There was a lighthearted air about Alf that reminded Damia of Adi so she felt comfortable and even safe around him.
"I was following a glowing path to a village nearby."
Alf looked at Damia as though she had grown a second head and then asked, "Where's this glowing path? Can I see it?"
"I don't know if you can see it. It's not even visible to me right now. It led me to this waterfall and then disappeared. I assume it will be back after I do whatever it needs me to do here."
"And what's that?"
"Don't you think I would have done it by now if I knew?" Damia didn't mean to be so sassy with Alf, but sleep was starting to catch up with her and she was getting extremely irritated. Alf seemed to notice this and stepped away from her to face the trees. He whispered so low she couldn't make out what he was saying, and he held out his arms up and out towards the trees. Suddenly, the tree branches started moving.
Damia was surprised. "What are you doing, Alf?"
Alf didn't respond to her, but continued what he was doing as a green light glowed around him and connected to the trees in front of him. After a few more moments, he dropped his arms and stepped to the side, revealing a small lean-to underneath the trees.
"What's that?" Damia looked at the small structure in awe.
"It's for you, a shelter. You travelled all through the night and to be honest, I'm tired from following you too. We should get some rest."
Damia blushed a bright shade of red.
"Just because I'm dressed like a man does not mean that I am one. We can't share a bed."
Alf burst into a fit of laughter and walked around to the other side of the lean-to he had constructed for Damia and laid down.
"Come take a look..., uh... what's your name, anyway?"
Damia walked around the shelter to see what Alf wanted to show her.
"Damia." As she spoke, she realized that the lean-to had a secondary room on the opposite side of the one Alf had said was for her. "I see, so you'll be sleeping here?"
"Damia, huh? Yes, I'll be sleeping here and you can sleep on the other side. We can watch each other's backs." Alf laughed at his own poor joke, but Damia did not find it quite as funny. She smiled anyway.
This comment brought a question to Damia's mind.
"You said you were the guarding of the forest. How does one guard a forest when asleep?"
"I said I was 'A' guardian, not 'THE' guardian. There are more in the forest than just me. I'm just the one that happened to be closest to you when you came through the forest."
"And why are you staying with me then?"
"Are you asking because you don't want me here?"
Damia looked down at the ground, "I didn't say that either. It's just a question."
"Because as long as you're in the forest, I have to keep an eye on you. You know, make sure you're not up to any funny business. Once you leave the forest, I won't have to follow you around anymore. I could have kept my distance and not revealed myself to you, but like I said, it's been so long since someone has come through, and the other guardians aren't exactly the talkative types."
"I see. Alright." Damia stopped asking further questions and walked to her side of the shelter.
Helize made herself comfortable off to the side of the shelter, and they all slept.
After some time, Damia awoke and found Alf up already, feeding Helize. She slowly rose from the ground and came out of the shelter. Alf didn't look in her direction, but pointed at her chest. She didn't quite understand, but when she looked down, she shrieked and covered her chest with her arms while moving back into the shelter and sitting on the ground, facing the inner wall. Somehow, the shirt she had taken from Elric had come open, exposing part of her chest.
"How long have you been looking you perv?"
"I didn't look long. I noticed something was wrong with your wardrobe and then didn't look. Why else do you think I'm all the way over here? Besides, if I was truly a perv, don't you think I would have taken greater liberties with you than just looking? I mean, you are an extremely sound sleeper. You didn't even hear when your horse woke up to look for food. Why are you wearing that anyway? It doesn't look like it's yours."
Damia tightened the string that stitched the front of the shirt together and turned back around to face Alf. "I only had dresses which aren't well suited for travel. I had to wear this until I could get somewhere to buy clothing that would fit me."
"'Buy?' You mean you don't make your own?"
"No. You do?"
"Of course. It's extremely easy and all the materials you need are right here."
"Well I don't know how so the materials may as well not exist."
Alf assumed it was safe to look at Damia now so he did and gave her a big grin before vanishing into thin air.
"Alf?" Damia got out from the shelter and walked to the spot where he had been standing before. She looked around but saw no trace of him.
Petting Helize, she spoke, "I guess he needed to go now."
Damia's stomach chose that moment to growl so she went to her sack to pull out a loaf of bread and some cheese to eat. She chose a grassy area to sit and look out at the waterfall as she enjoyed her meal.
A short while after disappearing, Alf returned to the clearing and snuck up on Damia, causing her to jump from her sitting spot.
"Goodness, Damia, you seriously need to work on your perception skills and be more attentive to your surroundings. You'll never survive out here all by yourself if you keep staying so relaxed all the time. Just because so few people travel through here, doesn't mean no one besides me ever will."
Damia scruntched her face in annoyance and crossed her arms. "I never assumed no one would travel through here, but you did say you were a guardian of the forest. I assumed you would be able to do your job properly so as to not let anything happen to me while I'm your charge."
Alf chuckled as he handed her a stack of clothing.
"What's this?"
"Clothing that will actually fit you. I made it."
"You made all of this so quickly?" She set the stack on Helize's saddle and picked the first one off the top, extending it in front of her. It was a simple yet elegant moss green short sleeve tunic top. "It's beautiful, but how did you know my size?"
"I have an eye for this sort of thing?"
She picked up the next item and found that it was a smaller pair of brown hide pants. "How much do I owe you then?"
"Nothing, it's a gift. But I would like to ask for a small favor."
Damia was a bit shocked by the sudden gift, but hesitated before asking, "What kind of favor?"
"Take me with you. On your journey."
"Is that even allowed? How can a guardian leave the forest?"
"I'm only one of many. If I leave, there are still others to protect the forest. I'm not required to stay here if I find a purpose that would take me outside."
"So, you're saying you found a purpose?"
"Yes. Keeping you alive. You'll be killed the moment you step foot outside of this forest." Alf smiled a cheeky smile and Damia instantly knew he was just teasing her, but she still had a sour face.
"How about you tell me the truth?"
"Well, that was the truth... in part. I also wish to go on this journey. I get the feeling that it's what I'm meant to do.
"You mentioned that you were following a glowing path before, and that it brought you here. There's an old story the older guardians tell the younger generations. Seeing a glowing path is a sign of fate and good fortune. If that glowing path brought you here, then it's helping you stay safe.
"This is the sacred falls of the forest. This is what us guardians protect because it is the life force of this forest. If anything were to ever happen to it, we would all cease to exist, so not only do we guard against it, but even the fauna and flora of the forest create obstacles to prevent anyone with impure intentions from reaching this area.
"You wouldn't make it here if you're not meant to be here. Even us guardians aren't always able to find it so for both you and me to be here at the same time, there are no coincidences in the world."
Damia considered all that Alf mentioned. It seemed like a bit of stretch for her, but she saw no reason to object to his request. "Alright, you can join me then."
Just as she spoke the words, the glowing path reappeared, leading away from the falls. This time, Alf was able to see the path as well and he was left awestruck.
"This is the path you saw, Damia? It's beautiful."
"Yes, I should hurry and change so we can follow it."
Damia went behind a boulder, taking her sack with her and quickly changed out of the clothes she had taken from Elric, stuffing them into her sack, while putting on the ones Alf had made for her.