Even Knights Can Hurt

Meri-Acres farms… a quaint little area. It’s very homey and open… Surely, this was a nice place to grow up.

Too bad she had gotten here first, before I could confirm that.

The violet glow from the clouds above us only made Tor’s expression look worse. It was as if he was trying to put a stoic mask over all of his overwhelming emotions and failing miserably. Agony, sorrow, fury… They were all there for me to see, whether he wanted them to be or not. What a stupid boy… They were all like this, every last Neopian with a Y chromosome; always trying to be tough despite the horrible circumstances around them. They bottle it up, and then, at the worst possible moment, it all comes exploding out. It doesn’t help that he’s a knight, so that just magnifies the whole process.

With our luck, this “explosion” would occur right as we’re about to fight that darkest faerie that’s causing all this havoc.

My stomach knotted up several times. All that aside, I felt bad for the lupe. I mean, Tor was finally fulfilling his dream of becoming a knight- He must have been really good at it, too, to make it to knighthood at such a young age- and the next thing he knows, his once-supportive family turns on him, calling him out for leaving home and destroying his self-esteem, I’m sure. I know he knows it’s because of this faerie’s curse, controlled by whatever’s in the forest, but it still must hurt like hell… I mean, if my uncle treated me like this when we told him about my dabbling in sorcery, I know I’d feel horrible… What a stupid boy, bottling that up…

My hand shot out and grabbed Tormund’s wrist, pulling him into a hug. My face almost slammed into his chest plate and his amulet was digging into my neck, but this clearly needed to be done. He needed this, whether he knew it or not. It was the most awkward thing I’ve ever done, and I could feel my cheeks and the back of my neck growing hot with a blush, but I held fast.

Tormund didn’t move for a long moment. He was, surprised, obviously, at my sudden attempt of comfort. Glancing up at his face, I saw the strange emotion-mask mix again, except confusion decided to join the party and his yellow gaze was now on me. His eyes closed slowly, and his arms wrapped around me, squeezing me a bit. I did what I could to return the gesture, but, well… It’s not exactly the easiest thing to hug a guy in armor.

We stayed locked together like that for a while longer before he pulled away, prompting me to do the same. I admit, I was a bit disappointed when he did; the embrace actually felt quite nice… Shoving away that annoying feeling and ordering my heart to stop beating so hard and fast in my throat, of all places, I focused on Tor once more. He seemed a bit nervous, but at least that strange look on his face was gone. Man oh man, that had made me feel awful.

“Thanks,” he said simply, looking anywhere but at me. I scratched my neck, a nervous habit of mine, and nodded.

“No problem. I knew you needed it.”

Thinks got quiet for a while. How awkward… Maybe that hug idea wasn’t so grand after all. Sure, he doesn’t look ripped to shreds anymore, but perhaps now he thinks that there’s something behind that hug… Oh, crud… He’s not supposed to know about that… Things are going to get even worse! Crud, crud, crud!

My doubts were silenced immediately, however, as he grabbed my hand and started pulling me down the dirt path.

“C’mon, we’ve got to get to Shadowglen Forest so we can save everyone!”

A warmth tingled up through me from my fingertips and a small smile brightened my face. That was the Tormund I knew.