They reappeared near a wide, dry ditch, very similar to what Snow had seen crossing Dryriver. The difference was that, up where they were, it was a bit deeper and it had at least half the width.
They were surrounded by darkened, dead trees again, the dirt beneath their feet completely barren. But at least the air felt fresh and renewed, easy to breathe.
Still holding on to ZaiWin's shoulders, Snow took a wide look around.
"More upstream."
He didn't have to say it again and they were gone.
Squeezing ZaiWin's tunic, Snow tried to fight back the dizziness. ZaiWin's jumps always felt as if he were constantly speeding and stopping all of a sudden.
"A bit more."
They jumped again and this time the clear difference in the air dampness left a smile on Snow's lips.
"Put me down."
Snow actually expected his request to be fulfilled, much the same way the other two had been, but the arms around his legs didn't budge an inch.
Looking down, all Snow could see was the top of a dark head. It was kind of strange, being able to see the top of someone else's head, when he was the one always looking up at people. It was also kind of frustrating, he discovered, not being able to see the other person's face.
"Hey. Put me down," he repeated. And since there was still no movement, he grabbed ZaiWin's head with both hands and tilted it back, so he could at least see his face while he was talking to him.
The dark-haired head was unexpectedly easy to move. And a pair of bright blue eyes stared up at him, bringing a strange sensation to his chest, that momentarily made him forget what he was about to say.
ZaiWin smiled, making Snow shift his attention to his pale lips, and Snow's own lips tingled at the memory of how hot they'd felt, when ZaiWin had kissed him.
"You are mostly quiet, so I never realized it before. But you're just like ZenTar. You never call me by my name."
Snow blinked, the mesmerizing spell he'd fallen prey to breaking, and frowned. Really?
ZaiWin chuckled.
"You hadn't noticed?"
He hadn't, Snow realized.
Surely he must have said his name a few times. But now that he thought about it, he could only remember doing so when talking about him with other people. No matter how hard Snow tried, he couldn't recall ever having used it to actually call him. And then he was suddenly afraid ZaiWin might take offense at that! He quickly searched his face for any leads that might confirm his fears. But ZaiWin actually looked strangely amused by the fact.
Snow imagined himself calling him by his name.
"It doesn't feel right …" he whispered before he could think about what he was saying, and immediately looked down at him, afraid again. "I-I didn't mean it … not in a bad way …" Snow did his best to explain, although it didn't make much sense, and ended up pursing his lips. He'd better shut up, instead of saying more nonsense.
ZaiWin released him for a split second, making Snow suddenly slide down his body before he grabbed him again. And Snow instinctively wrapped his arms around his neck, afraid he might actually drop him.
ZaiWin smiled at the startled pale eyes staring straight at him, and quickly pecked his lips, taking advantage of the fact that their heads were now at the same hight.
"It's fine. Just do what feels right to you. I'm sure you'll never be wrong in that," he simply said and slowly lowered him down, until Snow could finally stand on his feet.
Snow still looked at him, feeling confused.
So ZaiWin was fine with the fact that he didn't feel right calling his name? He was being really strange, Snow concluded, looking up at the persistent smile he had been carrying on his lips since they'd left that underground cave. And what was that, with all that sudden kissing? And yet he could tell by ZaiWin's smug expression that he wasn't about to explain any of that to him, even if he asked. Unlike MenTar and VinWei, who always tried their best to answer his questions, ZaiWin had a tendency to either make fun of him or simply give him vague replies that could be interpreted in many different ways.
Sighing in resignation, Snow finally released him and took a look around. They were standing on the bank of what had clearly been a wide river, a long time ago. He was just about to kneel down when a large hand suddenly grabbed his arm, stopping him midway.
"What are you doing?"
"Listening?" he replied, the question making no sense to him, and ZaiWin raised an inquisitive eyebrow.
"Listening?"
Snow nodded.
"To make sure we're in the right place," he explained and ZaiWin's large hand slowly released him, even though his expression clearly told him he still had his doubts about that.
Kneeling down, Snow placed both his hands on the ground and a wave of relief washed over him. Clean. The land felt dry and empty, but it was clean. He couldn't feel the slightest reminiscent of the dark corruption that had permeated it before. Not there and not for many miles. If he had any energy left he could nudge it back to life, heal what had been broken after so many years of abuse and neglect. But he still felt too tired. And, besides, he'd promised he wouldn't use his daitai.
Leaning forward, Snow pressed his ear against the ground and closed his eyes. Since the land was completely empty it was mainly silent. He could still feel the light vibration that echoed all the way to his chest, telling him that he was still in Nox's lands. But, beyond that, there was nothing else.
