A Strange State of Affairs Ch. 20

                  The guests had all arrived, and the inn was now filled with the sound of chatter and suitcases rolling along the wooden floors.

            The hotel in which Pona and Vert had decided to host their engagement party was cozy but regal.  It was not a tall industrial-style building full of gleaming steel and polished crystal �" rather, this hotel sprawled out and was furnished like a pagoda.  The rest of the hotel spread out behind the lobby.  Guests walked away from the lobby and down a hallway, feet pattering on shining wooden flooring, looking to their left through thin paper doors to find their rooms.  Others stared out at the courtyard, which was framed on all sides by the halls, admiring the willows in its midst.

            Fye was sitting outside of his room, the fragile paper door left slightly ajar.  He sat on the edge of the wide wooden path, staring out at the courtyard and leaning against one of the many thick mahogany posts that propped up the ridged roof.  The mountain air was slightly frigid, so he draped a billowing striped grey robe over his shoulders as he breathed in the smell of vacation and relaxation.

            Elevine, meanwhile, had slipped out of the spacious hotel room through a window in the bedroom.  She wandered aimlessly and ended up by the lobby, where a few were unpacking their last items from their cars.

            To her surprise, she saw Sherry hop daintily from the trunk of Riyel’s car, a brown leather duffel bag slung over one shoulder.  Riyel was helping her down, one arm steadily supporting her as she jumped.

            How different his face was from that of the drunken man who had come home from the Tellurim Gallery show with Fye!!  Elevine noticed the worry that welled deep from Riyel’s eyes, melting the cold ice within.  She also saw the flushed color of Sherry’s face �" visible even from a distance �" as she sped away, and the misery that showed on Riyel’s face.

            El drew back quickly and leaned her rump against the wall.  What’s going on? she thought.

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            Pona sat before the vanity table in the bedroom, combing out her thick wavy hair with a bristly brush.  Vert had gone back to his room next door, and she was now waiting for Sherry, her roommate. 

            I have to talk to her.  The thought circled round and round in her mind as she brushed her hair.

            The engagement ring sparkled in the mirror, and she admired it for a second or two.  Then, she sighed.  What’s going to happen to Fye?  I need to keep Riyel out of the picture or my plan for him will be ruined!!  I should never have let him drive Sherry…

            Chiding herself for being careless, Pona frowned at her stunning reflection.  She suddenly heard the paper door sliding open and quickly fixed her face into a spry mask.

            “Pona?” Sherry called.  She stepped over the threshold, leaving her shoes by the doormat outside.  “Are you there?” 

            Pona walked out of the bedroom, a huge smile plastered on her face.  “Sherry, dear!!” she warbled, arms open and moving forward to envelope the young woman in a hug.

            Sherry closed her eyes with fatigue and breathed in the air �" sullied now with the spice of Pona’s perfume.  “Hello, Pona,” she murmured quietly.

            Pona heard the tired throb of Sherry’s voice and released her.  “You sound terrible, darling!!” she gushed, “Did something happen on the way here?  Are you ill?”

            Sherry shook her head, smiled faintly.  “I…it’s nothing the eye can see.”  Which, she supposed, was the truth.  “I just need to rest.”

            “Oh.  Well, alright, dear.”  Pona watched Sherry stumble down the hall, opening doors to find her room.  She made up her mind: she’d pay Riyel a visit tonight.  What had happened to make Sherry behave so oddly?  What had the man done to her?

            No matter, the past was immaterial.  It was time for her to regain control of the situation.

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            “Where are the hot springs?” Fye muttered to himself as he twisted a map of the inn in his hands. 

            It was about two hours before the dinner Pona and Vert had scheduled and announced.  Fye was wandering down a path of large flat stones, a map in hand, trying to find the inn’s famous hot springs.  And so far, he was having no luck. 

            His bare feet tripped on the hem of the billowing striped robe he’d thrown on, and he looked down at them quickly before pulling the hem higher.

            Fye sighed.  “I can’t believe this.  The springs are only a few feet away from the inn, and I still can’t find them.” 

            “Why are you talking to yourself?”

            The artist jumped, much to Vert and Riyel’s amusement.

            Riyel slung a pale arm around Fye’s shoulders and reeled him in.  “Lost again, eh?  Lemme see that map.”

            Vert, stockier and burlier that the other two, took a swing at Fye’s arm.  He laughed and ran a hand through his cropped red hair.  “You should’ve waited for us!!”

