It was near lunchtime.
Azere was busy cooking dishes for lunch when Olga arrived in the hut.
She didn't bother knocking, she entered through the open door. The smell of delicious dishes floated in the air. She went to the tiny kitchen. "Hmm, smell so yummy! What are you cooking?" she inquired.
"Just meat stew with potato and carrots," Azere replied. "Will you stay for lunch?" she asked.
"Sure! I can't wait to taste your delicious dishes again," Olga replied. "Have you been to the cave early in the morning?" she asked.
"Yeah, I'm done with my responsibilities there," Azere replied. "I also found out that the couple saw flashing lights hovering around the cave and in the forest. Rhett told me that he saw the lights all the time and he didn't pay any attention to it, thinking they're just harmless creatures in the forest. The lights looks like giant fireflies..."
Olga's brows knitted together. "Hmm... flashing lights... I never saw one. Have you?"
Azere shook her head. "Never seen one too, especially giant fireflies roaming around this forest," she said.
"C-could they be the ones trying to enter the cave causing the disturbance?" asked Olga.
"Maybe yes and maybe not..." Azere replied.
"Only Rhett and Sabrina can see them, but we can't? Does it mean that they're intentionally hiding from us but not from the couple? What is their purpose then?" Olga asked curiously, feeling suspicious about the mysterious lights. "The more I wanted to see these lights with my eyes!" she declared.
Azere was also thinking the same thing. "Whether they're ordinary lights or not, we should catch them and find what they're up to!"
"Looks like we're going to be busy every night then?" Olga said.
"Well, we can take turn. You can patrol around the cave tonight and I will do the same thing tomorrow night. This way, we can have some rest in between..." Azere suggested.
"Good idea! I will patrol the cave tonight," Olga volunteered.
"Okay," Azere said.
A few minutes later, the women began eating their lunch.
After eating, Olga stood up. "I have to leave and check my poultry. Thanks for the delicious lunch. It's nice eating with you again. I always eat alone in my hut, I forgot the feeling that it's nice to eat with other people, rather than eat alone," she said.
Azere smiled. "You can always come back here and eat meals with me anytime you want. You're always welcome in my home," she offered.
Olga smiled brightly. Teary-eyed, she hugged her friend for the first time after a long time. She had almost forgotten how nice it is to have a friend that she can talk to and eat meals together.
Azere rubbed her friend's back. Her eyes were swarmed with tears of happiness.
The women cried in each other's arms for a few minutes, letting go of the painful past that separated them. All the anger, pain, and sadness were washed away by the bucket of tears that they've shed right now.
Finally, they're free from their painful past!
After a few minutes of crying, they smiled at each other.
"Today is a new beginning for us!" Azere said.
Olga nodded her head. "Yeah... if Mother returns from the tournament, I will beg her to undo the curse and release us from her punishment. It's been ten years already, it's about time she will forgive us for something that we didn't do!" she said, a glimmer of annoyance was flashing in her eyes.
"And what if she will not agree to your begging? What will you do?" Azere asked. She doesn't like seeing the mischief in her friend's eyes.
"I will steal the brown book of spells from her room! I'm sure the spell is there on how to undo the curse that she had cast upon us," Olga said. A fierce determination reflected in her eyes.
Azere sighed and shook his head. "No, you can't do that! Mother will get mad at you! We'll just wait for the time that she will remove the curse on her own accord. It's much safer that way," she said, hoping her friend will listen to her advice.
"I'm sure the spell that can free the prisoners in the cave can also be found in the brown book! That's why we have to get it! So that you don't have to keep delivering food there every day!" Olga insisted.
Azere released a deep sigh. "Olga, listen to me. Mother is very strict! Don't force her to add another punishment on you again!" she said, feeling apprehensive for her friend's well-being.
Olga took a deep breath. "Alright, just forget everything I told you today," she relented. "I'll take my leave now..." she said and vanished from the hut.
Azere heaved a sigh, she still has some words to say to her friend but Olga disappeared already.
She shifted her attention to the basket on the table and began putting the dishes onto it. She still has to bring the food to the cave.
A few moments later, Azere left the hut.
She walked on the path leading to the cave. The sky was darkening, it looks like it's going to rain anytime this afternoon or in the evening. She walked faster, she needs to return to the hut before the rainfall because she didn't bring her umbrella with her. But anyway, she can always teleport, she smiled feeling silly. Who needs an umbrella?
After a few minutes of walking, she finally reached the entrance of the cave. The couple was talking to each other when she arrived.
"Hello Grandma!" Sabrina conveyed her greetings.
"Hi kids, time for lunch!" Grandma said and placed the basket on top of the rock.
"Thank you, Grandma," Rhett said.
"It's going to rain anytime soon, I need to go back to the hut," Azere said. "Enjoy your lunch..." she said, then walked away.
Rhett grabbed the basket and looked at Sabrina. "Let's go back to the chamber and eat lunch," he said.
Sabrina scratched her head. "I was about to suggest to Grandma that I should be the one cooking our food from now on. But we still need firewood and ingredients for cooking though," she said.
"Just talk to Grandma about it tomorrow," Rhett said.
"Okay," Sabrina agreed.
The couple went back to the chamber and ate their lunch.
While eating, Sabrina looked at Rhett. She recalled that Grandma told her once that wolves have their Luna, the perfect woman for them. But she's having doubts if she's Rhett's Luna. She cleared her throat. "What happened if you meet your Luna? You will forget me? You will abandon me?" she asked him point-blank.
Rhett stopped eating and looked at her.