Macha's Journey

Macha got up off the sofa to make tea, but Tyr pushed her down gently and asked, "Where are you going? You need to rest. What do you need?"

Macha did not feel the least bit sick, so Tyr"s actions made her feel guilty. "Tyr, I"m fine. I just want to make some tea to drink." She thought he was making a fuss over nothing.

Tyr got up and began making the tea. As he moved about in the kitchen, Macha mentioned, "The chocolate shop was really busy today. They are making a special chocolate for Boreas"s Day. I decided to order a box for us to try." She knew Tyr would enjoy the special holiday chocolates. Macha wished she heard about the holidays more often. It was something that she enjoyed experiencing in this world.

Tyr judged that Macha must have at least some feelings for him. He believed Macha had been hinting at her expectations for Boreas"s Day over the past week. She was aware that he liked chocolates, and she got the Boreas"s Day chocolate box for them. Macha had also bought the throw for the couch.

Tyr could not hide his good mood as he placed the teacup in front of her. He watched her blow on the steaming tea and take a sip. "Are you free on Boreas"s Day?" Tyr asked. He was her boss, and he lived with her, so he had a good idea of her schedule, but he still wanted to make sure.

Macha looked in the distance for a second. "Sort of. I mean, we have work. Why?" She looked at Tyr and wondered if he had an errand that needed to be done.

Tyr rarely made tea, so she was excited to drink his tea for once. Macha brought it to her nose and smelled the brew. It looked darker than usual and she took a small sip. The tea had been oversteeped and tasted bitter, so she wrinkled her nose.

Tyr got up to change the song that played in the music player, he did not want Macha to see his nervous face. He was unsure why her nose wrinkled when she replied, but he continued, "Let"s take the day off and spend it together." His nerves were high strung now. He laid his feelings out in the open and waited for Macha to respond.

"Are you sure? I thought you have to go with Freyr to Phocée the day after. Shouldn"t you have a lot of preparations to take care of?" Macha worried that Tyr neglected his duties. She enjoyed spending the day with Tyr, but they spent the day together in the office all the time. Macha did not understand what the difference was.

Tyr knew his mission was the next day, but he wanted to spend Boreas"s Day with Macha. "I"m sure. I"m not worried about it. If possible, I"d like to spend Boreas"s Day with you," he explained. He wanted to get their relationship sorted out before he left for Phocée with Freyr. He would be gone for a few months and he did not want to come back to find Macha with someone else.

Macha shrugged. "All right, but don"t blame me if you fall behind on your workload." She did not understand why Tyr was acting so irresponsible all of a sudden. She wondered if Boreas"s Day was his favorite holiday.

****

Later that night, Luna came to visit. Mathis told her what happened, and she wanted to check up on Macha. While Luna visited Macha, Tyr went down to order dinner for them. Macha was happy that Luna came because she had a question she needed to ask Luna.

When Tyr closed the door Luna quickly turned to Macha. "What are you going to get Tyr for Boreas"s Day?" She bounced on the couch with excitement. She knew Tyr thought hard about his gift, so she wanted to hear what Macha planned to get Tyr.

Macha looked at Luna and frowned. "That"s something I wanted to ask you about. I"m getting a feeling like I don"t know what Boreas"s Day is really about. I thought it was just a holiday." Macha hesitated before continuing, "Tyr seems to be making a big deal about it. He asked me to spend the day with him."

Luna realized that this was Macha"s first year in their world. "Oh, Macha, I"m sorry. I should have told you sooner. Boreas"s Day is a day for lovers. A man named Boreas created cold winter winds to bring two lovers together by having them share a blanket for warmth."

Macha"s jaw dropped open. "Lovers?!" Macha"s head spun with confusion. She was not Tyr"s lover. Her eyes darted around the room as she remembered all the things she did recently. Macha remembered how Tyr acted when she bought the blanket and mentioned the chocolates. She moved her hand over her mouth. "Oh no! What have I done!" she whispered.

Luna looked at Macha, who was on the verge of tears. "What happened? Macha, what"s wrong?" Luna held Macha"s arm, worried for her friend. Macha seemed stressed and clutched the throw that rested on the couch.

"I think Tyr believes I love him. I messed up." Macha looked around the room, color draining from her face. "What am I going to do? I don"t want to be banished like Taylen! I love the guild and you guys." Macha was distraught and got up off the couch. She paced the room with her hands over her mouth.

Luna watched Macha pace the room. She tilted her head to one side and protested, "Don"t you love Tyr? I don"t understand. You"ve been with him for almost a year."

Macha stopped in her tracks. "Luna, what are you talking about?" She moved to sit back on the couch. Her brows furrowed, and she did not understand.

