Follow Through

Reunited

"So this is the human who wishes to kick me," Ulrik declared contemptuously beside me.

Keanu pulled back,held me by the shoulders and looked into my eyes briefly before turning and meeting Ulrik's challenging appraisal.

"Who are you?" Keanu demanded,squaring his shoulders and planting his feet.I rolled my eyes.

Men.

Well males since Ulrik is,well....Ulrik.

He puffed up his chest a little,tilted his head arrogantly and flicked his hand downward, summoning his staff that somehow looked decidedly more threatening than it did before.

"I am Ulrik the Finder,and I will have you know that no one, barring Glob,ruler of Opa has bested me in a fight.You shan't be kicking me,but I will give you a fair chance" he answered.I swear his voice went a couple octaves deeper.

Must be all the testosterone he's trying not to choke on.

I saw Keanu's hackles raise and I knew without being able to see that his jaw was clenched.I did see his fists clench though, and took that as my cue.I stepped between them,put a hand on either chest-one made of tree bark and iron,the other very male and well muscled.I mentally shrugged off that errant thought and refocussed on preventing two fully charged egos from clashing together.I really can't deal with a d**k fight right now.

"Hey,easy," I looked at Keanu "He misunderstood something I said a while ago," swiveled my head to look at Ulrik.

"Didn't I explain to you what I meant?" He looked at me for a couple seconds before exhaling loudly through his mouth and taking a step back.Keanu unclenched his fists and turned his gaze to me."You told him I wanted to kick him?"

I slapped him lightly on the shoulder."No! I said you'd get a kick out of him."

He looked back at Ulrik who was still sizing him up,albeit in a more non-threatening manner,cast his gaze on me and back again before his face split in a wide grin,a shallow dimple making an appearance in his left cheek,summoning a smile from me.

"Oh,I get it now," he said,then extended his hand to a dour looking Ukrik,still grinning.

"Nice to meet you."

After a slight hesitation,Ulrik gripped his palm and they shook.

"We've already met." Keanu's grin faltered and I was taken aback.

"Say what now?" I asked,looking back and forth between them.

Keanu dropped his arm and stared at Ulrik warily.

"I think I would have remembered meeting a talking Tree Bear."

"Hey, that's exactly how I think of him!" I exclaimed.Warmth gushed into my heart.That's my best friend right there.

Wait, that's my best friend.

And he's here. I'm about to ask a very pertinent question when Ulrik speaks.

"To be fair,you were in deep slumber during our initial encounter."

"Hold up, you kidn*pped him in his sleep?"

Ulrik's nostrils flared in annoyance and I saw his left brow begin to twitch.

"I rescued him from discovery by Gargol and deftly transported him to Opa."

I shrugged,"Tomato,tomahto"

Ulrik furrowed his brows."What? You say the same thing twice!"

I point g*n fingers at him and click my tongue.

"Exactly" I smiled at his befuddlement,and turned to Keanu who was absently gripping the back of his neck.

"Well that explains alot." He said,staring ahead into the red haze that was creeping towards us.

I tugged on the sleeve of his tunic to get his attention as Ulrik began walking infront of us.We ignored him and stood under the light of the crystals."If you're here,then that means..." I didn't know how to continue and hesitated because my question seemed so ridiculous and he raised a brow impatiently.I decided to just say it all in one go and get it over with,"youhavesuperpowerstoo?" I squeezed my eyes shut for a moment then opened them when his answer came out matter-of-fact and instant.

"It would seem so." His face however,told me that he was finding all this as surreal as I did and I didn't feel like a lunatic anymore.

"Freaky isn't it?" I asked as we started walking through the alternate circles of crystal light.

"Straight out of a fairy tale," he affirmed.I nodded in agreement and asked something else.

"How long have you been here?"

"I woke up in a lavish, luxurious room yesterday but I couldn't come out.Spent some time pretty sure that I was dreaming,"

"I pinched myself a couple times to make sure I wasn't," I concurred and was rewarded with a small smile before he continued.

"This guy called Glob came to the room after I spent about an hour pounding the door and threating mass murder." He paused to run a hand through his hair and tuffts of it stuck up in disarray."He makes me look like a midget,I thought he was gonna kill me," He paused again and shook his head,remembering."He told me I was brought to the land of Opa to save his people,that he had given me a gift and he hoped I'd be kind enough to use it to save his people." I squinted my eyes and was able to make out Ulrik's boxy form just ahead.

"What did you say?" I asked him.He kicked a pebble and gave me a rueful grin."Say? I laughed in his face and told him he needed help but not the kind he thought I could give him.I thought he was crazy and I was caught up in some sort of k********g with a loony mastermind."

"Ha! Same thing happened with me and stick-up-his-but over there," I gestured to Ulrik."How did he convince you it was all real?" I was really curious about his answer.

"He snapped his fingers and turned my feet into the body of a horse." I stopped to make sure I hadn't overlooked hooves earlier.

"No way!" I exclaimed after I'd satisfied myself.

"Way." He assured me and stuck his hands in his front pockets.

We were walking into the red haze now and houses were barely visible behind walls of vegetation.The only relief from the encroaching darkness came from the crystals suspended above us.In the distance, something howled, but it sounded too human to be wolf.I instinctively glanced behind me and saw nothing but what we had left behind. Nevertheless,I rubbed my arms to ward off a sudden chill.Keanu noticed and glanced at me worriedly.

"Are you ok?"

I nodded and waved off his concern.

"I'm fine.So you were a centuar.How was that?"

He looked at his feet as if he too was making sure they didn't belong to an animal. "Definitely not as cool as the one in lord of the rings.I legit freaked out.Probably would have peed my pants if I had them at the time."

"No shi-" I caught myself as he glanced at me disparagingly.

"I mean no papaya?"

He tskd in my direction then picked up his story.

"It didn't last long,thank God because his head sprouted horns that zapped the horse feet away.I sort of got with the program after that."

I looked up at the sky but there wasn't the slightest hint of a moon.Just a filmy red aura that was methodically enveloping us.

"Why the ginger is this place so red?" I asked and wrinkled my nose.I was being reminded of all the pictures I saw of hell when I was smaller and I really didn't like it.I mean,to be heading into the mouth of the underworld after the day I'd had was just too cruel to comprehend.

"We're in Aorta now,it gets this way at night.It creeped me out toobut it's nothing to worry about."

He put his arm around my shoulders and pulled me closer,as if to comfort me but I pushed him away. "Nuh uh,I'm pretty sure I reek right now."

He bent his head and took a whiff of my neck.He stumbled back and mock gagged,fanned his face and twisted his mouth into a grimace.

"Have you been rolling around in dirty gym socks and cow dung?" My mouth falls open and I punch him in the arm as hard as I can.Which obviously is like the kiss of a butterfly since he laughs and asks if that's the best I can do.

"Hey,it's not THAT bad!"

I huff and storm away dramatically as he tries to stifle his laughter.

"Jude, I'm kidding," He catches up to me and slings his arm around my shoulders again.I incline my head away from him and he uses the opportunity to sniff at me again."You've definitely smelled better though"

I swat him again but leave his arm where it is.

"I'll have you know that this is the stench of a warrior," I announce.He raises a skeptic brow and a teasing smile blossoms on his lips."What,you brought a coke to fairy land and were fighting the cap again? Please tell me you didn't call it a selfish snot eating son of a warthog this time," He pokes my cheek and I bite at his finger.Before I can reply we're both swept off our feet and jammed under each arm of Ulrik who's running at break neck speed.