Fifi immediately retorted, "I know b--"
"It's enough," Celeste's commanding voice interrupted. Everyone's attention turned to her as she directed a serious gaze at Orion. "You and Greta can leave right away, and when you come back, you can tell me how you met with the Village Chieftess previously and didn't inform me about it."
Orion's shoulders immediately dropped in defeat as he avoided his mother's gaze, knowing the reason why he hadn't informed her about his previous meeting with the Village Chieftess. Before he could respond, Celeste turned her eyes towards Fifi, saying, "And Fifi?"
Fifi's eyes widened as she heard Celeste calling her by that name. Looking at the expressions of everyone in the room, she realized that they had accepted the name to distinguish her from the other Fiona present.
Resignedly, she sighed and responded with a defeated "Yes?"
"Why don't you stay and finally tell us why you had left your task and wandered to the other side of the river, and how it had led to that situation," Celeste responded.
Her prompt reply made Fifi give up on her plans to accompany Orion and Greta to see the Village Chieftess. Fifi refocused her gaze on Orion and said, "Come back quickly, and don't forget to respect the Chieftess once you are in her presence."
Orion nodded in understanding and watched as she walked to sit on the ground in the midst of his mother, Grandma Meldra, Ayla, and the rest of his partners. Focusing his attention on Sura before leaving the hut, Orion immediately rushed towards her position.
Kneeling in front of her, with Dariya, Gina, and Reena at her side, he spoke first. However, before he could open his mouth, Sura immediately cut in, "Don't worry, I understand. But I will be waiting for you to come back this time around, no matter the hour, so that we can have a long talk, okay?"
"I will," Orion responded, acknowledging that he had to make it up to Sura one way or another since he had missed yesterday, which was supposed to be the time for them to catch up with each other. He continued, "And if you're tired, just fall asleep. I'll be there to wake you up when I return." With a tender peck on her lips, he reassured her of his devotion.
Sura licked her lips as she smiled widely and said, "Alright, I will take this as a promise, so don't waste time." Orion nodded, and without hesitation, he moved towards Gina to give her a big wet kiss on her cheeks. "I will be back soon, okay? So do me a favour and take care of Sura until I return."
"Alright," Gina nodded seriously, "You can count on me, brother. I will make her feel comfortable until you come back."
"Just get going so that you can meet the Village Chieftess quickly." Reena chimed in, showing her support, "We will keep her company until you return."
Seeing both of his sisters giving their enthusiastic support, Orion was about to speak to Darya, who was seated between Gina and Sura. However, once he turned his attention towards her direction, he was surprised to find that she was no longer there and that the space was empty.
Mentally scratching his head, he wondered how the red and orange brightly-skinned voluptuous woman, who was almost as tall as Fifi, had disappeared out of thin air without anyone noticing.
"Orion, we have to go," Greta's urgent voice sounded in his ears, snapping him out of his thoughts. He quickly raced towards Greta, attributing Dariya's disappearance to one of her mystical abilities, and decided to arrange some time to meet up with her later to properly thank her for the help she had given.
"Click!" The door shut close as Greta and Orion walked away from the hut. Meanwhile, back where Dariya was previously sitting, a small gust of wind blew around the empty space, revealing her fiery red and deep orange tall, curvy figure. She looked at the closed door with a deep sigh escaping her lips, wondering why she had become so anxious when he was about to talk to her, and why she had immediately hidden herself from him.
But still, Dariya felt a sense of relief that Orion hadn't reached his full potential as a warrior; otherwise, he might have noticed her and picked up on her nervous expression when she had temporarily gone immaterial – the form tree nymphs usually used to enter back into their trees.
'Well, he was also mentally occupied the last time we spoke,' Dariya thought, reminiscing about when Orion had arrived at her tree earlier this morning, seeking her help while his mind was entirely focused on something else, just as it seemed to be now.
Still, she couldn't help but wonder what was going on. She, a being who had lived for many long years and would continue to live long after he was gone, felt shy about talking to a boy, all because he had put her to sleep in all her countless years of existence.
'Arrrghhhh!! what is this?' Dariya thought in exasperation. If she hadn't experienced it for herself, she would have believed it was a joke. Even when she had told Malaia what had happened, Malaia had serious doubts and accused her of exaggerating the event. Now, Malaia wanted to meet Orion as soon as possible to test it out herself.
While Dariya sat there, contemplating her decision to talk to Orion, she gathered her courage and thought one last time, "I will just wait for when he comes back, and this time, I will speak to him."
In the meantime, she decided to engage in a conversation with the young women around her, finding them more approachable than the older, more serious women in the room.
Meanwhile, Reena and some of the other women observed the interaction between Dariya and Orion with surprise. They were keen to understand the nature of their relationship but were left puzzled when Orion simply stared blankly at Dariya before abruptly running off.
Now, they could only wait for him to return so they could ask him themselves and finally satisfy their curiosity.
