I think its time for another Chapter, dont you?

Ladies and gents! 

Chapter 9!

She closed her eyes, squeezing out a tear. She now realized how tall he now was. The top of her head went straight to his chin. His arms were tightly holding her shoulders as if he never wanted to let her go. And she did not want him to let her go. She was happy, right where she was. Her heart was full. She was now grinning wide, unable to contain her joy. He kissed the top of her head.
But her joy was short lived. She knew that they had an issue. And she knew that her name was Waisha. She tore herself away from Yeusem and held his hands. Her eyes still looking into his, she spoke gently.
“Yeusem, we have a problem,” she wanted to get straight to the point.
“We do?” he arched his eyebrow at her.
“Yes, we do. Waisha.”
His eyes widened, “You know about me and Waisha?”
She looked at him soberly, “You honestly think that you could have kept a secret like that from a mindspeaker?”
He blushed, “No, I guess not. But I was hoping that we would not discuss it.”
“How can you even think that we would not discuss it? You are betrothed to a woman against your will. And she is betrothed to you against her will. I think that this entire thing is a disaster!”
“You are right, it is. I do not like Waisha, she does not really like me, though she acts like it. I want to just go away.” He paused and gave her a sidelong glance, “How did you get here and what has happened to you? You know that we have not seen each other for almost three years.”
Ellina lowered her eyes, sighed, and slowly raised her sleeve that covered her right arm. He gasped, she had a huge scar. And not just a normal scar, he knew that mark. She had been a slave.
“Yes, Yeusem, I was a slave, to a man named Dr. Merriman. He was a circus director. Another girl and I were part of his ‘freak show’.”
“Freak show? What is that?”
“We were his...I guess that you could say that we were the people that sat in cages and were gawked at. People laughed at us, called us names, for almost three years. It was maddening.” She closed her eyes and shuddered.
“But why would they call you and your friend names and...freaks?”
“Yeusem, not that many people look beyond the face and into the eyes. And my friend, Etiran, is a Luniath. She is part elf and part dragon. But the only thing that shows is beautiful wings and the dragon heart of bravery.”
“She is part dragon?” Yeusem found that one hard to swallow.
“I know that it is strange, but there is a special type of dragon that is very rare and they look a lot like normal people, I guess. They can have children with humans, elves, really any other race. Et is a combination of a dragon and elves. She possesses the traits of both.”
“Intriguing!”
“Anyways, that is where I have been and what I have been doing. But just a few weeks ago a man named James who has worked at the circus for many years stood up for us. To put it in a nut shell, James knocked Mary out and they put him in prison for mistreating everyone in his employment. There is no longer a circus that is owned and operated by a Dr. Merriman.”
“What about that scar on your face? It looks like it is a few weeks old.”
“Mary gave that to me before James knocked him out. The pain made me pass out, so I don’t really know what happened.” Ellina sighed, “And what about you? What has been happening? How long did it take for you to get back home? And I thought that your people lived more south than this. This is still in Veranda, and I thought that your family hated anything that had to do with Veranda and all that it stands for.”
“True, they do. But my parents decided to come for a bit. My mother was ill and she needed to go to a cooler climate. I don’t know why, but she did. Let me see...” he paused for a minute, thinking of what had happened since he left, “After I heard you leave, I laid underneath that log for...I don’t know how long. I finally fell asleep and awoke just as the sun was setting. I got up and traveled south all that night. I went that way for a while, traveling during the night and sleeping during the day. I ate all the food that you gave me and drank the water in the canteen within a few days. So then I had to travel along the Agumé River so I could have water to drink. I slipped into towns that I passed and bought some things to eat. I don’t know how, but not that many people noticed my skin color and let me go by without a bother. There were a few times when I was noticed and I had to run as fast as I could to get away. It was then that I was so glad that I had met you. My leg hurt, but fear made me run faster than I had ever run before.” He grinned at Ellina, as if thanking her for taking care of him, “Nothing happened much. I passed the border with no trouble and made my way home. I knew how to get back home once I was back in Caläsmerdia. That land was familiar to me. By the time I got home, I was unrecognizable. You know, I had been traveling for a few weeks without many chances to bathe, my hair was a mess, my clothes were in tatters, and I think that I was fairly thin.”
