Chapter 26

It had become afternoon when Risha and Merees returned to the village. Before that, they had cleaned themselves up in the lake and afterwards, had lied close together on the floor of the cave, waiting for their bodies to dry. Upon entering the village, they saw that a large crowd had gathered in the square.
Their curiosity awakened, the lynx and the dragon made their way past the crowd, in order to see what had gotten the islanders' attention: Standing on a wooden crate, was a short, slenderly built faun, wearing a red cape. Next to him stood a group of men and women, all of various age and species.
Risha could not help but stare; fauns were an unusual sight in Vinoli and she had never seen one in real-life before. 

The Faun was addressing the crowd, his melodious voice carried by the breeze.

"Yes, my friends, once again we at Eramus' Ocean Theatre has arrived at your fair island in order to help you forget the troubles of your daily lives and whisk you away to a world of your pure imagination: The ship which serves as our stage lies anchored in your port. This evening, you're all welcome aboard. Do not miss this opportunity to enrich your lives, my friends."

"What play are you showing?" Shouted a voice in the crowd.

The faun looked in the direction the voice had come from.

"An excellent question, madam. This year we will give you The Legend of Selvano; a true classic filled with drama, adventure and romance."

"I know that play", said Risha excitedly to Merees, without taking her eyes from the faun.
"We had a copy of it at home. My father and I used to read the characters' lines to each other. He usually read the villain. You should have heard him; he was absolutely terrifying."

The  lynx-girl smiled wistfully as she recalled these memories.

"I've never seen it performed though. Say, why don't we go to the show? It could be fun."

When she didn't get an answer, Risha turned around and noticed that Merees was no longer by her side.

Where did she go? Risha wondered. She looked around until she spotted a familiar figure, wandering the streets.

Making her way past the crowd, Risha shouted Merees' name. Upon hearing it, the dragon stopped, allowing the other girl to catch up with her.

"What happened?" Risha asked, concern and vexation mingling in the tone of her voice. "Is something wrong?"

Merees sighed.

"I'm sorry", she said. "It's just...the play, I've seen it before."

"Oh. Was it with your father?"

"No, it was with..."

A pained expression passed over the princess' face. She left the final word unsaid, but she did not need to say it, Risha knew all too well whom she was referring to.

"I see. It's too bad, I really wanted to see that play."

"Well, you can still see it, there's no reason for you to miss out on my account."

Risha said nothing, from the moment that she had heard the title of the play, she had wanted to see it together with her lover, but it seemed that that was not meant to be.
Understandably, she could not help but feel a bit disappointed. Gradually, the disappointment got mixed with a growing sense of annoyance. Was this how things were going to be? What other enjoyable experiences would she be unable to share with Merees, because they reminded her of Argath's treachery? The words passed over Risha's lips before she she realized that she had spoken them out-loud:

"Are you going to let your sister control your life? Our lives?" She blurted out.

Merees stiffened, she looked at Risha with disbelief and anger.

"Have you forgotten what she did?" She asked hotly. "She murdered my father and my brothers and would have killed me as well? She's the reason why you and your brother have been separated from your parents."

"I know that..." Risha protested. "It's just..."

"You could have fooled me", Merees continued, her voice growing more agitated with each new word. "I watched my father die before my eyes and I could do nothing to prevent it from happening. That is something I will never get over, I am sorry if that inconveniences you."

With those words, the Princess turned her back on Risha and stomped off, before the lynx had the opportunity to say another word.

Risha watched her leave with rage burning in her veins. She was angry at Merees, for refusing to acknowledge her point-of-view. She was angry at Argath, who was the reason for this dispute, but most of all, she was angry at herself.
You idiot, she thought bitterly. Why couldn't you keep your mouth shut. Its just a play.

The lynx-girl gave vent to her frustrations by punching a nearby wall and letting out a curse-word. This earned her an angry look from a woman who was passing by with her child. The mother covered her offspring's ears while shaking her head reproachfully at the offender.

Unfortunately for Risha, this outburst did not bring her any lasting satisfaction, she slumped down against the wall, feeling as if the weight of the world was on her shoulders.

She remained like this, taking no notice of the people who passed her by.
One of the villagers mistook her for a beggar and casually tossed a coin at the ground before her, she did not move to pick it up, preferring to sit with her legs drawn up high, her eyes fixed on the cobblestones.

"What's troubling you, young lady?"

Surprised, Risha looked up and saw that the faun had appeared in front of her, without her realizing it.
"None of your business", she snapped, then immediately regretted her outburst.
"I am sorry", she said. "I got into an argument with someone dear to me, it was not my meaning to take it out on you."

The Faun nodded sagely and stroked his tiny beard.

"I understand, girl-troubles, eh?"

"How did you know?" Risha asked, astounded.

"Intuition", the faun said, tipping the side of his nose.  "One might say that I have a knack for these things. By the way, my name is Eramus."

