PR: Woober
In Tyrias mories, Elric had had a mischievous glint over his round face. His brown hair had been immaculate, and his clothes were so fine you could tell they were made of good fabric at first glance.
He was the first boy of her age that Tyra had ever t.
Where are you from, Ive never seen you before?
The curious question was an unfamiliar action Tyria had never experienced before.
Though she felt ashad for not caring about her appearance just monts before, she couldnt help but feel an instinctive favor toward the boy she had just t.
There.
Tyria pointed over the hill to the Wyvern Family Mansion.
Seeing this, Elric had said.
Ah, the Bobbers Lair!
She couldnt help but gasp.
The words that had co out of his mouth had been vulgar words shed been trained to never use in her language.
Bobber
My dad says that thats where the bobber lives, eating up all the land.
She couldnt help but chuckle.
It wasnt as if she didnt know what he ant. She just couldnt believe he was using that kind of language whilst talking to soone from the manor.
It wasnt until later that she realized he was an accident waiting to happen, but at the ti, everything about him had just been a shock to Tyria.
Well, whatever. Just follow .
Huh?
The dic cant co out today because he got in trouble with his mom. Youll be the dic instead.
Grab
Elric snatched Tyrias hand.
Tyria was then dragged by him, forgetting that she had been the one supposedly asking for help.
It wasnt without pain, of course. Her calf was so sore from the previous days punishnts that she could only limp, and her swollen face stung from the wind.
Elrics lips pouted as he realized it too.
What? You hurt your leg? Then you should have told .
Its
Co here.
What he did next was embarrassing.
Awww!
Elric had picked up Tyria and started swinging her around.
Elric had been six years old and Tyria had been only eight.
As a child who hadnt yet reached puberty, Elric was obviously much smaller than Tyria, but he had picked her up easily.
It was in that mont.
Youre now a wounded soldier, not a dic!
Elric grinned.
The boys face was confident as he grinned against the sun.
The breeze was cool, and the boys arms, so small, were full of a sense of security.
It had been a first for her.
The experience of having soone hold you close.
To feel the warmth of another human being was such a shock for her that it could only be described as wonder, and so Tyria responded in a way that she didnt even understand.
Hiik
Tears welled up in her eyes as she cried.
What the hell, youre ugly and a wimp.
A-A.
Dont cry, youll ss up all your hair.
Sorry Sob
Ugh, who told you to apologize? Thats enough.
Elric patted Tyria on the back.
Only then did Tyria realize.
Crying was not sothing to apologize for.
Hehehe
In the giggling boys arms, for the first ti in her life, Tyria felt comforted.
She still rembered that mont to this day.
Youre on dic duty today!
Elric had led her to a small clearing at the edge of town.
A look of surprise had crossed her face as she realized there were so many other children her age in Wiven.
Of course, they werent all like Elric.
So were scruffy, so wore clothes that she had learned to identify as rags, and so even had unwashed hair.
It didnt particularly bother her, but it certainly made her realize that Elric was the outlier in this group.
Hey, Ugly!
Elric called out to Tyria.
TYria was suddenly overwheld by embarrassnt.
No, Im not.
Youre ugly because you have a puffy face, and Aldio said that pretty people have very thin faces!
Calling soone ugly in front of other people was a very vulgar thing to do.
But even if she could deny Elrics words, Tyria knew she was ugly right now.
Her red flushed, but blue face.
Her eyes started trembling again.
Elric sighed.
Haa, shes crying again.
The boss made her cry!
Its the boss! Hes the epito of a bad boy!
The kids cheered.
Elric shrugged, then walked over to Tyria and wiped her tears away with his handkerchief.
Dont cry. Do you really want to be a wimp?
Sob
I said stop crying, now, huh?!
Choo!
Tyria blew her nose in the handkerchief.
Thus, Elric flicked the handkerchief to the floor.
Anyway, be friendly with the guys. If they get hurt, will you treat them?
His words rang in her ears, were funny, and self-serving.
And yet, sohow, she didnt hate it.
Tyria nodded shyly, rembering Elric carrying her and laughing as they walked.
That was the day she had learned how to play.
Or, more accurately, the day she realized what play really was.
Up until then, all she had known was education in the guise of play.
Putting words together to write a poem, or cleaning a teacup.
This new play was refreshing.
dic, tend to the wounded!
Elric sat down in front of Tyria, his red cloak wrapped around a small wooden sword that matched his size.
He had just co from a fight on the floor with a wooden sword.
Tyria, who had been watching the whole ti, glared at him.
Here, lets heal this place!
Elric rolled up his sleeve.
Tyria could only gasp in horror.
Its so dirty
Idiot, injuries are supposed to be dirty!
Elric smirked and shoved the mud on his arm at Tyria.
Tyria pulled her head back in disgust.
So Elric said.
Here, wipe it off with this rag.
She knew that wiping it with a rag would only make it dirtier.
But, even as she thought about it, Tyria still ended up grabbing the rag and wiping Elrics arm.
It didnt make his arm clean.
Only the mud was now gone.
She wondered if he was going to get in trouble.
Worry surged through her.
But then,
Well done, dic!
Um! Umm! Elric mumbled in satisfaction, as if that were enough.
Imdiately afterwards,
Its excellent!
With a swoosh, Elric ruffled Tyrias hair.
Tyrias eyes widened like a rabbits.
If I ever get injured again, you should treat like this, alright?
It was a simple complint, but it cut deep into her heart.
Maybe she was just hungry for affirmation.
In her life, praise had only co after too much punishnt.
Play.
So this was how one played.
Tyria had finally realized.
That there was no punishnt in play.
The events she had experienced that day had been like a dream.
And, as with all dreams, ones mont of awakening eventually ca.
Captain, see you tomorrow!
Goodbye, Ugly dic!
It was sunset.
The sky was colored red, and the day had grown a little cooler.
The clearing was beginning to empty as the children who had caused the ruckus scattered one by one.
Youre coming again, arent you?
Elric had asked.
But Tyria couldnt answer quickly enough.
She couldnt, she had thought, sneaking out without telling her parents and skipping classes all day.
And that wasnt all.
She hadnt apologized properly the day before, and so today, she was going to get a worse spanking than the day before.
Suddenly, Tyria felt terrified.
-Why! Why dont you understand our hearts!
She shuddered as the image of a giant hand filling her vision flashed through her mind.
Her mind blanked, and she began to gasp for air.
Whats wrong with you?
Elric frowned, studying Tyria.
Tyria shrank back.
Nothing.
No, its not nothing. Co here.
Elric gripped Tyrias hand tightly and leaned his head in, searching every inch of her face.
Tyria bowed her head deeply, embaressed.
At the end of it, Elric said, Ah!
I got it!
You dont want to go ho!
It was like a lightning bolt, as Tyrias head snapped up.
It was a surprise.
The thought of Elric seeing right through her mind when she hadnt said a single word sent a shiver up her spine.
Elric smirked, as if he knew all that she was thinking.
Then, lets play so more!
Captain?
Are you going to run away again today?
Un, you guys want to run away too?
The two remaining children, Luton and Bart, shook their heads.
Elric pouted his lips.
What the hell, Sissies. Lets go then, Ugly.
Tyria couldnt believe her eyes.
This was how out of control Elric had been.
Even so, she felt a mixture of impatience and relief in her heart.
A runaway, did that an that she was not going ho?
If so, would she not be punished today?
Tyria wondered, feeling her fear recede, but still worrying about Elric.
Is this okay?
What, running away?
Maybe it would have been, she reflected in the present
Its okay, my Dad doesnt really care about .
In that mont, she had felt a sudden sense of kinship with him.
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