Chapter 2: Dance for a Meal
The dancer began her journey through the Insecta Forest, walking gently along the dirt path. The sun has made the path more visible for her with its rays shining through the small gaps of the canopy. Tied to her waistband was a cotton scarf used as a bag to carry the fruits she had picked from the various fruit trees in the forest. Mostly juicy berries called vypis. She wasn't overwhelmed by the sense of dread anymore; she could now think calmly and focus on the task at hand. Find Hefaru of the Bamboo People first.
She soon reached a split in the path. At the end were two wooden signs, 'Bulohwi' and 'Kaede Mori'. The dancer pondered for a while, trying to remember which name stood for 'bamboo'. For you see, although all nations in the Lands Forlourn agreed to be united under one language, each nation is allowed to use their local languages for personal reasons. So, learning several languages was an extra effort for the people.
Aqilah remembered Soman teaching her about the tongue of the Bamboo People many moons ago, so she recognised some way certain words in the language are pronounced. She tried mouthing the names that were painted on the wooden signs to herself. Then she decided that after pronouncing the two names many times, she would head off in the direction of the sign directing to Bulohwi. The dancer took a deep breath, then nodded her head in determination. She soon began walking along the dirt path with her bare feet; she needed to remind herself to purchase some new shoes later on.
But for now, she has to bear with the irritation of accidentally stepping on small, pointed stones. She only took off her shoes to dance for the King or during practice because it was quite easy to manoeuvre over the palace's marble floor without shoes. But, with impeccable timing, she had to ditch her lovely floral-patterned shoes while she tried to escape the crumbling palace. By the time she walked this far, the once extravagant palace probably had fallen to dilapidation just from the wrath of the gods.
As the dancer walked along the dirt path towards Bulohwi, she noticed the trees above her were clearing up, leaving her out in the wide open. With gently furrowed eyebrows, she glanced behind her as a final farewell to her home, then she turned forward and continued on walking. She walked and walked for a mile before her eyes were met with a huge bamboo post with the words "Bulohwi" painted on it. She smiled to herself. She had made it to the lands of the Bamboo People. All she had to do now was ask around for Hefaru of the Bamboo People.
*Growl*, a sound came.
The dancer glanced down at her stomach. She never realised that she was hungry; after realising it, though, she now felt hungry. Her supply of fruits was long gone when she reached the bamboo land. She quit her daydreaming and strolled straight into the gates of Bulohwi. When she entered through the large gates—made from bamboo reeds—of the town, she was welcomed by a gentle breeze and the sound of a small, bustling town. The walls were decorated with lush green colours, and various shops and taverns were built from wood and bamboo. There were houses with two stories and some with one; all of them were also made from wood and bamboo.
The dancer noticed that every front entrance of each establishment had a pot of bamboo growing in a small quantity. People were either busy with commerce or just idling their time off chatting with others. There was also the sound of a bamboo flute creating joyful music fluttering through the air. Aqilah placed her fist on her chest, where her heart is, and sighed in relief. Her stomach began grumbling again after her nose picked up on a delicious smell that wafted through the air. The dancer had a little money on her person; she didn't know whether it'd be enough or not; only fate could tell.
She began searching for a tavern to fill her hunger. She asked a passer-by who walked by in front of her. The passerby pointed towards a sign with the words "Makanin," and the passerby stated that it was a local tavern here in Bulohwi. The dancer thanked the passerby and proceeded towards the tavern. She pushed open the tavern's bamboo reed door to reveal a lively-looking tavern. People were talking and drinking happily.
The Bamboo People wore clothes in shades of green or brown; maybe the clothes were also made from bamboo? The source of the Bamboo People was a valley full of bamboo, which never ran out of it. In front of her stood the counter with a barkeep, or tavern owner, she guessed, wearing a traditional outfit consisting of a long green skirt, a white blouse with a bow tied around the collar, and green-heeled shoes . She also had an emerald brooch pinned to his vest. She stood behind a counter, and in front of it were some stools for patrons to sit on.
Aqilah walked forward, gave the barkeep or tavern owner a small nod, and then sat on one of the stools. In closer inspection, the barkeep or tavern owner has long brown hair tied into two braids with some loosely framing her face.
"An outlander, I see, What would you like to order?" The barkeep or tavern owner asked politely in a monotone voice.
"Can you answer my question first?" The dancer added a question.
"Sure," she agreed.
"Are you the barkeep or the tavern owner?" the dancer inquired.
"I'm the tavern owner," the tavern owner answered, crossing her arms on her chest.
"I thought so; thank you for answering. Now, do you have any meals that would suit a hungry traveler?" the dancer requested.
"We do; here's the price." The tavern owner pulled up a menu and pointed at the 'Meals' section.
Aqilah placed a hand near her chin as she assessed the menu. Her eyes widened at the price as she began to feel panicked because she didn't have enough money for it.
"Is the price worrying you?" the tavern owner asked.
The dancer nodded in embarrassment; she didn't know how to respond except to nod in agreement.
"Well, that's ok; you can just put it on your tab, and then you can pay later. Don't forget, though; my barkeep will track you down," the tavern owner said.
The dancer looked up at the owner with a brightly lit smile. She didn't know what a 'tab' was, but if she could pay it later, she would. She then proceeded to order her meal and wait for it to be prepared. The tavern owner said that the dancer needed to sit somewhere else because she had to entertain a few guests in this sitting area. The tavern was quite full at this time of day, which was during the afternoon.
