop the fires. To defeat the monster, as she called it," I explained.

Vim nodded slowly as I glanced down at him. I at first studied his clothes, glad to see none of it looked destroyed or too dirty… but my eyes eventually ended up lingering on his hand. His right one.

It held what looked to be a small box. Or at least, the form of one. I didn't see any hinges upon it, or anywhere for it to open. Maybe it wasn't a box, but just a block of wood…?

"Waiting for us here Vim? Root's not old enough yet to make you want to flee to silence is she?" Lilly asked, teasing him a little.

"Hm? No. I actually was getting this," he said as he lifted his right hand, to show us the object.

Upon him lifting it, I noted the way it gleamed a little. The wood looked really smooth and… yes. There seemed to be designs etched onto it.

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"What is it?" I asked.

"Something I buried here a long time ago," he said as he held it out to me.

I frowned as I took the thing from him. He dropped it into my hands, and I nearly dropped it. Not because it was heavy, or unbelievably light, but instead because of how smooth it was. It had almost slipped through my hands, I was barely able to get a grip on it. How had he held it with just one hand as he had?

"You what? Buried it? Here?" Lilly stepped forward to study the thing I held. She sounded offended again.

Really. How was it so smooth? It had grooves in it. Little lines. They were carved and dug into the box-like thing, deep enough and numerous enough that there should be plenty to grip onto. Yet no matter where I touched it, the thing wanted to slide and slip… as if it was wet or something. Yet it wasn't. It was dry.

Another odd thing. What was Vim doing? And why had he buried it here and…

Oh.

I blinked as I remembered him telling me that he planned to start gathering up stuff he'd hidden throughout the world. Maybe this was one of those items.

That meant this was special, somehow. Like a monarch's heart, or something his parents had made.

"I hadn't buried it here. Over there, in the darkness. I figured I'd wait here for a few hours after I had gotten it, to see if you'd show up. It was about time you two returned home," Vim said.

Glancing away from the strangely smooth box, I studied the man who sounded far too calm and even-toned to be lying.

He had just fibbed about something. I wasn't sure what, but…

Moving my eyes, but not my head, I side-glanced Lilly. She was still focused on the box. If she had heard Vim's lie, she didn't show it.

Handing her the box, she let out a small noise as it fell from her fingers. It landed with a small thump onto the leaf-covered ground and she glanced at Vim.

"It'll not break that easily, you're fine Lilly," Vim said gently to her.

She smiled at him and I blinked at the way she did so. It hadn't been flirty, at all, but instead… well…

Watching Lilly bend down to pick it up, I watched the old owl grin like a child as she ran her hands along the box of wood. "What is it Vim? Did you lick it or something?" she asked with an odd tone.

Oh my? What was this?

"Please. I bet it'd just taste like dirt. It's been buried for years," Vim said with a huff.

Lilly chuckled as she turned the box around and over, to look at it from another angle. She lifted it, as if in an attempt to better make out the stuff carved into it. But we were on the precipice of the darkness. There wasn't much light here. Even for us.

Watching her as she studied the thing, I realized something very interesting.

The Lilly I knew was a stoic woman. Strong. Wise. Calm. A little brunt, even.

Yet standing before me right now was a different woman. One who wasn't afraid to act childish. To smirk and grin, and giggle and act silly.

Glancing at Vim, I found him staring at me. His smile softened upon our eyes meeting, and I couldn't help but sigh at him.

He likely didn't even realize it. That Lilly was so comfortable with him that she became like that thanks to his mere presence.

To her Vim was something akin to a big brother. Maybe even a type of father.

No matter that she was old enough to be a grand-mother to a grandmother.

"Mhmkay. Is it some kind of box? It feels empty, and I think I hear something when I shake it," Lilly spoke up, drawing my eyes from Vim's.

I turned and focused on the thing as she shook it. I squinted my eyes as I tried to hear for any kind of sounds, banging or tinkling… and…

Yes. Sure enough there was a sound. Almost like there was a coin inside of it. A singular coin though, not multiple. The sound it was making was very tiny, and dull, not a metal on metal sound but a metal upon wood.

"Sounds like a tiny coin or something," I said as Lilly shook it harder.

"Damn your ears. Here, give it," Vim reached out for the thing, which Lilly at first seemed not willing to give. She held it still for a moment as he grabbed it from her hand, and she glared at him. In a way that a child would when a parent took a toy from them.

Yes. She definitely acted different around him than others. Maybe anyone else.

With Windle she was a stern, but loving, wife. Root she was a precious mother. With me she was something like a stable sibling, a stout sister I could rely upon.

Humans? She was the epitome of her bloodline. A majestic bird of prey, staring at you from the distance… ready to pounce or take flight the moment you went out of line.

Yet with Vim…? She, well…

"Well? What is it? Open it, come on," she said, ushering him as he sighed at her. She had even stepped forward, and I knew if she still had her wings they likely would have flapped in anticipation based on how she had done so.

