Crystal opened her eyes to the smell of cooking meat. Looking at the fire, she saw that Rayth had started to reheat the rabbit meat.
"Good morning," Rayth said chirpily, handing her a piece of meat and a cup of water. "Good morning." Crystal said as she took the food, "How did you sleep?"
"I slept well." Rayth smiled, and Crystal nodded as she started to eat. The mourning doves in the forest were tweeting as the wind carried the cool dew off the blades of grass, making Crystal's body feel cool.
"The morning is cool. It may rain later."
"Then we should head out, there's a village nearby," Rayth said as he stood up and started to collect his belongings. Crystal agreed internally, but for some reason, she looked at the burnt carcass of the temple, and something made her want to stay. But why? There was no real attachment to this temple, so why would she not want to leave?
"Alright." Crystal snapped herself out of the daze and got up. Collecting a few items and putting them in the saddlebags. The wind blew her silver bangs across her face, making her push them back behind her ears before she could climb onto her horse. Rayth had already started down the path, leaving Crystal to herself. Crystal took one last look at the temple, and the disturbance in her horse reinstated that it was odd that she didn't want to leave. But she pulled the reins and the horse began walking off, Crystal had to pry her eyes away to ahead of her.
Why did she want to stay so badly? Maybe she'll return in the future and rebuild the temple. Crystal liked the thought as she followed Rayth down the path towards the village, looking up at the clouds that started to gather in bigger patches. They passed several travelers that stared at her for a little longer than they did Rayth, but she thought nothing of it. The trees blurred together, but before she knew it they were down the path from the village, its buildings looking very similar to the temple when it wasn't burned. Crystal wondered why.
As they approached the village, Rayth hopped off his horse, and Crystal followed suit. As they started to walk in, the growing amount of stares from the villagers was hard to ignore when suddenly it seemed as though the whole village stopped doing what they were to stare at Crystal.
"Why are they all staring at you?" Rayth asked curiously, and Crystal shrugged.
"I'm not sure. Let's keep going." Crystal couldn't detect any kind of threat, actually, she felt like she did at the temple, safe.
"Crystallina?" An old woman's voice called out behind them, Crystal's ears twitched and burned at the sound of her full name, "Crystallina, is that really you?"
Crystal turned to look at the woman to correct her, but her anger instantly melted. This wasn't who she expected to see, she had thought this woman was long dead.
"Who are you?" Rayth questioned before Crystal could find the words.
"Oh deary, I'm Lia, a young man by the name of Dotsu Shigorati was my son." Lia's old blue eyes stared at Crystal knowingly, "And I'm just so relieved that my granddaughter has come back." The blue eyes soon filled with tears, and Crystal felt a wave of relief flow over her. She couldn't help but walk up to the old woman and wrapped her arms around her tightly.
"Grandma..." Crystal spoke quietly, enough for the old woman to hear as she rubbed her back.
"My dear Crystallina, it's been too long." Lia nuzzled against her granddaughter, filling Crystal with a feeling she hadn't felt since childhood. The sense of safety.
"I'm sorry, I'm just a little lost? You're her grandmother?" Rayth asked curiously, as Lia let go of Crystal who nodded to Rayth.
"Yes, I very much am her proud grandmother."
"I see. I would think her grandmother would be a demon?"
"No deary, I'm her father's mother. I am entirely human." The smile the old lady gave off made Crystal feel as though she was back to being a child.
But something about this seemed off. Crystal couldn't pinpoint it, but she couldn't really tell if the woman before her was truly her grandmother, something about the old lady seemed off.
"Let's feast then! The villagers will be excited to hear of your return." Lia walked off before Crystal felt a demonic aura seep from outside village, and she instinctively looked in the direction as her hand pulled at Tatsuka, "Don't mind the demonic aura, my child. It's just the demons around the area." Lia assured as she continued to walk away, Crystal pulled Tatsuka out of its sheath.
"Crystal, you feel it too, don't you?" Rayth said as he readied his Pike, "It feels like a hoard of demons, not a few stragglers."
"Come now children," Lia called out, Crystal slightly glared at the woman.
"Alright." Crystal said reluctantly, putting her Tatsuka away and walking towards the woman. She led them to the lord's house, where they met a young lord by the name of Suikotsu (Su-Eh-Ko- Tsu).
"Oh! My eyes deceive me!" An older man spoke, "It really is Lord Dotsu's daughter!" Crystal stared at the old man for a while, but couldn't remember who he was.
"She may not remember you, old man." Lia softly spoke, "She's probably traveled the world."
"That may be so, she was born about 30 moons before Suikotsu, and that was just about the only time I ever saw her. Except for when she tagged along with her father into town." The old man approached Crystal, "Hello, Crystallina. I helped your father and your mother when you were born."
"Oh, nice to meet you. My name isn't Crystallina. It's Crystal now." Crystal said flatly, as the old man chuckled softly with a sorrowful look in his eyes.
"Your father spent years planning that name for you, but it would be rather disheartening to live with everyone calling you that name."
"Were you the one who discovered I didn't have a heart?" Crystal asked, her blunt question coming out of nowhere.
"I am." The old man sighed, "I had thought you were still born, but you were wailing too loud for me to say it to your mother." He chuckled softly, "I'm surprised you have survived this long, look at you! You're a beautiful young lady."
Rayth was confused, "Wait." Crystal turned to him, looking him in his emerald green eyes, "You were truly born without a heart?"
"Yes, I was."
"Is this why you don't express any emotions? I thought it was just because you were half demon." Rayth spoke slightly frantically, as if he was trying to understand it in his head.
"Sadly, that is exactly why she can't feel any emotions." The old man sighed, "Her father tried, bless his heart, to train her how to show emotions. The only things that came natural to her was loyalty, fear, and anger. He tried to focus on those, and made it to where she acted upon them accordingly."
"And so, my granddaughter remained an emotionless being. Got mocked in town for it, had rocks thrown at her, bounty hunters chasing her. My granddaughter grew even more distant from those feelings that she did have, to the point that after her father died, she just left."
Crystal just stayed where she was, Rayth's eyes searching hers, for any kind of reaction. Nothing. No reaction, at all.
"I see.." Rayth silenced himself, and they returned to the original plan at hand.
"Let's go have a feast. The villagers will rejoice." The old man placed his hand on the lower of Crystal's back, and led her out of the house.