Selfish Journey-another path(private.)

Meiko blinked in surprise at his question. Money? He wanted to know if she had saved him for the money? Then suddenly, a smile spread across her lips and she started to laugh quietly. She didn't know how to explain it to the boy, but she didn't need any money. How could she tell him she had healed him because she was told it was the right thing to do? To help people in need was just the right thing to do., and she was always taught to do the right thing. Meiko's laughter died shortly after it started, and she smiled at him, her eyes shining brightly.

"I don't need your money, stranger. You don't think that I know your possessions were taken?" She paused, turning her head to gaze out the trees onto the empty road. "Monetary gratitude isn't the thanks I expected. Just give me your name and your company until we're both feeling better to move along, and that will show me your gratitude." Meiko slowly turned her head back to stare at him. "I saved you because it was the right thing to do. I couldn't just pass you by and leave you to sit out in the rain and die. What kind of world are we living in if we can't count on one another to pull us through when we need help?" Meiko asked him, although it could have been a rhetorical question. "So, your name is...?" She spoke slowly and clearly, in case he had not heard her before.

She drew a sharp inhale of breath as a man slinked past the tree she was carefully hidden behind. She held her breath, waiting a few long terrifying moments before he vanished out of sight. A slow sigh escaped from her lips, and then she pressed them together in a thin line as she waited a moment more, making sure the coast was clear. She slipped out from behind the tree, and fluttering her flimsy fairy wings, she took off into the sky.


Meiko landed softly outside the village, peeking into the wooden gates to gaze thoughtfully at the villagers. Most were just peasants, but there were some that held their heads high, they must have been the middle class. She slipped through the gates, tangling herself into the market place crowd. Meiko opened her hand at her side, rubbing her thumb and pointer fingertip together. A bit of bronze dust drifted from her hand, and a bronze coin magically appeared in her hand. She picked up an apple, and handed the false money to the man. In a few hours, it would disappear. She ate the apple quickly, and discarded the core.


She slipped out the other side of the village, walking along a dirt road. A few hours ago, it was sunny out. The weather had taken a turn for the worse however and now it was dark, and rainy. She looked to the side, seeing a hump of clothes against a tree. The head attached to the top of the clothes was angled to the side, and a huge gust of wind brought the scent of blood. Meiko tucked in her fairy wings, making them invisible to others and crossed the distance between the unconscious body and herself.


Meiko knelt down next to him, carefully brushing the blood by his lips away with her thumb. She held his face in her hands, whispering, “Wake up…” She turned his face up towards her, trying to get his attention. She withdrew her hands, spots of blood staining her hands. Nibbling on her bottom lip, she stared down at him, contemplating on what to do. In the end, she cupped both his cheeks in her hands again, and her hands began to glow a brilliant golden red color. She had healed him, but it had cost her her own health.


A few hours later, he had awakened. Meiko had dragged him into the shelter of the forest, protecting him the heavy rain. Meiko was still light headed, but with time, she had gotten better. When he finally awoke, she smiled over at him cautiously, unsure what the outcome would be. “You’re in the forest. Right outside of a village, off the side of the road where I found you.” She paused, licking her bottom lip before shifting against the tree she was sitting against. “Do you remember what happened to you? Why were you all beaten up? You lost a lot of blood, but most of your injuries should be gone. There may be a bit of aching, I can’t take away that pain.” Meiko waited for his response, but quickly added, “My name is Meiko. What’s your name?”