There was, however, another sound, this one not made by the land. He had recognized it before, when he'd cleansed it. It was similar to what he had heard, when he'd found the waterfall. It was noisy and rumbling, and restless, and at the same time happy. The sound of running water.
Unlike the whispers of the land, that always told him stories about how things used to be, or about how painful things now were, the gurgling sounds of water never made much sense. It spoke of falls and drops, and blue skies and rain. It could tell him about melting snows and, the following instant, complain about the hot desert. It never told him where those places were, or when those things had happened. It just kept filling his brain with senseless, scattered information, like an excited child, unable to coherently organize their own thoughts.
It didn't matter, Snow thought with a smile. All that matter was that it was there, right beneath his head.
ZaiWin looked down at the boy kneeling at his feet, his head pressed against the grayish dirt. His heart beat a bit harder, at the thought that he would never kneel like that before anyone else. He was sure that the thought hadn't even crossed Snow's mind. He was simply doing what he thought was necessary. But, looking down at him, kneeling like that, he couldn't help feeling the weight of that gesture. This was a Celestial. A Tien'Elhar. And Tien'Elhar didn't kneel in front of anyone, aside from their Chosen One. Before, the knowledge of that fact had angered him beyond words. Now he felt … humble, happy, and sad at the same time. The question he had asked himself countless times still remained. Why him?
Snow finally raised his head and ZaiWin blinked, averting his gaze, not wanting him to see the mess of emotions playing in his eyes.
"Right there. It's not too deep."
He looked at the boy, still kneeling, now sitting on his heels, and sighed. VinWei would have a lot to teach him, if she wanted to make him look and behave anywhere close to a proper Tien'Elhar.
Bending forward, ZaiWin grabbed his arm and gently helped him back to his feet.
"You mean there's water running under the dry riverbed?"
Snow nodded.
"It must have gone underground. It diverts from the river's direction halfway across the forest."
Which meant that if Snow were right, and ZaiWin no longer doubted that he was, if he could dig deep enough to bring the water back to the surface, it would follow the riverbed again, taking water all the way to Dryriver.
Still holding him, afraid Snow might suddenly collapse from exhaustion, he turned towards the wide ditch of dry dirt and took a deep breath, relaxing his shoulders.
In a blink of an eye, ZaiWin had them surrounded by several dark swords, Snow realized, looking around at the circle formed by the dark blades that just stood there, floating midair, emitting that heavy, disruptive dark energy. In a synchronized movement, all the blades turned outward and, in a cutting whisper, darted as fast as arrows, stabbing the riverbed all in the same spot.
The hand that had been holding Snow's arm released him, and ZaiWin wrapped his arm around his waist instead, pulling him close against his body, before a strong, harsh wind rose all around them. It was so strong that Snow could hardly keep his eyes open, instinctively holding on to him, afraid he might simply be blown away. A mass of darkness was revolving right in front of them. looking like a small cyclone of darkness. And then ZaiWin made it rise in the air, and fall down on the dark swords, still half-buried on the ground.
The explosion was so loud that it left Snow's ears buzzing, pieces of dry dirt and rocks flying everywhere. Of course none of them actually hit them, since ZaiWin had already risen one of his dark barriers to protect them. But it was still scary.
Blinking, Snow tried to see what had happened, but he had to wait until ZaiWin considered it was safe enough to lower their dark protection.
The crater that had remained was even wider than the river had been, the land looking as if some huge monster had clawed at it in a large circle. But, above all, it was slowly but surely filling up with water. It still looked muddy and murky, but the fresh, clean smell that reached Snow's nose left a smile on his lips.
"Oops. Guess it will become a lake," ZaiWin remarked and Snow looked up at him. He looked genuinely embarrassed, which was kind of funny.
"A lake is good too."
Two blue eyes looked down at him and smiled, making his chest feel strange again.
"Guess you're right. Still up to another visit?"
Snow nodded. He felt tired and sleepy, his eyes stubbornly insisting in remaining closed every time he blinked. But he didn't want to return to End of the World. Not yet. He knew that, once they were back, ZenTar and VinWei would bombard him with all those important things he could hardly understand but that he still would have to learn. He wished they could just go on like that. Jumping from place to place, seeing all sorts of different things.
ZaiWin placed a warm kiss on the top of his head and wrapped his other arm around him as well, before he dragged them both into the darkness again.
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Ah, now you feel how special it is to have this child kneeling at your feet. Baka ZaiWin!! Hopefully, he'll never forget that 😔