“You think that you were fairly thin?” she raised an eyebrow.
“Alright, alright, I was emaciated. I can’t keep anything from you!”
“Nope, and you never will,” she giggled, “What happened then?”
“Well, as you can imagine, it took a long time to convince my mother and father that I was their Yeusem. But they agreed to let me bathe and get cleaned up. Once I did that, they knew me and welcomed me back, informally. They knew that if the leaders of the town knew that I was here, they would send me away again. I was able to stay hidden for a bit. Then I think that a servant accidentally slipped a word about me in town. I was found out and they sent me away again. But this time, mother and father sent a large sum of money with me so I could buy some things. I moved here, got a job, rented a room in the Inn, and I have lived here ever since. My mother became ill and father brought her here. They are renting a house on the other side of town. And they brought Waisha with them.” He rolled his eyes, “She says that she does not care if I am not wanted in my town. I know that she is a lair. She only wants me because my mother and father are very rich and she can get something out of it.”
“You are still an outcast? Does that mean that you are still holding fast to Sholeim?”
Yeusem laughed, “Do you think that I would reject Him? After I saw the change in you, and the fulfillment it brought me, there could be nothing that can separate me from Him. Mother and Father tried to get me to turn my back, but when nothing worked, they gave up and let me think what I wanted to think.”
“At least they didn’t press you that much.” Ellina said.
“Aye, I was very relieved that they did give up; I was so tired of them pressing me and pressing me to worship their little idols. When they stopped, I was so grateful that they let me have my way.”
Ellina chuckled, “So, here you are with Waisha boring down upon your back and with really no solution to get her away from you.”
“Basically, yes!” he paused, “Do you think that you can do anything about her?”
“Me? Why me? She’s your problem, not mine. You should deal with her.” she replied, waving her hand dismisively.
He blushed, “I really don’t know how. I show her and tell her that I do not want to get married to her. But she just giggles it off and says that I will in time.”
“Does she giggle a lot?” Ellina couldn’t resist asking.
He rolled his eyes, “You have no idea.”
“Actually, I do.” she said with a mischievous grin.
“Ugh, thats right. You know everything about me now. Will you please give me the privacy of my mind? I would like to keep my thoughts to myself.”
“I can do that now, now that I have seen everything in your mind that there is to see. Your mind is your own now.”
“Thank you. But do we have a connection like we had before?”
“Aye!” Ellina’s face beamed in the moonlight. “Now, I have something to ask you.”
“Yes?” Yeusem raised his eyebrows like she remembered him doing so well.
“Would you like to go with me to the village where I have been staying and meet my friends?”
“Do you even have to ask? I would love to go! But what about Waisha?”
“Let me make this simple. How about you just go home, tell them that you are leaving tomorrow and will not be coming back. Don’t give them time to think about it, just do it. I find that it is the best way to deal with people like your parents. Also, tell them that you are not to be married to someone who does not believe the same as you. And Waisha will be a lot happier with someone else as her husband. I think that I have made a fairly good argument, don’t you?”
He laughed, “I think so.”
“Good, now go home and do your stuff. Also, Hero can come with you. I like that little man.”
“Now that is one matter in which I don’t have a choice in, he would follow and come with us anyways.”
They both laughed heartily. Then, Ellina gave Yeusem another hug and a kiss on the cheek. They said their good-byes, then Yeusem went his way back home.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Yeusem felt free. He had taken Ella’s advice, and told his parents his mind. They are argued long into the night, but Yeusem had won.
