Chapter One Hundred And Thirty Six - Pursuit of a Village

Seven had been in residence within the small village for almost a week now.

For the first day, Leif had let him alone within the house beneath the trees root crop to rest and grow accustomed to his surroundings.  He seemed to retain his sanity for much of that day, able to find balance by occupying his body with simple chores such as sweeping and dusting while letting his mind rest in that peaceful space whenever he was alone.  Leif had left early to take the aphrodisiac to Elder Barkridge, returning home with a fist full of plants known for their edible root and a small basket, which had apparently been left upon the doorstep.

"And so it begins," he had muttered as he placed the basket upon the table before deftly hanging the roots up high to dry.  The root tasted best when cooked within a firm skin, but that was only formed once air dried.

Seven had slowly emerged to the forefront of his mind before questioning Leif's statement.  "Where what begins?"

"The gifts," Leif had snorted and indicated the beaded necklace within the basket.  It was formed of painted wooden beads and small opaque stones.  Having been born for fashion before and born into riches another time, Seven didn't really have an opinion for the necklace.  It was so-so in his eyes, however his voice may sound differently to those within the village, so he had said nothing.  "Even by village law you can't be wed for two years, so what would be the point of sending offerings now?  Elder Calarook must really like the look of you."

"Look, but not touch," Seven had grumbled and continued to sweep without interest.

The following day, Leif had thought it would be a good idea for Seven to view the village in daylight.  With vague light diffused by the thick, hanging fog over the village, the swamp did look vastly different.  More mysterious and less haunting.  The light was thin enough not to mutate the vegetables and fruits, yet more than enough for villagers to walk through the village without the need of torch light.  Everyone here had olive to dark skin tones rather than the paler or ashen tones of those in the underground world and whereas even prostitutes within the city felt the need to be clothed from head to toe, most here just covered up more personal parts of their body and adorned the rest in handmade beads and bracelets.  Everyone could fully see everyone else's markings whether abundant or lacking, but not a soul seemed penalised nor revered greatly for it, with the exception of three individuals.  Leif was one of those people.

Seven met the Village Chief on the third day and learnt of the Record Keeper on his fourth.

The Village Chief went by the name of Elder Yddrasil, his line named after the mythical tree of life.  All chiefs were from this blood line or married into it, but it was up to the village elders as a whole and the village witch who would inherit the title chief.  Elder Yddrasil was already old as far as the average lifespan of a villager was concerned, but he looked like a man in his sixties.  Seven later learned that one of Leif's best potions helped retain the hardiness of a man's youth for extended periods.  He also had potions to help retain face, which was prized amongst women and men.  Elder Yddrasil already had five wives, twelve children and nearing forty grandchildren, so apart from the odd comment; "If only I were ten years younger..." he showed no interest in adding Seven to his harem, allowing the boy to relax about him.

The Record Keeper was named Elder Blackthorn.  He had one wife and four children, only the first was old enough to be married off, but as he was unfortunate of face, had to be content in learning his father's trade instead.  The reason the man chose not to have a harem was simple; it required more paperwork.  His position was highly respected as he was responsible for ensuring the bloodlines did not mix too thickly and cause problems in future generations.  The Elders must come to him before pursuing brides to gain his permission before they can set their hand an wooing the one they wished to wed.  Seven was fresh blood and beautiful, highly desirable and fair game to all Elders even if he did not wish it so.

Naturally after the first tour of the village and his meeting with the Chief on the third day saw an increase in interest and curious Elders "just stopping by."  From the amounts of gifts that appeared upon Leif's doorstep, it was clear he had not delayed nor thwarted them when declaring that his ward cannot be wed for two years.  Leif was becoming a little distressed, after all, he only required so much food in his pantry and only had so much space for the jewellery, none of which Seven had shown any interest in.  Leif had warned him, however, if he did wear any of the pieces, it would be giving the Elder who provided it more encouragement to pursue him... not that they seemed to need more.

