"Well isn't this what you all wanted to hear?" asked Katarina.
"Well yes it was, and it still Is, it is good news, but we are just surprised, you know, when you are waiting for something for so long, you can get tired of waiting, and then what you were waiting for shifts to the back of your mind, but you still do think about it occasionally, that's how we feel right now" said Maddie.
"Well said Maddie" said Matt as he nodded his head.
"Well whatever you say, but since the storm has cleared up, I am sure that you will all be on your way" said Katarina.
"Yes we will be" said Curtis as he answered.
"Once this rain has stopped that is" said Ollie as he reminded everyone of the fact that it was still raining and very heavily for that matter.
"It will only be a matter of hours before the rain stops that is not a big deal" said Katarina.
"So when are you all leaving?" asked Katarina.
"We don't know yet, we can't just get up and leave, we need to plan first" said Curtis.
"I see" said Katarina.
"Well aren't you in a rush to see us leave" said Maddie.
"Looks like someone did not like us staying with her" said Maddie as she laughed.
"I only asked an innocent question? Or would you rather that I go around in circles? I only want to know when you will be leaving" said Katarina.
"Mhmm right" said Maddie as she smiled sweetly.
"Well before we can know that for sure, the rain has to stop first" said Curtis.
"Well alright then, I just came here to tell you guys, since my men that I sent up there, checked and saw that everything had calmed down" said Katarina.
"Thank you for telling us Katarina" said Annie as she smiled.
"Yes thank you Katarina" said Ollie, Maddie and Matt with a smile.
"Thank you for your help" said Curtis as Katarina just looked at all of them.
"You don't have to thank me, I will see you later" said Katarina as she walked out of the room and they all heard the kitchen door close as she walked out back into the rain.
"I mean, is it bad for me to say that I was kind of getting too comfortable here" said Maddie.
"Not at all" said Ollie.
"I have to agree, it's not like I wasn't thinking about this happening, it just skipped my mind, and I stopped thinking about it" replied Matt.
"Annie what do you think?" asked Maddie as she looked at Annie and they all looked at her.
"I mean, what can I say?" asked Annie.
"It feel surreal to me that we are so close to getting my powers after so long" said Annie.
"I can understand that Annie, after so long, after everything that we have been through, that it's right there at the tip of your fingers, you must feel so overwhelmed" said Ollie.
"A little" said Annie as she nodded, this would change everything, she doubted that it would take them a long time to reach the top of Caligo from here, so basically, they were so close to ending everything? Then what, they would have to go back down again, and who knew just how long that would take them?
"If you already feel overwhelmed now, imagine how you will feel once we actually get there, will you faint?" asked Maddie as Annie laughed and she shook her head.
"No, I won't faint Maddie" said Annie.
"Good, because I'm not carrying you if you do, Matt can do that" said Maddie as she laughed and Annie shook her head.
"Curtis, what do you think?" asked Annie as she looked at Curtis.
"Well once the rain stops we will leave, I don't think that we should waste anymore time, we have already wasted enough time as it is" said Curtis.
"I agree" said Matt as he nodded his head.
"Katarina did say that the rain should stop in a matter of a few hours" said Ollie.
"So in other words, we are leaving tomorrow?" asked Annie.
"it is possible" said Curtis.
"But that's too soon" said Maddie.
"If not tomorrow, then the day after tomorrow, because we must leave before this week ends, getting back down after going up will be another journey on its own" said Curtis as they all had to agree, he was right about that.
"But then what about Griselda? We are just going to leave like that?" asked Annie.
"Well you have to tell her the truth, I am sure that she will understand" said Curtis as Annie nodded.
"Alright, I have an important question Curtis" said Ollie.
"Go on" said Curtis as he looked at Ollie.
"How long do you think that it will take us to get to the top of Caligo from here?" asked Ollie as Annie, Maddie and Matt agreed with him, they all had the same question on their minds.
"Well I think maybe three days" said Curtis.
"That's not so long" said Maddie.
"Hopefully, I just made a guess" said Curtis.
"So should we start packing our things?" asked Matt.
"Yes, you should, that would be a good idea" said Curtis.
"Well okay then" said Matt as he nodded his head.
"Hey, do you hear that?" asked Maddie as everyone went quiet.
"Hear what?" asked Annie.
"Exactly!, the rain has stopped" said Maddie as she smiled.
"I didn't even notice" said Ollie.
"Well that was convenient" said Matt as Annie looked at Curtis.
"Fine, we can leave the day after tomorrow" said Curtis as he knew what Annie meant when she was looking at him like that.
"Thank you Curtis" said Annie as she smiled.
"You should get ready and make sure to pack everything" said Curtis as Annie nodded, she just needed some time to breath for a moment, and also to explain things to Griselda.
…
"Griselda" called Annie as she walked to Griselda's cottage.
"I am back here dear" came Griselda's voice from behind the cottage.
"Okay" said Annie as she walked around the cottage and she found Griselda in her little garden, picking some fruit.
"I thought that you weren't coming today my dear, with all the rain yesterday" said Griselda as she looked at Annie and she smiled.
"The rain was a lot, but I have something to tell you" said Annie.
"I know already dear" said Griselda as she smiled.
"You do?" asked Annie in surprise.
"Yes my dear, I do" said Griselda as Annie did not know how to feel about that.
"And no my dear, I do not mind, and you leaving does not mean that you learning how to cleanse is all gone" said Griselda.
"It won't?" asked Annie in surprise, she really thought that it would.
"No my dear, not at all, you almost know everything that there is to know about cleansing, you are a fast learner" said Griselda as she smiled and Annie smiled.
"Are you sure? Because to me it seems like I don't know anything at all" said Annie as she sighed.
"Oh trust me dear, you do, when the time comes, you will know that you truly know what you know" said Griselda as Annie laughed.
"You said know a lot" said Annie as she laughed.
"I know" said Griselda as she laughed.
"I will miss you Griselda" said Annie as she smiled.
"And I will miss you too my dear, but life goes on, and this is not your home" said Griselda as she smiled.
"You know that you have such a big weight on your shoulders" said Griselda.
"And that's what worries me the most, I've been gone for so long, and I don't know what is going to happen when I return" said Annie as she sighed.
"You will be alright my dear, you will be just fine" said Griselda as she smiled and Annie smiled at her and nodded her head as she hugged her.
"When are you leaving dear?" asked Griselda as she smiled and Annie broke their hug.
"Don't you know that as well?" asked Annie as she laughed and Griselda laughed.
"No, not really, I am not good with dates, I think it's my age" said Griselda as she laughed and Annie laughed.
"Well we are leaving tomorrow" said Annie as she smiled.
"Alright dear, you will be just fine" said Griselda as she smiled and Annie smiled at her as she nodded her head.
"Thank you for everything Griselda" said Annie as she smiled.
"You are welcome my dear, you can go now" said Griselda as she smiled.
"I can stay around and help you for a little while" said Annie as she smiled.
"Alright dear, if you wish to, you can" said Griselda as she smiled and Annie smiled at her.
"Alright, let me help you with that" said Annie as she walked to help Griselda.
"Thank you dear" said Griselda with a smile.