He sat down next to her and extended his hand, it was small and devoid of fur, feather or scales. Risha had never seen anything like it, she gazed at it in fascination.

"I know", she said, getting ahold of herself and grasping the offered limb. "I was in the crowd earlier. My name is Risha."

"Pleased to meet you. Say, I know we just met, but I was just about to have lunch and I do so dislike eating alone. Would you care to join me? I'll pay for your food."

Eramus' words made Risha realized that she hadn't had anything to eat since breakfast. Suddenly, she became aware of how hungry she was. Still, there was a voice in her head, wondering if she could really trust this stranger. True, he seemed nice, but as the lynx-girl now knew from personal experience, anyone can seem nice. On the other hand, there were genuinely good people in the World, such as Doctor Hieronymus and another stronger voice, told her that this faun belonged to this group. Besides, she could really use a shoulder to cry on.
Just then, Risha's stomach reminded her of its existence by letting out a growl. That settled things.

"I'll gladly accept your offer", she said, standing up, as she did, something occurred to her: "What about the members of your troupe? Do they not need you to be here?"

The Faun shook his head.

"If they did, I would not yet take lunch. Trust me, at this point, each member of the troupe knows what they're supposed to do, which makes my life considerably easier. Shall we go?"

******

"So, young Risha", Eramus said, picking up the bottle of white wine and filling first her glass and then his own. "Why don't you tell me about yourself?"

The two of them sat at a corner-table in the local tavern, waiting for the meal they had ordered to arrive.

Risha took a tiny sip of her wine

"What do you want to know?" She asked.

"Well, I can't help but recognize that you speak in a Vinolian accent. Vinoli is not exactly next door, how come you ended up on this island?"

Risha told the faun how she, Leorin and Merees had boarded captain Cerewan's ship and paid for their journey. How they had been warned by Luke, the cabin-boy that the Captain had planned to either hold them for ransom, or sell them into slavery and how all four of them had escaped in a life-boat, with a compass and a sack of provisions only to be caught in the middle of the storm and swept up on this island and how they had been staying with Doctor Hieronymus and his niece ever since.

"That is quite the story", said Eramus. "It would make quite a play, if I do say so myself." He leaned forward, hands on the table.
"So, where does your story go from here?"

"It's nice here, but I would like to see more of the world. Besides, I can't take advantage of the Doctor's hospitality much longer."

"You're doing the right thing. The world is filled with fascinating places and people and you should experience as much of it as possible, while you're still young."

"There's a certain person I'd especially like to have as a travelling companion, but after our quarrel today, I am worried that she might no longer feel the same way about me."

She uttered these words in a gloomy tone, while listlessly playing with her fork.

Feeling a deep sympathy for his newfound acquaintance, Eramus decided to offer some comforting
words.

"I am sure your worries are unfounded. All couples argue from time to time, you should have heard the quarrels my late wife and I used to have."

Risha saw the truth in the faun's words. After all, there had been times when her parents had argued as well, but at the end, no matter how heated these arguments could get, they couldn't sever the love between them. The thought of this improved the lynx's mood somewhat, but it did not take long for a feeling of doubt to enter her mind, like an uninvited guest.

"I really made a mess of things though" she said, looking down at the tablecloth. "I know I should apologize, but part of me doesn't want to. Or at least, I don't want to be the first one to offer an apology."

At that moment, their food arrived; mussels, steaming hot and bathing in a spicy sauce, along with a basket of bread, and the conversation came to a halt. Risha and Eramus ate in silence, doing honor to the meal that the cook had prepared for them. Once they had finished, they both leaned back in their chairs, satisfied.
After awhile, Eramus wiped out a timepiece, a small pocket-watch from his west and glanced at it.

"I am afraid, I can't dally here any longer", he said with an apologetic smile, as he got up and tossed a few coins on the table. "Before I go, let me tell you something."

As he spoke, Eramus looked Risha straight in the eyes.

"Like you I once got into a heated argument with a person I loved. Afterwards, I spent days agonizing over whether I should be the first one to extend an olive-branch, or if I should wait and give him the chance to apologize first. I am sure that he felt the same way. Eventually, I could not take it anymore and so, I apologized. As soon as I had done that, I felt as if a burden had been lifted from my shoulders. I realized then that to be the first to apologize, is not necessarily a defeat, but a victory over yourself and your own pride. Anyway, the decision here is really up to you."

With those words, the faun put on his cape, which had been draped over the back of his chair and headed towards the exit. As he did, he stopped and called out:

"Oh, give my regards to Hieronymus."

"I will", Risha called back. "Thank you for the meal."

"Thank you for the company. I hope everything works out between you."

With that he disappeared. Risha sat alone for awhile, pondering what she had just heard. Then she got up, left the tavern and began the walk back to the Doctor's house.