Hime

Chapter 4





Shara had told Ritz earlier that her parents had agreed to let her go to Baguba Port.



(Alright, got to pack light...after all, I’m going to be bringing back a lot of stuff), Ritz thought to herself. The main reason for the trip was shopping. Baguba Port was the trading capital of the world, and a really great vacation spot.



After having loaded up everything she’d need, Ritz went downstairs and met Shara in front of the chocobo stables.



“Are you ready?” Shara asked. Ritz nodded. The two of them then each mounted a chocobo and started off.



After a while, Ritz decided to have a bit of fun. “How about we have a littlie race?” Ritz said, pointing to a forest up ahead as the finish line.



“Alright, but don’t get mad when I win.”



Just after saying that, Shara charged ahead, leaving a large dust cloud behind her. Ritz sat still for a few seconds impressed before pressing her knees into the chocobo’s sides, urging it forward. In a matter of seconds she had caught up to Shara and passed on. Shara, not wanting to be outdone, lowered herself as close to flat as she could get and gave her ride a firm squeeze. It didn’t take very long for her to catch up to the princess, but she couldn't seem to get her chocobo to go fast enough to pass Ritz's. Ritz saw that they were neck and neck, and she turned her foot in an odd way and lightly brought it up against a certain spot on the bird's belly while she used her hand to press her chocobo's neck a little and lower its head a bit. The bird gave a sudden burst of speed, and she easily reached the trees before Shara.



“Well, looks like you won,” Shara said. Her voice sounded pleased, not unhappy at all about losing.



"Yup! It's nice to know there's SOMETHING I'm better at," Ritz said, smiling as she said it.



"Of course. Everyone has their own special talent," Shara said.



“That was a lot of fun,” Ritz said as the two of them trotted along.



“Yes, but now we need to be careful. We’re in the Materiwoods now. This is a fairly dangerous place, so stay close,” Shara said seriously. Ritz already knew, but hearing Shara say it made her slightly nervous. As brave as she was, she was still young, and hadn’t gone this far from home with only one person.



As they rode through the forest, Ritz nerves were quickly soothed by the gentle sounds of birds and the soft foot falls of the chocobos. After a little time, Ritz noticed Shara’s ears perk up.



“There’s someone in trouble up ahead,” she said, shifting direction. Ritz followed after her.



A few moments later, they came upon a clearing and saw a Bangaa surrounded by a large group of Malboros. It was clear that he was injured.



“Do you think you can get to him quickly?” Shara asked, notching an arrow.



“No problem,” Ritz responded, drawing her sword and hopping off her ride. She rushed forward as quickly as possible, holding her breath due to the horrible stench of the monsters.



“Are you alright?” she asked the Bangaa.



He looked up at her. He had a large gash on the side of his head. “Well, got a headache, and the sssmell isss making me sssick, but other than that...” He trailed off, passing out.



Shara looked and assessed the situation. She then fired a shot, killing one of the Malboros instantly. The others looked at her. One of them began to charge, but before it could move more than a few feet, she sent an arrow straight into one of its eyes. The creature let out a shriek before it ran away. The others quickly followed suit, fleeing as quickly as possible. Shara came up a few seconds later.



“He’s pretty badly hurt, but I think he’ll be alright if we give him a potion,” Ritz said, reaching into her bag.



“Wait. We should save our supplies. We don't know when we'll need them ourselves.”



Ritz pulled her hand back out of the bag. “Well, we still have to help him!” she said. Shara could tell by the tone of her voice that she was truly concerned for him, despite how others of his kind had treated her.



(Humans can have such pure compassion...this girl will make a fine queen one day), Shara thought. “Don’t worry. We can help him. Remember what I taught you in the forest that one day? We can use some of the plants from around here.”



Shara then gave Ritz a list of herbs that grew nearby and told her to gather them.







(Let’s see now...the last thing on her list is some of this red moss), Ritz thought, looking at the large boulder in front of her. It was covered in a thick red moss. She scraped a bit of it off into her bag and rushed back to Shara and the injured Bangaa.



“Here’s all the stuff you need,” she said, handing the stuff over to Shara.



“Thank you.” She emptied the contents into a bowel. “Now simply crush it up and add some water.” She mixed everything together until it became a thick paste and applied it all over the worst wounds. She bandaged the minor ones.



“Now all we have to do is wait a while,” Shara said, starting a campfire.



“So will he really be alright?” Ritz asked, still sounding worried. After all, most of the bites were very deep.



“There is no need to worry. This poultice will remove the poison and help the wounds close up faster,” Shara said, trying to ease Ritz’s nerves.



After a few hours had passed, the Bangaa finally woke up. He looked at the two of them. “Well, I guesss I have you to thank for ssstill being alive.” He sat up, wincing slightly. ”Well, thanksss. My friendsss ssshould be here sssoon.”



“Well, I think we should stay with you, just in case,” Ritz said.



“That’sss really nice of ya. Mosst beingsss wouldn’t be ssso kind. By the way, my name'sss Bwagi,” he said, extending his hand. Ritz accepted his hand. It covered most of her small arm. She knew that if he was an enemy, he’d be able to hurt her easily, but he simply shook her hand.



“I’m Ritz, and this is my bodyguard, Shara.”



Bwagi looked over at Shara. “A Viera bodyguard? That’sss impresssive,” he commented.



The three of them began to talk for a while. Bwagi explained that about how he was the leader of a mercenary group that had been hired to protect a band of merchants, and he’d been sent ahead as a scout.



“I ssstill can’t believe I let myssself get out-numbered like that,” he complained, looking at his cloth-covered arm.



“Even the most skilled professionals make mistakes on occasion,” Shara said, looking of into the distance. “It’s best that you accept them, and try to learn from them.”



Ritz could hear the slightest trace of sadness in her voice, but knew better than to ask about it.



After a while, a few other Bangaa walked into the campsite. Seeing their friend wounded, one of them rushed over.

“Bosss, are you alright?” It was clear by her voice that she was female.



“Yeah, I’m fine. Thessse two sssaved me,” he said. The female Bangaa looked at them.



“Thanksss for helping my brother. If you ever need our help, we'll do whatever we can,” she said, helping Bwagi to his feet.



“Well, I guesss I’ll sssee you around, Misss Ritzzz,” Bwagi said as he and the other two left.



“Should we keep going, or stay here for the night?” Ritz asked, seeing that it had grown rather dark.



“It would be best to stay here. I’ll set up the tents, and you can make dinner,” Shara said, walking off to her chocobos, which had been tied to a tree. She removed what she needed, and began to set the camp up for the night.