Book 2 Chapter 69

Willow was only slightly surprised when their little group went off road and began heading to the distant mountains to the east.

According to Miss Mu this was technically part of the same mountain range that hid the Vale that she’d grown up in. However that particular valley was many weeks of travel to the south of where they currently were. On the other side of it was also the land where her mentor had gotten her final spirit, which was neat to think about.

Apparently, powerful wild spirits and inhospitable terrain made travelling through this particular range a pain so the Allied Clan Territory and the Duchy of Seasons didn’t really interact all that much despite their theoretically close proximity.

According to Miss Mu, House Herrera had tried to open a pathway through for trade purposes, but every expedition to date had ended in failure for one reason or another.

And her Grandma Thea had decided to make her home in such a place.

Willow supposed it made a certain amount of sense, those same mountains had hidden her family from House Petros, but she worried about her grandmother’s safety.

When she’d voiced that concern, Miss Mu had downright cackled and told her not to worry.

Her mentor had also relaxed her stance on Willow being a boy while they travelled, at least while Maple was with them, saying that her sister should be able to focus on keeping the both of them safe. Making the worst case scenario much less likely.

She had a better idea of why Miss Mu was insistent on her being a boy when they moved around now due to some education from Madame Park. So she was a tad hesitant to allow herself to fully relax in her girl form, but it was nice to no longer be constrained to one form.

It was also nice to travel with her sister now that she’d relaxed a bit after their discussion.

She took her out flying and often brought Meteoros out to play with her friends. Since there was basically zero chance of running into someone important out here Willow was allowed to let loose all of her friends.

Something that they were quite happy with even if she had to keep a close eye on Calypso. Her absent-minded raindrop had a tendency to try and wander off even when they were travelling for the day. If something caught their ‘eye’ then they’d try their hardest to get to it no matter what until they got distracted by something else. It was as endearing as it was slightly concerning.

They’d also decided to use the time spent training with her grandmother as time to fully get used to fighting with all of her spirits at once. Not including Harmony and Change, of course, since the two had made it clear they didn’t like to fight.

The reasoning behind it was quite simple and twofold. One, their grandmother was family and there was little reason to try and spread her grandchild’s secrets. Two, she was currently in hiding and unlikely to have the capability to spread that information if she did turn out to have such an inclination.

So for the first time in years Willow would fully explore the capabilities of her chosen path.

Which made the day of their arrival at her grandmother’s home all the more exciting for her.

Rotter stopped in front of the entrance to a cave and her mentor told the two girls to dismount.

There was only sparse vegetation at the point of the mountain they were currently on, and the dense earth qi in the air made it clear to Willow why that was the case. What mainly survived were some surprisingly pretty flowers blooming atop of a particularly hardy species of bush. Though there was also a clearly out of place and surprisingly well maintained garden to the right of the caves entrance. The plants in the garden weren’t doing as well as the naturally occurring brush, but Willow could tell that was more due to their environment rather than lack of effort.

She also sensed plenty of small earth sprites throughout the area, but she couldn’t spot any of them with her eyes no matter how hard she searched.

The three of them made their way into the cave, with the two sisters being far more hesitant to enter the dimly lit hole in the earth. However after a couple of turns the innocuous cave entrance made way to a beautiful grotto. Intricate carvings covered the walls, made clearly visible by the ample sunlight coming in from a hole in the ceiling. At the back of the grotto was a doorway and a couple of windows covered by the pelts of some kind of animal Willow didn’t immediately recognize.

Before they had fully made it to the door, the cave entrance sealed shut behind them with a rumble and the small group was pressed down into the earth with an indescribable weight. Even with her enhanced strength Willow was forced to lay on the ground with the pressure mounting on her.

“How did you find me, and why are you here?” A voice called out and echoed around the room. WIllow felt two powerful and almost overlapping presences exit the home, but couldn’t muster enough strength to raise her head and see who they were.

The pressure on her almost immediately relented after surprise appeared in the older woman’s core. Which allowed her to shift a bit and lay eyes on her grandmother.

What was immediately noticeable was the resemblance to both her mother and sister. Her dark curls were streaked with grey and there were noticeable lines on her face that the other two lacked, but the similarities between the three women were readily apparent to Willow.

What was equally noticeable was the massive crown of carved stone rotating around her. With a bit of effort she was even able to decipher the concept intertwined with the spirit’s being.

The Weight of Authority.

“Why did you bring a child to this godsforsaken place?” She demanded of Miss Mu with an increase of pressure on the wanderer woman.

Maple brought out Meteoros, and with their combined effort managed to force herself into a standing position. Though it was clearly draining for her.

When the older woman saw both the spirit and girl in front of her she visibly paled and the pressure vanished entirely from the group.

“Alexandra? You’re alive?” The welling hope that Willow felt in her grandmother’s core quickly died. “No… But that is Meteoros. One of her children by way of that farmer she ran off with then.”

Willow and Mu staggered to their feet as Maple continued to glare at their assailant.

Miss Mu tried to smooth over their rough introduction. “Sorry for bargin’ in like this, Thea. Found some of your kin, and thought it best to try and introduce them to you.”

Willow’s grandmother seemed to finally recognize the wanderer. “You were that woman who was part of the group escorting me out of Petros lands. You should know better than to intrude on the home of someone in hiding.”

Mu chuckled nervously. “Wasn’t sure if there was some sort of protocol I was just unaware of so I figured it wouldn’t hurt to take a peek in. Love what you’ve done with the place by the by.” She gestured to the carvings throughout the grotto.

“I’ve had a lot of time on my hands to work at it.” Grandma Thea deadpanned. She then finally addressed the two girls here to see her, inclining her head in apology.

“I must have made a terrible first impression on you children, and I apologize for attacking you.” She somewhat awkwardly held out her arms as she withdrew her spirit. “Would either of you like a hug from your grandmother to make up for it?”

Willow stepped forward eagerly and accepted the awkward embrace of her new family member.

Yet Maple stayed apart and continued to glare at her grandmother, unwilling to accept her just yet.