Lucia and Celes are Lost

“...A...... Cia...”

I could hear someone calling my name in the distance. Who was it? My mother? I could hear how much whoever it was cared for me.

“Lu...cia...”

Who could it be? I know this voice well. It was the voice of the person I loved. Gentle and deep, pleasant to the ear...

“Sir Cele...”

“Lucia!” When I opened my eyes, Sir Celes was right in front of me, with his golden hair soaked and clinging to his forehead. He looked somewhat distressed. “Lucia, thank goodness...!”

As soon as our eyes met, he pulled me tightly to his chest in a hug. It was then that I noticed that it wasn’t just his hair that was soaked, but his entire body; not just him, but me as well.

“Huh, what? Where are... Ah, Miss Maria!”

It was dark out, but you could see one part of the sky getting brighter... So it must have been near dawn?

“Last night, the cliff crumbled beneath you, and you fell into the river below.” Sir Celes explained. “I jumped in to save you, but the river was so swollen, all I could manage was using wind magic to shield us. I’m not good enough to use much else but some support magic. Plus, since I couldn’t touch the crystal in my regiment emblem, I couldn’t make us float...”

“Where are we?” I asked, looking around again.

“I don’t know. I was just so afraid that you wouldn’t wake up. I thought I was too late,” he whispered, as his arms tightened ever so slightly. The fact that sounded as if his voice was quaking made my chest tighten.

“I’m sorry for worrying you. Thank you for saving me.”

“It’s fine... I’m glad I made it in time.”

Glad that I could feel his body heat, I put my arms around his back too. It should be fine for me to hold him like this, just for now.

“You’re warm, Lucia.”

We held each other in silence for a while, until he pulled away with an embarrassed smile.

“You’re right, it’s warm when we hug,” I admitted it honestly. Really though, it’s so cold! I just noticed, but we were both freezing!

“We’d better get dried off soon, or we’ll be in trouble.”

“That’s true,” I replied, leaning forward. “We wouldn’t want to catch a cold— Wait just a moment. Soap!”

Soap didn’t just clean, but dried things as well. It really was quite handy. Ah, it dried out our hair, too!

“Thanks, Lucia. It feels so much better to be dry.”

“It does, doesn’t it?”

“But anyway... Where are we?” Still staying close to each other, we both looked around. That was when we saw a few white wisps of smoke rising between some trees nearby. “There’s smoke...”

“Wouldn’t that mean there are people?”

“It’s along the river, so it might be a village. I didn’t think we had gotten swept that far away, but the river was flowing pretty fast... I don’t remember how long we were in there, so we should figure out exactly where we are first. Can you walk? Does anything hurt?”

Sir Celes helped me up, but I didn’t seem to have any injuries.

“I’m alright,” I said, dusting my clothes off. “Are you hurt anywhere, Sir Celes?”

“Nope, I’m good. Let’s get going, then. Everyone must be worried sick, knowing that we got separated like that, especially the Sacred Maiden. We need to get back to them as soon as possible.”

I thought back to just before I fell. My chest tightened painfully as I remembered Miss Maria’s crying face. Miss Maria... I hope she’s not blaming herself. I wonder if she’s okay? Shiro, Sir Gaius, Eric, Lord Reynard. Please comfort Miss Maria for me. She might act tough, but she’s really quite gentle. Knowing her, she probably thinks it’s her fault that Sir Celes and I got separated.

Just as we were about to start walking towards the smoke, Sir Celes spoke up, noticing something. “Ah.”

“Hm? What’s wrong?”

“Lucia. We’re in trouble.” Heaving a sigh, he held his right hand up to his forehead. “We’re penniless.”

“Huh? What do you...?” For a moment, I didn’t understand what he meant. Penniless. It means having no money, so... Wait, what!?

Once I realized what he said, I looked closely at both of us. I was in a simple dress that I used as a nightgown. Though my hair was usually tied up with the ribbon that Sir Celes gave me, I had taken it out before bed. Sir Celes was in his uniform slacks and the shirt he wore under his uniform top. He didn’t have his armor, his cape, his gloves, or even the sword he always had on his hip. You couldn’t tell he was a knight unless he told you. And neither of us had any of our belongings, so we had nothing we could sell.

“Let’s just go towards the smoke and figure out where we are for now. We’ll need to make some money to get back to the others. I mean, you can’t walk around in that, and I can’t protect you without a sword. I’m so sorry, Lucia.”

“You have nothing to be sorry for. If you weren’t with me, I don’t know what would have happened to me. I’d be helpless. Thank you for being with me.”

Just thinking about being all alone like this sent a chill down my spine. Being alone is scary. Not having anyone to rely on, you’re just at a loss for what to do. I don’t want to feel like that anymore.

I looked up at Sir Celes. A ray of morning light cut through the sky, illuminating his sun-colored hair. The person I loved was someone who was just like a spot in the sun.

“It’s such a relief to not be alone,” I said, smiling. Suddenly, he grabbed my hand. “Sir Celes...?”

Sir Celes pulled the hand he grabbed hard. I lost my balance and fell into his chest.

“Hyah!?”

“Lucia.” Before I realized it, I was in his arms. I don’t know what’s happening. What is this? “I’ll definitely protect you. I won’t leave you alone. So don’t worry, and just stay with me.”

I went silent as he hugged me tighter than when I first woke up. No girl could get hugged by the person they loved without getting excited. The same goes for me. It’s going to make me think I have a chance when I shouldn’t. To be frank, the last time I got excited about it, I just got let down. I shouldn’t let myself get the wrong idea.

He knew I was an orphan. He must be trying to cheer me up because of that. That had to be it. Not wanting to embarrass myself by getting the wrong idea, I suppressed my feelings.

“I’m fine. I’m strong.”

“You are strong and graceful, Lucia. Your strength has saved both the Sacred Maiden and I. Everyone relies on you. But you’re still just sixteen. You can rely on others too. I want you to rely on me.”

Oh, why does Sir Celes always have to hit me where I’m weak. This is bad. If I depend on him, I won’t be able to do anything alone anymore.

“...Let’s go, Sir Celes. I’m used to being poor,” I said, breaking away from the hug. “If we’ve got no money, all we need to do is work for it. If we find anyone, let’s ask them if they have any work that needs doing. Okay?”

“Lucia...”

I’m good at living without money! Just leave it to me!

“The doctor back in Hasawes taught me about medicinal herbs. She did it because she said it’d be good for my mother if I could gather and mix them myself. I think we could sell herbs anywhere, so let’s get back to Miss Maria as soon as we can. She has to be worrying about us. I want to see her and make her feel better.”

“That’s true. We did leave her on a bad note. I’m doing a really bad job at being her protector.” He rested his head against my shoulder, sighing. “...Yeah. We’ll do it somehow. Let’s go, Lucia.”

“Okay!”

We started walking towards the source of the smoke. Though I was a bit sad that we had to separate, we had no time for hugs. I’ll be back soon, Miss Maria! I looked up at the brightening sky and took a deep breath. Shiro, please give Miss Maria some comfort. Stay with her and protect her, so she won’t cry.