I couldn't help but smile at her.

She was like a child with him. How cute.

"It's not something I can just open and close you know…" Vim said as he turned the box around in his hand, to have one of its sides face directly at him.

"You just said you were going to open it!" Lilly complained.

"I had not. I had simply told you to give it back," Vim said as he smirked at her.

"You're not going to open it are you?" Lilly asked, sounding upset.

"No. If I open it I'll not be able to close it again. It's a one use box, basically," Vim said.

"Why? Or well, why won't you open it?" I asked, hoping to get him to just answer before Lilly got upset. I wasn't sure if she actually would or not, but I didn't want to take the chance.

She was acting a little childish right now, so it'd not surprise me if she did.

"Inside is an object made by a god. It's not something to handle carelessly," he said simply.

Both Lilly and I shifted and glanced at each other. Then we looked back at Vim. "A god?" I asked.

He nodded. "It's actually not that impressive. The thing just constantly sucks in air, but not so quickly or strongly that it's very dangerous. It's just a real pain in the ass to seal, so I'd prefer not to open it if that's okay," Vim said.

"Sucks in air…?" Lilly asked, finding the statement as dubious as I did.

He nodded again. "Think like the opposite of a gust of wind. It makes wind, but towards itself," he explained.

I glanced at Lilly as she frowned. "Do you understand what he means, Renn?" she asked.

"Only that it's probably something really dangerous, so we should likely just let it be," I said.

She nodded. "Yes. He's likely understating its danger. Why else would he have buried it in the darkness?" she asked with a sigh.

I nodded, agreeing with her.

Vim sighed at the two of us and stepped towards me. I stood up straighter at his approach, and he reached over to grab at my back.

For a small moment I stood still as he opened the bag on my back, and he deposited the box into it. He tied the bag back up and nodded, content.

"He's making me carry something dangerous," I said with a sigh.

"Eh, you'll get used to it," Lilly said with a smirk.

That was the problem. I already was.

Once Vim was done, I shifted away from him. As if by my staying near him could result in me acquiring more stuff to carry. More dangerous stuff.

I of course knew he'd not actually give me something terribly dangerous. And especially so not without at least a few warnings, or pointers, but it was still fun to fault him for something as silly as this.

"So instead of coming to us you were digging up dangerous artifacts?" I asked.

"Hm… I had planned to come find you if you hadn't shown up in the next day or two," he said lightly. "And by the way Lilly, congratulations. Root is absolutely adorable. She has your wings," he said to her. I noted the way he spoke as he turned to Lilly.

He had just forcefully changed topics. Again.

Though this time I could hardly fault him as Lilly grinned wryly and shifted. "Well… yea, thanks," Lilly bashfully accepted his praise as she reached up and scratched behind her head.

Gosh she was suddenly so cute. Where was this woman all this time?

"She has her strength too, in case you didn't notice," I said.

"I did. She likes to nibble, what with her teeth too, how're you dealing with that Lilly?" Vim asked with a grin.

"Shush! You know we don't nurse!" she shouted at him.

He chuckled in a way that told me this was something he's teased her about before. Maybe even every time she had a baby.

"You don't nurse at all…? I thought maybe when you had said that before that you simply meant she could already eat normal food, not that she doesn't need milk at all," I said.

"Hm…? Oh… no. Not at all. I've never even produced any milk, ever," Lilly said.

Huh… "Seems better that way. Why aren't we all like that?" I wondered.

"Birds don't produce milk. Or well, most don't. Flamingos make a type of it, but not the same, it's…" Vim started to explain a little, but he went quiet as Lilly and I looked at him.

He glared back at us for a moment, and then sighed and shook his head.

Lilly and I exchanged a happy smirk as we glanced at each other. It felt good to have such normal and silly conversations. Especially since many of the topics Lilly and I had discussed on our trip back here had all been… rather heavy and serious.

We had talked long and hard about stuff like the vote, or the direction the Society was headed. Good and bad theories, and such, about our future and so on and so forth.

Conversations I had enjoyed, since I was fascinated by her viewpoint, but also honestly slightly regret having.

Lilly was not as hopeful as I was. Not at all.

I knew soon those conversations would resume. Not just between Vim and I, but Vim and Lilly as well. Odds are she had as many questions as I did.

So I was glad to enjoy such simple moments as these. They were lovely, verily so.

"Well, you ready?" Vim then asked me. I noted the way he looked straight into my eyes, almost as if to make it a point he was speaking to me.

"For my hug? Yes."

He blinked, and Lilly snickered. Likely thanks to the weird look he now had on his face.

He then smirked at me. "I meant to see Fly," he said.

Oh.

It was my turn to blink in shock, and I realized what he meant.

Fly. She was here. Of course she was.

"Let's hurry!" I said as I rounded him, ignoring the arms he had slowly opened in anticipation.

"Ha!" Lilly laughed at him as I hurried towards the darkness.

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