            Fye laughed and stretched.  “I’m exhausted.  I just want to sleep.”

            Riyel gripped Fye’s robe collar and dragged him onward while staring at the map.  “C’mon, the springs are this way.”

            They meandered down the path and made a left onto an even tinier trail made up of small white stones. 

            No wonder why I missed this, Fye thought wryly to himself.  It’s so small.

            Vert and Riyel walked ahead, chatting avidly. 

            “-and we’ve put our reservation in for the catering service already,” Vert was saying.  “Pona wants something with a Southern Kor feel.  You know, with lots of fruit and stuff in the dishes.”

            Riyel smirked.  “Figures.  Southern Korish fruit is good for the skin.”

            “Hot spring!!” Fye called from behind.

            The springs were behind another sturdy mahogany pavilion furnished in the same style of the hotel.  It was quite grand.

            The three men trooped up the slick ramp and entered the building, where a cheery receptionist handed them each a thick, grey robe and a pair of long matching towels before ushering towards the men’s baths.

            They went into separate cubicles and changed; Fye came out first, a towel wrapped around his waist and robe draped over his shoulders.

            He looked around �" Riyel and Vert had yet to appear, so he headed down to the springs alone.

            The men’s spring was wide and steaming gently.  It was ringed by willows; veined dark grey stone held the hot, naturally-bubbling water.  The rock rose up on one end in a large natural ridge, separating the men and women with its steep, slick incline.

            Fye slipped into the spring and settled on a piece of smooth rock that jutted out to serve as an underwater bench.  He sighed and put his head back…closed his eyes…and was promptly drifting, drifting, drifting…

            “-and I’m pretty sure she’s gone dress-shopping already, too.”

            Vert’s voice, still chittering on about the wedding. 

            Fye awoke with a start but kept his eyes closed.

            Riyel slung his towel round his neck and stared at his arms in the dark water.  “So you’re really going to go through with this, huh,” he murmured quietly.

            Vert nodded.

            Riyel grinned.  “Are you sure you can deal with her manipulative nature for life?”

            Vert shot him a stern look and shrugged.  “Look, I know she’s manipulative, and sometimes she can be a little catty, but the Pona that I really know is nothing like that at all.”  He smiled gently.  “The girl I know is shy, quiet, and insecure.  It’s just…sometimes…”  He dropped his voice so that it would be covered by the hiss of the steam.

            Fye heard him sigh before continuing.  “Like this whole thing with Fye and Sherry.  I mean, I understand that she’s concerned for Fye’s romantic life and career and stuff, but she can’t just…force this to happen.  I mean, Fye’s not an animal �" doesn’t he have a say in this?  You know?”

            Riyel was quiet for a moment.  “Vert, I need to tell you something.  It’s been just bothering me for a while.”  He took a breath to cool down and steady his nerves.  “It’s about Sherry.  I…I really li-”

            “VERT!!”

            The roar rumbled throughout the spa.

            Fye jumped, slipped, and choked on a noseful of burning water.  Vert hurridly thumped him on the back.

            Riyel’s fists were clenched.  “Pona?” he murmured curiously.  And then he got his breath back.  “WHAT THE HELL?!” he boomed.

            Pona laughed gaily from the other side.  “Did I scare you?” she yelled back, winking confidently at Sherry.

            Fye sighed in frustration, wincing as Riyel hollered uselessly in return at Pona.  There goes my meditation time. 

            “I’m out,” he said quietly to Vert as Riyel let fly with a string of roared curses, which were met with much laughter from the other side.

            “Mmmm,” Vert replied, “Can you find your way back alright?”

            Fye shrugged, grabbed his robe, and clambered out.  “Later.”  He sauntered into the pavilion to gather his clothes, all the while thinking about what Vert had said.

            How do I really feel…about Sherry? He thought as he left the building.  Well, she is very nice and all.  And her family is really art-inclined.  But…

            His mind flashed to their first date, lingering on the details �" yet he was unable to rekindle any emotion he had felt that night besides friendly affection.

            Instead, his mind summoned the image of the figure on the countertop the night he returned from the date.  It brought forth the vivid pictures of the slender body, the mass of tangled, dark hair, the glint of eyes illuminated by the dim moonlight…already, the artist could feel his heart speeding up to an excited whir. 

            Fye shook his head to quiet his thoughts.  It wouldn’t do to think that way.  A plan suddenly began forming in his mind.  He clutched his robe about himself and strode quickly back to the hotel.