"So Laurence," Stepping alongside his master as they walked up a steep grassy hill, Lauri huffed from the effort. "What's the first thing you'll do when we get back?"
Glancing at his protégé, Laurence smiled.
"What else is there to do, have a nice home-cooked meal and then climb into my bed for a nice sleep. What about you, Lauri?"
Looking to the side, Lauri chuckled.
"Basically the same, although… I guess I should tell Merry and Rich about my year, they are going to be so surprised when they see us."
Nodding along to Lauri's words, Laurence smiled.
"Assuming she hasn't told them we'll be arriving soon."
Looking at Laurence, Lauri had a slightly confused expression on his face.
"She knows we're coming? Who's she? Are you talking about Merry? How would Merry know we're almost home?"
Laurence didn't respond, simply shrugging as he took another step.
Now scowling, Lauri turned away.
"Oh fine, keep your secrets, old man. Hmm, Laurence, at some point I'd like to hear more about your mentor. What happened to them, what they were like, and stuff. You know?"
Raising his head, Laurence's smile turned slightly brighter.
"Oh, I'm sure you'll find out soon enough."
As Laurence finished speaking, the two Awakened finally crested the hill. Below them a moderate-sized village sprawled out below them, a hundred or so thatch-roofed homes were set up in rows. Between these rows' movement could be seen, kids running after each other and some women were bringing in the washing from lines hung between homes. All the homes seemed to be spread around a building in the middle.
This home was larger than those around it, where most homes either had a single floor or two floors. The building that stood in the middle of the village was grander than all the rest. Boasting a whopping three floors, it easily stood out from the rest.
Lauri couldn't help but smile as he looked down at the buildings and the people running between them. His eyes came to rest on the central building.
'It's good to be home.'
Glancing up to Laurence, Lauri could see Laurence had the same expression on his face.
After a year away from home, the two Awakened had finally returned to their homes, their friends, their family.
Beginning down the slope, it wasn't long before they were spotted. The first person to notice them was a man on the floor leaning against his home, in one hand he held an axe, in the other he held a stone. He happened to glance up. Returning to sharpening his axe, it took the man a moment to process what he had just seen. He blinked a few times, dropping his tools beside him, he jumped up.
Moving to the side of his home, he called to anyone who could hear him.
"Hey everyone! Laurence and Lauri are back!"
It wasn't long before the two Awakened were swamped by those who wanted to wish them a warm welcome.
The adults asked Laurence how the year had gone, whether he had come across any Fiends that had given him any problems. Where the adults were more interested in Laurence and Lauri's safety, the children that ran up to them asked how many Fiends they had killed, whether they had brought back any presents, if Laurence could show them his powers and of course what powers did Lauri get.
As they responded to these questions with varying responses, Laurence and Lauri steadily walked forward, trying to get closer to the largest of the homes in the middle of the village.
The crowd slowly shrank, becoming smaller and smaller as it dispersed, between the children losing interest and the adults having jobs to get back to, by the time the two Awakened reached their destination the crowd had mostly dispersed. Only a handful of kids remained, listening to the story of how Lauri had run for his life from the Light Stealer as they crossed the public square.
Passing by a statue made of beautiful yet familiar white stone located in the very centre of the almost empty square, Lauri's eyes narrowed as he looked at the visage of a beautiful woman holding a small sphere close to her chest.
'Coincidence?'
Shaking his head, Lauri continued telling his story to the crowd.
Reaching the door of the largest home, Lauri turned to his adoring fans. Kneeling down, he was about to finish his story.
"-and then I ducked under Light Stealer's attack and pulled the chunk of stone out of its chest, causing it to die from blood loss."
The faces of the kids were of reactions, from the children behind their friends in fear to the kids at the front with wide eyes.
One of the boys at the front of the small group raised both his tiny fists, almost hopping up and down. A small scarf wrapped around his neck.
"That's so coollllll," He squealed. "I want to be just like you and Uncle Laurence when I grow up! Slaying those nasty Fiends and saving the day all the time!" His excited expression dimmed. "But my momma says I'm not allowed to fight Fiends when I'm older…"
Chuckling, Lauri ruffled the boy's hair.
"Don't worry, Lucas, I'm sure you'll grow up into a big, strong man one day. Although probably not as big as Laurence." Casting a glance up to his master, Lauri chuckled. "If I ever meet someone bigger than him, I might just cry."
The kids giggled, hearing this, Laurence rolled his eyes. Looking up into the sky, Laurence whistled.
"Say kids, it's getting a little late. Best you all run along now, I'm sure your parents will get mad if you're up too late. Especially with the festivities later."
Lauri squinted, 'Festivities?'
Hearing this, the kids quickly said their goodbyes, not wishing to incur their parents' wrath, they all scrambled to return home as fast as they could.
Watching the last of the kids disappear, Lauri turned to Laurence.
"Festivities?"
Laurence shrugged, bringing his hand up, he knocked on the front door. Instead of stopping after the first couple of knocks, he kept knocking and knocking and knocking.
"I'm sure you'll find out soon enough. Smart choice to leave out the more gory details of your trial, by the way."
Lauri glared at the older man, exhaling he shook his head.
"I wanted to tell them something to excite them, not give them nightmares. I still wanna know what you mean festivities?"
Simply smiling, Laurence didn't have a chance to respond Before Laurence had the chance to respond, movement could be heard on the other side of the door, followed by a female voice.
"What! You can stop knocking. I heard you the first ten times! I swear, if it's you kids again, I'll grab you by the ear and take you back to your parents-"
As the door swung open, a young woman with shining blond hair tied up into a bun froze speaking as she saw who was waiting outside. Her stern expression immediately vanished.
Scratching the back of his head, Lauri couldn't help but smile seeing Merry..
"Hey Merry, how have you been?"