His parents had tried to say that he would be happy with Waisha as a wife, but he had that she would not be happy, and neither would he. He had made sure not to tell his parents about Ella, for he knew that they would demand to see her and compare her to Waisha. And his parents were all about appearances. He knew that Ella would not win over his parents with her looks. True, Waisha was beautiful, but she drove him out of his mind with her constant chatter and her attempts to flirt with him. If there was one thing he hated, it was a flirtatious woman.
He grinned when he had said the part about it being wrong for him to marry a woman of a different religion. His mother had gasped, then nodded. She knew what chaos that would lead to. It was then that she had relented. But his father had pressed him and pressed him. Finally, when he saw that Yeusem was unmoved about his decision about breaking the betrothal, he had followed suit with his mother and relented.
He felt like whopping and telling the whole world that he was free to marry the woman of his dreams. But first, he had to go and tell Ella the good news. Practically skipping, he walked to Dancer Inn.
Ella stepped out of the Dancer Inn, then looked at him, her eyes asking the question.
He nodded. Her eyes widened and she jumped into the air and ran into his arms. He held her there, loving how the hairs from her head tickled his chin. 
She lifted her chin to look into his eyes, “How long do you need to get packed and ready to go? And what about Hero?”
“I am already packed. And I have not told Hero about leaving. He was still asleep when I left.”
“Really? He seems like the last person on earth to be asleep at this hour.”
“Ella, it’s six. Almost the entire town is asleep.”
“Oh, yeah!” she giggled like a little girl, “I have never been one for sleeping in. Especially not today. I am so excited! You get to meet all my friends!”
“What happened to the mysterious woman I knew yesterday?” he smiled.
“Gone with the wind on this day! I had to be that way so that no one would go up to me and ask questions. Just act like you are to important and they will leave you alone.”
“Sounds like a good way.”
“It works, really. I have proof. Yesterday, no one even tried to look at me, and didn’t even try to talk to me unless I started the conversation first.” She smiled broadly, then took a deep breath, “So, when do you want to leave?”
“I will go home and get Hero up, so we can leave as soon as he is ready. He does not have that many things, so it shouldn’t take that long to get him ready.”
“Be at the Tavern in one hour. I will be there in the back booth again.” she said, going back to her formal, commanding self.
“We will be there.” He paused.
“Go! I will have food and water ready for us. Scoot and get our Cormo up!” She laughed mischievously.
Yeusem laughed along with her and turned and ran back to his home. He burst into the back door, then turned and closed it softly behind him. He tip-toed over to Hero’s room and cracked open the door. Sure enough, Hero was asleep, like almost everyone else in the town. He crept over to the bed and gently tapped Hero on the shoulder.
“Hero. Hero. Wake up!” he called softly.
“Wha-?” the Cormo’s eyes opened a slit, then widened, “What is it, Master Yeusem? Is something wrong?” He got up.
“No, nothing is wrong. I need you to be very quiet. Pack all your things and be ready to leave in about fourty-five minutes. Then we are going to be going to the Tavern to meet someone there. We are leaving, for good.”
Hero’s eyebrows raised, “For good, sir?” There was hope in his eyes.
“Aye, Hero. For good!”
“Then you need not tell me to hurry! I have been waiting for you say that for months.” He crawled under his bed and pulled out a bag and immediately began to pull clothes out of his drawer and shove them into it.
“It might help if you got dressed before you packed everything.” Yeusem said.
“In that case, it might help if you left me to my packing.” he waved his hands, indicating that he wanted Yeusem to leave. Yeusem did so with a grin.
Fourty-five minutes later, Hero came out the back door and saw Yeusem there waiting for him. He walked over to him. Yeusem simply looked at him and smiled. His master was obviously excited about whatever they were going to do. Yeusem strode out with purpose in his steps, the smile gone from his lips, yet a sparkle in his eyes.
