"Inso!" Rosie greeted the man as she ran up to him, interrupting the man's lingering gaze on the zeta. A smile came to the man's lips as he opened his arms and his sister ran into his embrace.
"How are you feeling? Any better?" Brenton inquired about his sister's health.
"Mm," Rosie responded with a nod of her head. "Estan has been taking care of me."
Brenton set the bucket filled with water on the floor before nodding to the gamma. "Thank you, Estan."
Estan nodded back in response before taking Syri's hand and leading the zeta to stand in front of the man. "Syri, this is Brenton. Brenton, Syri," Estan gestured to the rho and zeta as he introduced the two to each other. The rho and zeta politely inclined their heads in greeting as Estan continued, "Brenton got you out of the building and helped us escape."
"Thank you for your efforts," Syri thanked the rho quietly.
Brenton smiled at the zeta before bowing to the gamma and saying, "Rosie and I thank you for your hospitality. And I thank you for caring for my sister in my absence. We will be on our way shortly."
"Oh, it was nothing. I was happy to help. It was nice meeting you, Brenton," Estan replied as the rho took his sister's hand and opened the door through which he had just entered.
Rosie bowed her head in farewell before following her brother out of the cabin. Estan and Syri watched the brother and sister walk down the path and disappear into the trees before retreating into the cabin and shutting the door.
"Well, we finally made it!" Estan said as he poured Syri a cup of water. The zeta nodded in agreement and accepted the cup from the gamma before heartedly taking a sip of the refreshing liquid. "I was thinking of going to town to get some food and supplies. Would you like to come with me?" The gamma asked as he sat down next to the zeta on the sofa.
Syri eagerly nodded his head. "I'd love to." Syri thought for a moment before inquiring of the zeta, "So, how did, erm...Brenton find us?"
"Rosie, his sister, had been taken by the ring two weeks ago. Brenton searched tirelessly for her and snuck into the complex disguised as a pann when he discovered the ring's base. He found you after killing the leading alpha and brought you out of the burning building where I saw you two."
Syri remained silent as he processed the information. "So it was him," the zeta said under his breath.
"Who was who?"
"Hm?" Syri brought his gaze up to the gamma when he realized he had voiced his thought aloud. "Oh, I thought I had seen the masked man, er Brenton, in the building with the fire."
"You had met Brenton before the complex?" Estan tilted his head as he inquired of the zeta.
Syri nodded his head and said, "He tried to save me in Gern. It was right after you were taken. He found me and tried to save me, but I ran away and looked for you. That's when I was taken."
"So, that's why he seemed as if he knew you."
"What do you mean?" Syri scrunched his brows as he looked at the gamma.
"Oh, uh... Brenton seemed fond of you. It makes sense that he had met you before he saw you in the building," Estan explained.
Syri remained silent as he mulled over Estan's response. Estan let a few more moments pass before asking, "You ready to go to town?" to which Syri nodded. The two then stood to their feet and prepared for the walk to Alia.
<<<<<>>>>>
Syri looked around in awe at the grove surrounding the cabin. Estan stood in the path and watched the zeta meander around smelling the different kinds of flowers and looking up at the trees. The gamma waited for the zeta to join him before ruffling the smaller male's pink hair and leading the zeta out of the grove.
It was only twenty minutes before the gamma and zeta reached the town of Alia. Alia was a small, quaint village with an enchanting scene. Flowers decorated the signs, streetlights, and sides of the buildings while the sun shone brightly on the happy residents milling about. For it's humble size, Alia housed a market, smithery, pub, bakery, clothing store, a small clinic and chapel, and an administrative office.
Syri walked around wide-eyed as he ingested every detail of the enchanting village. Estan took Syri by the hand to ensure the zeta did not accidentally wander off and promptly led the zeta down the main street to the clothing shop.
"The alphas took our bags with our clothes, so I thought we would have a little shopping spree," Estan told Syri as he led the zeta inside the shop.
"Hello, how can I help you today?" A female omega approached the two with a smile and friendly demeanor. The shop was empty except for the omega, a male at the counter, and a woman currently paying for her purchase.
Estan inclined his head politely to the omega who returned the expression before asking, "Would you mind if we looked around? We lost our luggage during our travels and are in need of some new clothes."
"Please, help yourselves," the omega replied. "The men's section is to the left." The female gestured to a set of tables and shelves behind her before walking off to assist a woman who had just entered the store. Syri followed Estan to the back left corner of the store and watched as the gamma began sifting through the folded shirts and blouses. The figure standing still behind him caught the gamma's eye, and Estan turned to see Syri standing frozen with a confused expression on his face.
"What are you doing?" Syri asked in bewilderment.
"Shopping," Estan answered matter-of-factly as he looked at the zeta in equal bewilderment. The gamma mentally slapped himself as he realized that Syri had probably never been shopping for clothes and softened his demeanor. "I'm so happy that I get to introduce you to my first love!"
Syri cocked his head. "First love?" The zeta's eyes grew wide, and his head swiveled as he looked around the shop. "Yejin is here?"
A snicker left the gamma's mouth as he laughed at the adorable zeta. "No, Yejin is not here. I was referring to shopping. I love shopping, and I bet you will too." A sly expression came to the gamma's face as he took Syri by the wrist and steered him to stand in front of a table with folded blouses.