On the seventh day, Elder Calarook appeared, wanting to take Seven for a tour of his estate and by this he meant to show his sprawling home on its island within the swampy waters.  Leif attempted to send him on his way, declaring that the boy had had a long week and needed to rest without visitors, however the Elder was nothing if not stubborn.  It did not help that the Elder was actually Leif's uncle, his mother's eldest brother and that the siblings actually shared both father and mother.  The Elder was less respectful to him than others, despite Leif's officially higher status.  At least the other Elders only used his age against him, thus seeing him their equal rather than equal to their chief, Elder Calarook considered him the same boy he had always lorded over!

Seven at that time, was not in the sort of condition to entertain guests, he had long retreated into his peaceful space, while organising the herbs in the workshop.  As a poison specialist, it did not take him long to learn a great deal from Leif's ramblings.  The Witch had not intended to teach him, due to his magical lack, but unable to stand long silences, had told him many things from where the herbs could be found to what potions they were used in.  The little black viper had crawled out and made itself comfortable curling like a rope about Seven's neck and burying its head in the boy's messy hair.

When Elder Calarook noticed the slightly vacant, innocent look, he wanted him even more.  He had tried to gain entry by arguing that Leif was not yet officially recognised as the boy's guardian and therefore had no right to stop his pursuit.  Leif could not deny this and tried to argue that if not him, who would be willing?  The only Elder's not interested in pursuing the boy were probably the Chief and Elder Blackthorn and the Guardian could not strictly wed his own ward, although secretly Leif was attempting to gain leeway with the Chief on this subject.  He really did not want to hand this small brother over to one of the Elders, partially as he was concerned over Seven's mental health and partially as it went against the boy's own wishes.

However, the Elder was bigger, bulkier and stronger than him and simply swept him aside, disrespectfully and walked into Leif's home and found the boy in the workshop.  Seven turned to look at him automatically as he was used to doing when hearing footsteps, hence capturing the man's ardour even more.

Within his fractured mind, Seven could still see everything that was occurring before his eyes, hear everything that was happening around him, however it was as if he was observing it from a distance, perhaps on a television screen or more appropriately, a crystal mirror. When he heard Leif arguing, he paid it no mind, but as the approaching, heavy footsteps caught his attention, his body reacted as always and so he came to view a lustful Elder. So Seven reached for the doorway out of that space, which sometimes seemed stuck to its frame, but this time opened freely allowing him to move to the forefront of his mind.

He blinked several times as he awakened to reality. "Can I help you, Elder?" he asked softly, it was becoming easier to speak, he just simply decided that he didn't like doing it.

The Elder seemed to come out of his own stupor and coughed with a slight blush upon his cheekbones. "I was wondering if I might be able to show you around my estate this afternoon?"

Behind him, Leif was furiously shaking his head, his eyebrows furrowed and his state clearly riled. Seven carefully thought of his refusal before saying; "I'm sorry. I am still very new to this, it's too much right now. Perhaps another time?"

The Elder thought about his words, then noticed the glinting, black choker about the boy's neck and could not help but wonder who had pleased him enough that he might display the unique piece. Clearly the boy only turned him down not to upset that person, so he needed to find out immediately that person's identity and block their pursuit. He was damned if he was going to lose this treasure, the boy would be the jewel to the crown that was his harem. That he already had nine wives meant nothing if he could not make Seven his tenth. Therefore, he graciously backed away in order to research the threat.

Leif sighed as he left, thinking that he really needed to speak with the Chief about this. He could not stop the pursuits, it was a highlight of village life for magic's sake, but the disrespect of his uncle was too much this time. "Are you alright?" Leif asked the boy, who looked like he was beginning to become lost to his own thoughts once more.

The pale eyes snapped upwards and the boy nodded, before returning to sort out the mess of herbs.

"I do hope your intended comes for you as you wish," Leif told him.

"He will come," Seven replied. He will won't he, Yin? The little snake poked its head from between the soft locks of hair, tongue flickering out.

*Mmm. He's just managed to find himself in a small... predicament right now.*

Author's note; thank you to tfread for his potion comment, it made sense so I cheekily used it.