A few minutes later, they arrived at the Tavern. Yeusem walked in with Hero on his heels. His master looked around, then his eyes settled on a figure in the back booth. The corners of his mouth twitched in a momentary smile. The figure was cloaked, yet it seemed familiar. Yeusem walked up the figure, then stopped. The cowl moved, and gleaming blue eyes stared at them intently.
“You two are early.” He knew that voice. Where did it come from? Oh! Yes! Lady Ellina! Thats who it was!
“Yes we are, my lady.” Yeusem responded as if this was a business meeting.
“Hero, I am so glad that you are here!” Lady Ellina said. She waved her hand at the seats opposite her, and the pair sat down.
“Did you know that I was coming?” the Cormo raised an eyebrow.
“Of course!” she answered, “I asked Yeusem to bring you along. You seem like the useful sort.”
“I have been Master Yeusem’s servant for quite a number of years. Long before he left almost three years ago and then came back. I would have gone with him, but he forbade it.”
“Ah, so you are obedient?” she asked.
“Only when I think that my master knows what he is doing,” he grinned and winked at Yeusem, who blushed.
Lady Ellina chuckled, “Alright then. For now, I think that it is best that you drop the ‘Master Yeusem’. We are going to be equals on this journey. There is a town that is no more than a half a day journey away. We will be going there. I was there for a week, and I like it a great deal. Also, I have many friends there. I have food ready for us. So we can leave right now, if you all want to.”
“It sounds good to me!” Hero chimed.
“And to me as well,” Yeusem agreed.
“Then, let us go! I would like to get there as soon as possible,” she got up and tossed them water canteens that she had beside her. One dangled from her own side, along with a sack of some sort that Hero assumed had food in it.
They stepped outside, breathing in the cool air. The town was just beginning to wake up, so there were not many people out. They slipped out without anyone so much as giving them a glance.
Once they were away from the town, Ellina pulled back her hood and tossed her head. A long, blonde braid now hung down her back, and the mysterious air was gone. She was now just a normal woman with a scar on one side of her face and ugly marks on the other side. Yet, she seemed to be anything but a regular human. There was still something about her.
“My lady,” Ellina turned to him, her eyes shinning, “I hope that you do not mind my asking. But, what are you?”
She threw back her head and gave a musical laugh, “I’m not exactly the most normal person on earth, am I?”
Hero shook his head.
“I am a Roshem,” she turned to Yeusem, “You were right all along.”
“So, how did you two meet? Yeusem told me a little bit of it, but I am afraid that I do not know any of the specifics.”
“Yeusem, you tell it all.”
So Yeusem told Hero all about their meeting, with Ellina throwing in a few details. Hero listened intently. The Cormo found himself enraptured by their tale. So, this young lady could see into the future, or even of things in the present. He knew only a few tales about her race. But he knew that they were rare and extremely powerful. And there was also something else, something about how the marks on their faces showed their gifts.
He could could tell that there was definitely something special between this unusual pair.
When they finished, Hero simply whistled, “Wow, thats quite an unusual way to meet.”
“Aye!” Ellina agreed, “It had to have been one of the strangest and most confusing moments in my life. And believe me, I have had many confusing and strange moments. One of the most recent was about a week ago, when I found I have the Voice of Command.”
“The WHAT?” Yeusem stopped walking and stared at her. He knew very well what it was, he had just never met anyone who had that ability.
“The Voice of Command.” She shrugged, “I’m really not sure how I am supposed to use it, I have only done it once and that was by accident.”
“Wow, Ella, you are turning into quite the powerful young lady.” Yeusem said, a smile tugging at his lips.
“And don’t you forget it!” She shook her finger teasingly at him.
They continued their easy, ambling walk through the woods, talking and laughing as if there was nothing in the world that could separate them again, and Hero walking along, watching the whole thing with interest.

I hope you all enjoyed! thanks for giving me your imput! Let me know if I should change anything...believe me, the next chapter is much more interesting than this one! :)

I love you all! 

:)

~Jenna~