There was something that these people were not saying. The glances, smiles, and the tone of the voices. Nothing he could do about it.
And now he had to face a meeting with the villagers, to be not chosen by anyone, or worse, be chosen into an abusive household.
There was no way that any place existed without violence. That was too good to be true. Having no hope for good things was the only way he had been bearing all that's been thrown at him all this time.
A child who caused his parents' death should not deserve anything better. Could not expect good things to happen.
And to add on top of that, he had to be in complete control of his emotions. Sol was not someone he should anger.
Even now, he was angry.
Lyor wondered if it was wrong to think that he could have the cat, if that was why he was angry.
"So, Lyor, do you want to take a stroll through the village? Sol will take you, and Elowen can join, too." Teebu said.
"No. It's okay. I will join the meeting." He said timidly, not wanting to be around Sol when he was angry.
He could handle the hits and the pain, but he could not bear someone being disappointed in him or being angry at him. It was terrifying. That's when people abandoned him.
"Okay then. Maybe you could sleep till the meeting is arranged. Do you need any of us to stay with you, sweetie?" Mira asked.
Lyor shook his head, got up to the bed, dragged the bedsheet over his head, and curled in.
He thought he heard a small "Oh."
Although he wanted to catch some sleep, he lay wide awake.
Mira's POV
She couldn't hold back a soft sound escaping, watching Lyor curl into himself, a lump under the bedsheet, making himself so small.
For a fleeting second, something tugged at her heart, wanting to give him a warm hug. Everyone saw how Lyor always recoiled at touch, and then Sol had informed that he may not have had a good life back where he was from. From where all of them probably lived before arriving here.
It wasn't a hard guess, as they all spoke a similar or the same language, except for very few. But to think that there were fathers who hit their own child was beyond her comprehension, no matter how old the child was.
Teebu led everyone outside, having to ask Elowen to drag Sol out from the kitchen, where he had holed up for so long.
Nemeteia was divided into six sections, with a section head for each, as the village had now become a larger area than it was one hundred years ago. There were five hundred eighty-nine people living there, five hundred ninety with Lyor now.
Teebu summoned all six section heads to the village hall located in the middle of Nemeteia and informed them to gather all to welcome the newcomer and to have any volunteer family step in to take Lyor in.
He was careful to mention that whoever it was would need patience with the newcomer, and they nodded in understanding. Once the families who wanted to take him in stepped up, the newcomer would take the pick. People coming in with certain unsolved emotions or unexplained behavior were common to them, and they were ready to welcome them regardless and be with them alongside the journey to adapt to the beautiful life in Nemeteia.
All five hoped that even with his memories, Lyor could be free from the shackles and free from whatever sadness he was carrying. Although they could not understand, they could see clearly the child bound by rules and restrictions, constrained, scared of people, and they wanted nothing but to see at least a small smile from him or any sign of his trusting them.
People managing the village hall started arranging the chairs in a half circle with space for the speakers and newcomers in the middle corner, while others busied themselves with arranging a small snack and drink that Mira suggested. The spread was simple and warm: Melograin cakes still steaming from the clay oven, their surfaces glazed with sweetroot syrup that caught the light like amber. Small cups of silvermint tea, hot enough for drinking temperature, sat beside pitchers of spring water purified with cleansalt.
Sol's POV
Sol was roaming near the healing house, keeping a check on Lyor, not wanting him to make another run. It had been three hours, and the kid hadn't slept a wink. Whenever he enhanced his hearing and listened in, he could hear his breathing stuttering, or inhaling deeply as if he was not getting enough air, shuffling, and so on.
He figured that he must be feeling nervous. Not being able to relate to what it felt like to have memories was indeed frustrating. Or maybe it was because he already knew that Lyor was hiding a secret just like him.
Only that now, he knew what it was, and he was the only one having to hold on to a secret all alone, again.
Shaking the thought away, Sol kept his attention on the kid, hoping he would get some shut-eye before the meeting and would not look like death warmed over, facing all the people.
The sun shifted, afternoon light filtering through the whisperwood leaves in patterns that moved like slow breathing. Sol observed the sunpearls dimming, indicating the approach of the sunset, his enhanced senses catching every small sound from within. A rustle of fabric.
The creak of the bedframe as Lyor turned, then turned again, seeking a position that didn't exist, a rest that wouldn't come.
He thought of his own first night. The skin crawling need to help someone, do something. Completely different from this timid newcomer. When he had discovered his abilities, he had trained for three days straight, not sleeping, not stopping, until Teebu had found him collapsed at the barrier's edge and carried him back. That's when he offered him to join the hunter's team to keep the village safe.
Only then did that unexplained feeling of anger and the urge to do everything to protect and help finally die down, seeing that he could take down any monster, feeling that he was finally strong enough to keep everyone safe and happy. But whenever he saw Lyor, that need to help was crawling back because he knew his strength or senses could not help those who were suffering from a past that he had no clue of.
He could cut down monsters to let people feel safe.
He could not cut down Lyor's memories to let him feel safe.
The door to the healing house opened. Ceera stepped out, her purple eyes finding him immediately.
"He's not sleeping," she said, not asking.
"I know."
"The meeting starts when the moonstone starts shining. Teebu wants him to eat something first. Something light."
Sol nodded, sheathed his sword, and walked toward the door. He pushed through the membrane, into the dim interior, and found Lyor still curled under the sheet. A small shape. A hidden shape. The way animals hid when they were wounded.
"Lyor."
And he fucking flinched hearing his own name.
"The meeting is soon. You need to eat something."
Silence. Then, muffled, "I'm not hungry."
"You haven't eaten since the afternoon."
A rustle. The sheet lowered slightly, revealing white hair and one brown eye, wary and watching.
"I'm not hungry."
And he wasn't lying. How could someone not be hungry, only having one meal for the whole day? He didn't even count porridge as a full meal.
The sheet lowered further. Lyor sat up, slowly. He was pale, shadows under his eyes darker than before, eyes still cast down.
"Can I ask a question?"
"Yes."
"Is the meeting... will there be many people?"
"All six sections. Anyone who wants to volunteer to take you in."
Lyor's hands found the edge of the sheet, twisted it. "When no one wants me, can I stay on my own?"
"What?" Sol's eyes trembled.
He said, 'when no one wants me,' not,' if no one wants me.'
"They will." Sol stood, "Joining one family is just as simple as picking where you want to stay. Here, we all take care of everyone regardless of where anyone stays. That's how it works here."
"How what works?"
"Everything." Sol walked toward the small table where Ceera had left a plate and returned with a Melograin cake. "Eat. Then we'll go. Together."
Lyor took the cake with both hands, the way he held everything, as if it might be taken away. He bit, chewed, swallowed. And then stopped.
"S-Sol?"
"Yes?"
"Is Hunter... is he really okay?"
Sol nodded, the motion feeling like a promise. "He's fine. Tough. He could literally survive a lightning strike."
"Okay."
Lyor finished the cake in silence.
When it's time, they walked toward the village hall, toward the half-circle of chairs, toward the people who had gathered to welcome the newcomer with open hands.
Lyor's steps were small, following Sol, but he stood straight.
Anyone watching would tell that he was walking with confidence.
Hearing the merciless heartbeat and the anxiety rolling over in waves, only Sol knew that he wasn't.
He had indeed ended up looking like death warmed over when Teebu arrived and started the meeting.