"You two have been together for almost a year. Don"t you feel that way about him?" Luna grew concerned now. Tyr and Macha seemed so close that she would have sworn they were well into their love. She had never seen her brother so happy since they were children. Macha always smiled, and he took good care of her.

Macha shook her head. "Tyr and I aren"t together. Why would you say that? We only kissed once, but that was recently after the tournament. You remember that night, he drank a lot."

Luna"s head spun. She gripped the sofa"s armrest. This whole time she a.s.sumed they were lovers. Luna remembered how Tyr acted so nice to Macha. Her brother smiled so often now, she thought he must be in love. Tyr never explained their relationship to anyone. He even defended Macha from their mother. Luna bit her lip cursing her brother"s enigmatic ways.

Luna remembered Tyr asked her about a gift for Macha for Boreas"s Day. This fact alone made Luna convinced that Tyr"s love was now one-sided, and she grew nervous. Luna swallowed, "You kissed? Did you like the kiss?" She had to know if Tyr had a chance if not she would warn him.

Macha looked out the window, "I liked the kiss, but I won"t overstep our friendship. I told you, I don"t want to be banished like Taylen was." She considered the guild her home and loved the people and friendships she had made.

This Taylen nonsense confused Luna. "Macha, Taylen wasn"t banished because she liked Tyr. He banished her because she tried to kill you. Who told you that?" Luna did not understand how Macha came to that conclusion. Many women in the guild confessed to her brother, but he never banished them. Luna did not want Macha thinking that loving Tyr was forbidden.

Macha blinked her eyes and tilted her head. "I read it in the official write up. It said unstable emotions and inability to conduct oneself in an appropriate manner. I even heard whispers about how Taylen went crazy for Tyr. Taylen never tried to kill me. What are you talking about?" Tyr never mentioned what happened that night to Macha. He wanted to keep her happy and let her live a life free of worry.

Luna realized that this was not her place to explain, so she looked away and said, "That is something you need to talk about with Tyr. I wouldn"t worry about being kicked out of the guild because I think Tyr likes you. I hope you can like him too." Luna held Macha"s hand. She wanted to have Macha get used to the idea of Tyr"s love. She did not want Macha do be blindsided on Boreas"s Day.

"If you say so." Macha dismissed what her friend said. Luna sometimes got excited over small things and Macha did not want to get her hopes up. "You said I should get something for Tyr for Boreas"s Day? Why?" Macha did not want to be rude and offend Tyr, so she had to find out what the tradition was for this day.

Luna put her hands on Macha"s shoulders and looked her friend in the eyes. Her face was serious and did not have an ounce of humor in it. "If you don"t get him something he"ll be upset. Even if you don"t believe me on how he feels, get him something. You can hold on to your gift and wait for him to give you his gift, but have something for him, please!"

Luna thought about her brother and hoped Macha would reciprocate his feelings. If Boreas"s Day did not work out, Luna feared for the people who had to go to Phocée with him. Tyr would be in a terrible mood the whole time.

Tyr came back later and Luna said goodnight to them. She watched as her brother brought the food to the table and served Macha her food. Macha placed a chocolate on a small dish for him while he cut her meat. Luna shook her head. She did not understand how Macha could not see that her brother was in love with her. She also did not understand why her brother took so long to realize he loved Macha.

Macha waited for Tyr to eat his chocolate. "Why did Taylen leave the guild?" she asked as soon as he closed his eyes to savor the chocolate"s flavor.

Tyr stopped chewing and opened his eyes. He swallowed and took a sip of his milk. "Well," he considered lying, but decided not to, "she tried to kill you." Macha had always been honest with him, so he did not want to lie to her.

Macha moved her piece of chocolate over to his plate. She meant it as a bribe, "When?" Macha gave the sweet a little nudge towards him.

Tyr laughed and looked at her. "Fine." He took the piece and explained, "The day we went to the concert I caught her trying to kill you with that bull. I didn"t want you to know because I already took care of the situation and thought you didn"t need to worry about it." He shook his head. Macha asking him about it now was probably his sister"s fault. She did not seem upset, so he figured he worried for nothing.

Macha nodded her head. It made sense now. "I think you should probably tell me these things. I mean, if someone is dangerous I should know about it. What if Taylen came up to me on the street? I would think she"s a friend and would follow her anywhere. Look what happened with Ivan." Macha felt Tyr treated her like a child. She was a grown woman and did not want to be so sheltered.

Tyr looked out the window at the city lights. "I just want to keep you smiling. The world is unpleasant and I don"t want you to lose that light." He saw a lot of things in his life and he worried the world would twist Macha"s beautiful personality.