After her meal was done preparing, the dancer took her tray of food and proceeded to look for an empty place to sit. The dancer spotted an empty seat across from a hunched figure wearing a cloak and a straw hat. She walked up to the table and sat across from him. Before that, she asked if she could take a seat here. The figure agreed by nodding, then paid no heed. She quietly sat down on the wooden bench and then proceeded to eat.
She tried to make small talk with the male stranger, but he didn't lift his head to acknowledge her.
"Excuse me, do you know someone named Hefaru?" No answer.
"What are you drinking?" No answer.
"Are you from around here?" Still no answer.
The dancer decided to introduce herself instead. "I'm a dancer-
"A dancer, you say?" The stranger spoke and lifted his head to face her.
He had a stern-looking face with red eyes. His appearance was mostly covered by the shadow of his hat, leaving only his glowing red eyes and a neutral expression in his mouth.
"Why is a dancer travelling to a place like this? Barefooted nonetheless," the male inquired.
The dancer blushed in embarrassment and tried to cover her feet with the hem of her long, flowery skirt. She then looked the male in the eye and answered his question.
"I'm just a traveller traversing through the Lands Forlourn. Nothing wrong with travelling barefoot either," the dancer furrowed her eyebrows as she stated her reasons.
"Very well, I won't delve into your story further," the male said, taking a sip of his drink.
The two then spoke no more; the atmosphere around them was getting thicker.
"I am a samurai; that's all you need to know about myself," the samurai said.
The dancer nodded in acknowledgement and sipped on her water. The samurai soon stood up and left the tavern, leaving the dancer all alone. Though, after he stood up, a handsome-looking young man with dark green hair slid into the seat across her.
"Hello," the young man said.
"Hello?" the dancer answered confusingly.
The young man didn't say another word after that; he kept staring at her for some particular reason. There was a reason she did not know. She looked down at her empty plate, then back up again at the man. Suddenly, the young man leaned towards her, closer and closer, until he propped his knee upon the table to keep his body steady. The dancer unconsciously leaned backwards until she had to grab the wooden table so that she wouldn't fall.
The dancer examined the young man with dark green hair. He was probably wearing light green attire to match his thick green hair. He wore a brown trench coat over his formal green outfit and had on black slacks. The dancer couldn't see his shoes because she was hanging on the table for dear life.
"You have exquisite-looking eyes," the young man complimented.
"Um, thank you?" the dancer replied, still puzzled by the man's unclear intentions.
After hearing her reply, the man sat comfortably back on his seat. The dancer managed to balance herself out and let her hands go off the table. She placed a hand on her chest and started breathing heavily as soon as she sat upright again. She looked towards the young man to see him still staring at her.
"Do you need anything from me?" the dancer asked.
When she inquired him, the young man shook his head as if he tried to snap out of a deep trance that he was in. He gave her a confused expression, but then his face showed a neutral expression.
"I'm sorry, that was my brother's doing," the young man with dark green hair said.
"Brother?" the dancer said, still confused by this man's actions.
She looked behind him to see if anyone was watching them. No one. Then she looked at the tavern owner to see that she was preoccupied serving the guests she had mentioned earlier. She then turned back to look at the young man, who sat quietly in front of her. She noticed that he had a sudden change in personality. At first, he was quite bold for his strange obsession with her eyes, but now the man is sitting quietly as if waiting for something.
"He said that he wanted to gouge your exquisite eyes out and place them upon a doll," the man suddenly said again.
The dancer lifted her right eyebrow in disbelief. She then let out a small sigh and straightened her back. She lifted her chin and crossed her arms.
"What business do you have with me, hm? I'm just a mere traveller trying to find home, but I'm seated here listening to someone's non-existent brother wanting to gauge my eyes out. Don't you think that sounds a little too gruesome?" the dancer asserted.
The young man blinked once and then realised what words he had presented to the dancer. He waved his hands in front of him and shook his head from side to side. He then spoke.
"By all means, my lady. I meant no harm; those were really the words my brother told me in my thoughts. You see, we twins are trapped in the same body, and we agreed that one could take control within a time limit. Just now, you've met my brother, Elliot. Now it's my turn," the young man explained, pointing his thumb to his chest.
"I understand," the dancer concluded.
The young man smiled softly, relieved that she understood his situation.
"I'm Everett, by the way," the young man introduced.
"Nice to meet you, Everett," the dancer replied.
The two then fell into silence for a minute before Everett started speaking again.
"Aren't you going to tell me your name?" Everett continued.
"No. You can address me as The Dancer or The Traveller if you must," the Dancer smiled.
Everett was taken aback by her answer, but he nodded his head in agreement. He reached his hand out and gave hers a shake as a sign of friendship.
"Guess we're friends now. I'll be your guide in Bulohwi for the time being. Whatever questions you have, they will be answered by me or Elliot if it's his turn to take over. I hope you can cope with the both of us," Everett said.
"I was merely jesting when you said 'gauge your eyes out'. I'll be able to cope with you, no problem," the dancer gleamed. Everett smiled softly at the dancer.
"Alright, Dancer. I welcome you to Bulohwi! What do you want to do first?" Everett excitedly said.
"Hm, take me to Hefaru of the Bamboo People," the dancer requested.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone