Vobrala

The pressure was torture, Marvin was warm but the cold was stronger. Nepta could barely register the young man's words, she only heard bits and pieces, her antlers came forth from her head as an attempt to try to stay awake. The antlers were coated in frost, and came out slower than any other time. The gypsy looked down at the mage, she was getting worse by the moment, he needed to go faster he had to. Almost as if reading his thoughts, fate decided to give a hand in the form of a small town not to far out. Seeing the settlement, Marvin felt a small amount of hope as a new found energy rushed through his system.

He was stopped by the two Druids who guarded the gates, "Hold human, state ye-Wait look! Dormancy!" the other guard cut off the first one off pointing to Nepta, "Shite, come human. We'll take ya to our healer." thanking them immensely Marvin followed the guard into a small wooden shack. The shack had multiple doors, two on either side and one across from the entrance, the healer was an old woman with large, intricate antlers. Seeing the state the young woman was in, the healer quickly rushed and took her from the gypsy's hands, "Oh dear, I was hoping I wouldn't ever see this again." the old woman quickly rushed into one of the side rooms, the door locking behind her.

After the guards left, the young man paced around the center of the room for what felt like hours. It was about nine when the old healer walked out of the room, "I won't lie to ya, yer friend had stage 3 Dormancy. If ya brought her any later, she would have died. Ya can go in and see her, she's just restin'." Marvin quickly walked into the room seeing Nepta lying on a bed, he breaths were calm and, upon cupping one side of her face, she was back to a normal temperature range. He hair was back to it's earthy brown, he markings a leaf green. The gypsy couldn't help but give her a kiss out of relief, "M-Marvin...?" her voice was weak, but she was still alive.

"Y-yes. It's me." Marvin replied choking back tears. He took a deep breath. "You're going to be okay," he said grabbing one of her hands with both of his. "There was a healer druid. She's helping you. You're going to be back to your normal self in no time," he promised her seeing as her hair and markings had already returned to normal. He leaned closer to her and whispered, "I love you," into her ear. Marvin stayed there for a while, holding on to her hand. "I'm going to go now. I'll be right outside that door. You need to get rest so you can heal." He told her before leaving the room and making his way toward the healer. He began by thanking her. "Thank you so much. For everything. If it wasn't for you. If I lost her. I just." He talked quick broken sentences. "I don't think I could make it without her. I am so grateful for your help." He then thought for a while. Stage 3 Dormancy. His curiousity grabbed a hold of him. "What is Dormancy?" Marvin knew it was some kind of disease or sickness and saw gow it had affected Nepta, but other than that he knew nothing.

Looking at the human the elder Druid responded, "I'm not surprised ya don't, not many out side our race know of it. It's duh Druid equivalent as yer human's cancer. There be four stages, duh first stage affects duh mind. Things be outta focus, but is easily ignored. Then duh second stage hit hours later, as frost enters duh blood it removes our color. Only warmth of a soul bound be felt by duh Druid, an' about a day or two later if duh soul bound is near does stage three hit." the old woman took a sip of the tea she made, offering a cup to Marvin, "Ya brought ya friend in at a good time, as it was in early stage three. But stage three has duh frost multiply, makin' duh Druid colder then before, an' all color be lost at this stage. Duh longer this stage goes on, duh lower duh survival rate. At stage four there be nothin' we can do but prepare a bonfire, as it be too dangerous to eat duh affected."

The gypsy was stunned, any later and...and...NO! Marvin couldn't think about it, Nepta was safe and recovering. He asked about what a soul bound was, but the old healer just smiled at him with amusement, "Ya human term be a 'soul mate' an' yer's be in that room." she pointed to the room that his companion was in, "I've been 'round long enough to know when two people are soul bound. Ya compliment each other well. Ya should go to her, I can tell ya want to." at the Elder's words, the young man thanked the healer for all she had done, before returning to Nepta's side.

The younger Druid was sleeping, as Marvin sat down, her body turned to face him. The color in the young woman's hair and markings were closer to what they originally been, the gypsy reached out and held one of her hands. She was warmer, unconsciously the mage pulled her companion into the bed, clutching on to him as a feeling of safety washed over her. In her tired state she mumbled, "Don' go...Don' wanna be 'lone again. Love ya too..."

Marvin lay in the bed next to her and stroked her hair. "Don't worry. I won't leave you." He promised as he lay next to her. He thought about what the healer said. Soul Bound. He thought about it. Before now he didn't know whether or not he believed in soul mates. He believed in true love, but never really thought of soul mates. If anybody was to be his what the druids call soul bound, he was happy that it was Nepta.

Nepta felt safe in the gypsy's arms, she still was weak from the Dormancy, but at the moment she didn't care. The only thing that mattered was Marvin and peace between them, nothing else mattered. The Druid didn't care whether they returned to their original genders, Nevas would love Marvina as much as she did Marvin, or if for what ever reason the world ended the next day, at least they would go together. She used as much of her remaining strength as she could to grip the young man tighter, if anyone tried to take him from her again, like those women tried to, she would show them just how terrifying a small, female Druid could be when empowered by womanly rage.

Marvin felt the young woman's grip lightly tighten, he pulled her closer in order to give her some comfort, as he pulled the blanket up to their necks. As he two cuddled throughout the night, Marvin didn't have a single night terror. When morning came, the gypsy gave a light groan as he begun to wake up. He tried to get up, but a weight on his chest stopped him. Looking down, Marvin saw Nepta sleeping on top of him, her arms still held his shirt and she tried to get even closer as the Druid curled up keeping him pinned. Lightly brushing a strand of hair out of her face, the gypsy didn't have the heart to wake her, as the small Druid was most likely still recovering from the Dormancy.

Marvin smiled down at the sleeping Nepta. He lay in the bed awake, not wanting to wake the druid up by trying to get up. Thank you. He said to his spirit guide, who he wasn't sure could hear him and figured wouldn't respond. It was likely that without it's help he never would have found the druid village. The smell of lavender filled his nose. Although he received no response, he knew the spirit had heard him. Marvin then returned his attention to Nepta who was still sleeping. He stroked her hair until he fell back asleep.

It was around eleven when Nepta woke up, she slowly reached up and rubbed the sleep out of her eyes, a soft yawn escaped her mouth before seeing Marvin under her. Lightly putting a hand on his face, she brought herself in to give him a quick kiss, though due to her still recovering, she struggled somewhat. If it wasn't for the gypsy, she wouldn't have made it...the young woman's darker thoughts struck again. The mage's train of thought derailed when she felt a pressure on her lips, focusing back in on reality the small Druid quickly realized that her companion had kissed her back.

A small smile graced her face, "M-morning...Darlin'.." her voice was still weak, but it was better than when Marvin originally checked on her after she was healed, "I don't...wanna get...up." she cuddled closer into him, and was still pinning him down. The gypsy chuckled before getting up using his superior strength, though Nepta still holding on to him, as he explained that they had to get up, "Fine...c-carry me?" nodding Marvin set her back on the bed before having her hold on to his back. Exiting the room the kind old Druid smiled at them, "Finally up, eh? Come, let's get ya both some food then ya can talk to duh Keeper." before the young man could ask about what a Keeper was, the young woman on his back gave a quick explanation, "Keepers...be duh leaders...of our...clans."

Marvin nodded at Nepta's explanation. The healer then led the two to where they could get some food. Along the way Marvin wondered what the Keeper would be like. He wondered what the customs when meeting the Keeper would be. He knew when metting human rulers, there were certain things that you were supposed to do. Marvin wasn't sure if a Keeper would be the same way or not. He figured he should ask to make sure he didn't do anything impolite. He felt somewhat silly for not knowing, but how could he, Nepta was the first druid he had ever met. Feeling more comfortable asking Nepta than the healer, he turned his head toward Nepta and asked in a hushed tone, "Is there anything I should - that I am supposed to do when meeting the Keeper?"

"Accept any...gifts. Be...polite and...r-remember that...Keepers put...safety of their...clan first. So...don't show any...hostile behavior." the gypsy nodded, it was good to know what he should do. It wasn't long before they were led to a building with many tables inside, said tables were long, big enough to fit ten people. Entering Nepta noticed other Druids scattered around, it was getting closer to lunch so it made some sense. Though a few of the female Druids who, from appearances, were in their early to late thirties, kept looking at her companion like a piece of meat. Antlers escaped her head as she glared at them, though the small Druid was still weak, she wouldn't hesitate to put bitches down.

Marvin felt the mage's arms tighten slightly, he turned his head slightly just as she turned her head to look at his, "Mine..." the jealous Druid's statement caused the gypsy to lightly chuckle, giving her a quick kiss on the lips as he repeated her own statement back to her. Nepta turned to see the other woman glaring at her, the younger woman just smirked before sticking her tongue out. The duo were seated and Nepta ordered nuts for her companion and a squirrel for herself. See her companions confused look she went to explain, "We don't...cook our meat...you would only...get sick, and...I don't want...you sick."

Their food came out, and they ate peacefully, until a few male Druids started to hit on Nepta, "Come on lass, we could show ya a better time then this human." the female Druid had yet to retract her antlers as she scooted closer to Marvin, "I happen to...like this...human if ya...don't mind." the three Druids did mind, as one roughly grabbed the mage's arm, "Look either ya comin' with us willin'ly or by force." Marvin quickly forced the male Druid's hand off of his companion, seeing her pained expression. Luckily before any thing else happened, the old healer intervened, "Ya boys best not be botherin' our honored guests, specially not tryin' to manhandle one of ma patients. Are ya?" the three Druids ran away in fear of the elderly Druid, "Come, it be time to meat with duh Keeper. And don't worry 'bout them, I saw everythin'. Duh Keeper will pass judgement on those three."

As Nepta and him sat, the three druid boys began to hit on Nepta. Although it bothered him quite a bit, he tried to ignore it because he didn't want any trouble. If those druids had strength anything like Nevas had when they can across the warrior women, Marvin stood not even the slightest chance against them. On top of that, Marvin was trying to be on his best behavior during their time at the druid village. He didn't want to get in any trouble for showing "hostile" behavior. Marvin gave a slight smile at Nepta's response to the druid males as she scooted closer to him. He started to move an arm around her, but then one of the druid boys grabbed Nepta's arm and a look of pain crossed her face. Without even a thought, grabbed the druid's wrist, moving the hand off of Nepta. Then, he heard the dealer's voice behind him and quickly dropped the wrist in his hand. Marvin gave a small sigh of relief as the three ran off. "Thank you... Again." He said to the healer as he put Nepta back onto his back as they were about to go meet the Keeper.

The three walked to the Keepers hall, Nepta tried to walk but was stumbling with almost every step, so she just climbed on to Marvin's back. It was around twelve thirty when the reached the hall, walking inside the traveling duo were guided to where the Keeper waited. Moving off the gypsy's back, Nepta slightly shook as she stood, using her companion's arm as a support, "So, this be duh human that helped save one of our kin? Duh guards keep tellin' me about ya lad. Say ya were rushin' to our gates like death himself was at yer heels." the Keeper was an older man, with grey hair mixed into his brown. Upon confirmation, the Keeper looked to one of the other Druids, before he nodded.

A box was brought out, in it was something that made Nepta gasp in both shock and happiness, it was a old, wooden necklace. The pendent was just a normal circle, but it was carved to have a small sun embedded into the oak wood, "This necklace is a prized possession of our people, and with it I name ya Druid. Welcome to duh clan." Marvin gratefully accepted the gift as Nepta quickly explained what just happened, "Darlin' duh Keeper has...decided that ya be...worthy enough to be...an honorary Druid. That...means ya can come...and go from any... Druid settlement as ya...please." she gave the gypsy a hug as the Keeper chuckled, sneaking a glance to the old healer to get confirmation, she nodded with a smile. Getting their attention again the Keeper continued, "Now it has come to ma attention that these two here be soul bound. So with duh power entrusted to me as Keeper, an' duh Sun above as witness, I here by name these two, Oak and Willow."

Nepta's eyes widened before she jumped on to her companion, giving him a big kiss. When they broke for air she answered his unasked question, "Druid tend to only...marry their soul bound...Duh Keeper has been...given conformation...by duh healer and...had wed us as...an act of good...will. Yer...my Oak, an' I...be yer Willow in...duh eyes of duh...Druid we be husband...an' wife." she explained as two large bracelets were presented to them, the only unique feature about the bands were the engraved, interlocking circle pattern on them. Grabbing one, the small Druid placed it one Marvin's left hand, while the gypsy quickly understood and put the other on to the mage's wrist, "We can do it...yer human way sometime...later if ya want."

"Th-thank you." Marvin managed to stammer out upon receiving his gift, that was so more than just a necklace. Little did he know that the next gift would be even greater, as the Keeper had married Nepta and him. "No, that's alright," he told Nepta. "The human way is rather long and boring. If we do it the human way, I say we just skip to the celebration part." Marvin was extremely happy to now be wed to Nepta. He preferred the druid way. They tended to marry only soul bound, which meant they married soul mates. People meant to be together. Humans typically could not tell when they are really soul mates. On top of that when humans married, there were many reasons for doing so. Many of which weren't for love. He then thought of what he would tell his family. He felt a need to update them on his life. He thought in his head what he would make out in the letter. He would of course tell of the adventures he had had so far. Then Nepta/Nevas. Oh yeah, of course I can't leave out the fact that I'm a guy now and I'm married. He smiled as he thought of the shock he would see upon his parents face upon hearing that news. He then brought his mind back to reality. Where he was now. Next to Nepta. In front of the Keeper

"We thank ya kindly...for yer gifts an'... yer hospitality Keeper." Nepta couldn't keep the joy out of her voice, this was one of the happiest days in her life, "Yer both welcome here anytime. Now I hope yer don't mind, but I there be other things that be needin' ma attention." nodding in understanding, the newly weds left the hall. The small Druid was insistent that she didn't need to be carried...until after three shaky steps the mage was stopped from falling by her new husband. Marvin on the other hand chuckled at her stubbornness, this was the Nepta he knew.

It didn't take long before they found the market area, like the town it was small however the quality of goods were better than anything the gypsy had seen. As they looked around, the smaller Druid caught sight of a beautiful, strapless dress. It was emerald green, with small gold accenting around the bust area, it wasn't very noticeable from a distance as it looked like a lighter shade of green, and a gold clasp for the silk-like belt, which was adjustable to fit different body sizes, and to top it off it came with a separate collar that had the same gold trim, and a semi-transparent green cloth, that was slightly smaller than the dress itself, which was attached to a clasp in the front and sown in the back.

It would show her shoulders and her upper back slightly, but the cape-like cloth would hide that part of her skin. Making her husband go over to the dress, she climbed off his back before taking the dress into the changing room. After a few minute of waiting for his new wife, Marvin's jaw dropped as she walked out. Apart of him was trying to reboot as he became stunned, the other part was having a feild day, the dress fit her like a second skin. The small Druid put the old dress she was wearing away before moving to her husband, "Alright, let's go look...at duh other shops." that snapped Marvin out of his trance as he told her he wouldn't be able to afford that kind of dress. Nepta just gave him a light giggle, "Welcome to life as...a Druid, we don't...pay for things. We...don't believe in using...money, as long as...duh person who takes...it is happy then...that's all duh payment...needed. Why do ya...think I tried to...steal our map?"

Marvin thought of the idea. Being able to have things that make you happy, no payment required. It was much different from the human world. It was... better. "That's amazing," Marvin told Nepta. He knew such an idea would most likely not work among humans. Give just to make people happy. Most would not give without return, and on on top of that there would be people who would take advantage of being able to freely take. But here, with the druids, it worked. He looked at Nepta and smiled. "You look beautiful," he told her.

Hearing the compliment, the Druid beamed with happiness as she held onto his arm and started walking. They had stopped by a stand that made staves, Nepta loved her staff, she really did, but she could feel that it was ready to settle down into a tree. The small Druid turned in her old staff, and became connected to a simple shepherd's staff, though the larger hook curved back in making a smaller hook to hang things. The couple also found things for Marvin as well. One was a book on Alchemy, at the insistence of his wife due to it being one of the thing she was proficient in, another item was new clothes, he went for simple and got clothes similar to what he was already wearing but more vibrant and came with a larger satchel, he was slightly surprised to find paper, but his wife just explained that the paper was made from dead trees, the last item he got was a small knife.

The knife was about eleven inches over all, with a small cross guard. The handle was wrapped in a black leather as metal rings helped to keep it together, it's pommel was a hexagonal like shape with two metal strips making a small, flat point. The blade itself was wide, as a small fuller ran about two thirds the blade, starting from the guard, and it's scabbard was all black with silver metal at the point and opening. A small chain was located at the opening to help carry the blade when not needed. Nepta understood why he wanted the blade, if something happened, and she either was unconscious or too busy with something else, the gypsy needed someway to protect himself.

She helped him secure his new blade to under his shirt, making sure that it both wasn't going to fall and that it could be easily reached in a time of need. When they returned to the dining hall they shared a large platter of nuts and had a glass of wine, it was around ten when they returned to the old healers place, who insisted as the small Druid was still recovering. Marvin started on his letter to his family, as Nepta helped him recall some events, out right refusing to have him describe others, like the warrior women. As he finished, the young healer had slipped out of her clothes into a simple nightgown she took when her husband wasn't looking.

It was a simple gown, only reaching a bit past her knees, though unlike her dress, it was an earth brown color and had thin straps. The gypsy only thought in made her more beautiful as it put more attention to her face, while the dress pulled his attention to her hair, "Come Darlin', I need...my Oak's warmth." yup, she was teasing him again. So in turn he took off both of his new shirts as he climbed into the bed, pulling her lightly into his chest. Nepta's red face and dazed look of content was all he needed to know he won this round of teasing, so he pulled the blankets back up and blew out the candle. Marvin two, Nepta zero.

Marvin woke up the next day and laid in the bed for a while. He looked down and saw the sleeping Nepta. He gave her a quick kiss on the forehead before sliding out of the bed. Marvin stretched as he got up and went to look out the window. He felt an extreme happiness as he could see a portion of the colors of sunrise draped across the sky. Another day sure to be filled with happiness, especially since he would get to spend it with Nepta. He looked down at his bracelet that symbolized his marriage. He felt his heart was swelling with joy. And now, thanks to the Druids help, Nepta may be able to see the Emerald Sea that she spoke about. Once she recovers some more of course.

Nepta released a small groan before reaching out for Marvin, "Come back to bed darlin'." chuckling slightly the gypsy held her hand and pulled her out of the bed. A small pout formed on his wife's face, she eventually got up and stretched her back. She made sure that her chest would be more pronounced, as cracks echoed from the small of the Druid's back. Looking to her husband, he turned his head away with tinge of red on his cheeks as he got caught staring, looks like she finally got him. Smiling at her victory, Nepta started to change into her dress. The mage didn't care that she was changing in front of Marvin, they were married so it would have happened sooner or later. She definitely didn't do it to even up the score on their little teasing game...nope not at all.

Once the two were ready, they exited their room and spoke to the old healer. After getting a check up, were the old Druid gave the young healer an all clear, as long as she did nothing to strenuous happened for the next few days, the couple thanked the elder for all her help and left to get some food. Luckily, the small Druid had recovered enough strength to walk on her own, however she just stuck to holding her husbands arm just in case. There wasn't many people in the food hall, Nepta made sure that her companion was wearing the necklace for all to see, it wouldn't do any good if the other Druids thought he was just some random human. They ate some nuts, and had some water, before they started to plan out they're day.

Marvin continued to eat nuts as they planned the day out. He watched as Nepta pulled out the map. "How far away is the Emerald Sea?" Marvin asked her beforefore adding, "We'll probably have to make more stops than we have been. We don't want to over do anything or push our luck." Marvin was still slightly concerned about Nepta's condition. He knew she was much better than she was earlier, but she was still weaker than her normal self.

Nepta gave a small smile, "While this be fun now, but I say we come back at a later date." turning to the map, she started to ponder where the should go next. The capital was still an option, though she didn't feel like that would be fun, they could head back towards the mountain, the Stone Abyss' entrance was somewhere around there, or they could just wonder around east of the Sea. Hearing her husbands concerns the Druid gave him a kiss on the cheek, "It's sweet that ya worried 'bout me, but ma strength be gettin' back to what it was. But if it makes ya feel any better, I'll take it easy for yer sake."