The energetic pull of Sen quickened our progress quite a lot. I had to slow her down enough to at least pull something out to eat to start the day. Now though, it was nearing lunchtime and it felt like we had made excellent progress. The horizon showed no signs of civilization, but there was only one road, so we should reach it eventually. 

The sun reached its peak at some point while we walked and it was high time for a break. I slowed to a stop and pulled lightly on Sen’s hand to bring her to a stop as well. Her beaming smile receded as she looked up at me only just enough to express some confusion. Tilting her head slightly to the side, Sen inquired “Why are we stopping mama? Is mama getting cold again?” Her innocent quizzical stare warmed my heart.

Though, why was she so worried that I was cold? There was a pleasant cool breeze in the air, but it was nothing that could bring a chill especially under the midday sun. “Why are you worried about me being cold? It’s very pleasant outside. Do treants feel temperature differently?” 

Instead of responding to my question, Sen instead wrapped her arms around me and pulled herself in close for a hug with her face buried in my side. Several seconds passed before Sen pulled her head away and stated bluntly, “Mama was very cold last night! Sen was worried mama would leave if she got too cold, so Sen made sure to warm mama up!” She ended her exclamation by hugging a little tighter and putting her face back into my side, rubbing it back and forth.

Her actions being so cute almost distracted me from how strange the words she said had been. I had gotten very cold? That didn’t seem right. Sure, there was a little nip in the air, but with a blanket and my clothes it was plenty safe. Not the most comfortable, but not dangerous at least. Why was she so worried?

“I don’t know what you mean Sen. It was only a little chilly last night. I shouldn’t have been cold enough to worry you.” I used my hand to rustle the hair on top of Sen’s head. 

She looked up at me pouting. “Sen could tell! Right now, mama is nice and warm. But last night she was cold and cried. Sen had to keep mama warm!” Sen went back to having her face in my side, seemingly intent on sharing her warmth with me. It did feel nice, feeling her body heat through my clothes. It is still a little strange to me that a plant-based creature could have body heat.

At any rate, I didn’t really know what to do about this. Sen is being very insistent that I had gotten what she felt to be dangerously cold last night. I can’t make sense of what she means, but I know at least that she means well. 

I crouched down, causing Sen to have to release my waist from her embrace, and turned myself to face her more directly. “Thank you for worrying about me Sen. Your hugs are the warmest.” I smiled as brightly as my face would allow and spread my arms wide to accept another hug from my adorable daughter.

Her face lit up with a smile that could melt the frozen peaks of the north. She didn’t go straight for the hug offered though. She instead took a deep breath in (Did she even need to breathe like that since she was mostly plant?) and suddenly launched herself into my arms. 

I was not prepared for the strength behind such a small girl and got pushed back, falling onto the road. It didn’t hurt, though it did knock the wind out of me. I could hardly care about that anyway, as my mind was firmly fixed on enjoying the hug that was accompanied by rampant giggling and squirming of my adorable daughter. 

I could have let that moment drag on forever, but such things are never meant to be. A grumbling from my stomach caught both of our attentions. “Mama’s tummy is making noises!” 

“Yeah, I had stopped us a moment ago because I thought it might be time to sit down for lunch. I was getting a bit hungry.” Sen sat up and pouted at me in response.

“Why didn’t mama say anything sooner?! It’s no good to travel when you’re hungry! Sen learned that from a nice bird while we were walking through the forest.” She nodded at her own words like it was a piece of sagely wisdom.

I sat up and shifted Sen so that she was sitting on my lap. “You are right Sen, it isn’t good to travel when you’re hungry. Aren’t you hungry too Sen? We’ve been walking for a few hours now.” 

Sen shook her head. “No mama, Sen has been eating while we walked. The sun is out and the dirt has a lot of yummy things in it!” She gave me a big toothy grin when she was done talking.

Huh, I suppose treants might not eat like people. If I had heard any other child saying that I would be worried about them eating dirt. “Okay Sen, then let me eat something and we can get back to walking.” 

“Yes mama! Sen will wait!” She jumped out of my lap and laid down on the dirt road next to me spreading her limbs out. She smiled as she basked in the sun. I could also see what seemed to be roots coming from her body and dress spreading into the dirt beneath her. 

While that was interesting, I should really just eat and let us get back to walking. We couldn’t afford to hold up our journey for too long. I ate a few of the foraged things left in my bag and drank some water quietly and then stood up once I was finished. 

I offered an outstretched hand to Sen. “Let’s get going now Sen.” 

Sen gladly took my hand and pulled herself up. Not missing the opportunity though, she followed the motion up by planting her face in my stomach and giving me another big hug. “Yes mama!” Though her voice was a little muffled from speaking into my body, her energy was clear as day.

Before I could even return the hug, she hopped a step back and grabbed my hand to pull me along. The rest of the day was spent simply enjoying the time that I had walking with Sen.

—

There were no further signs of a city by the time the day was up and it was time to make ‘camp’ for the night. If you could call bundling up in a blanket a camp that is. 

That night, Sen fought against a cold that snuck into their blanket again, but held firm. She was determined to keep her mother warm at all costs. The night wasn’t even as cold as the night before, Sen could tell, and her mother continued to breathe soundly save for a few shudders that must have come from the dreams that went through her mind. 

Sen did not know why her mother grew cold this night or the night before. All she could do was hug tightly and hope she could keep her mother warm enough until the morning sun was able to come again.

—

I woke to a similar sight as the morning before, but thankfully Sen wasn’t in quite such a state of undress. “Good morning Sen.” I spoke softly while reaching up to rustle Sen’s hair. I noticed a pleasant scent coming from her hair. It smelled like a field of grass in a peaceful meadow, but also better than even that somehow. Treants are interesting creatures. 

Sen sat up and rubbed her tired eyes. She didn’t seem like she just woke up, more like she had already been awake and was waiting for me. “Good morning mama. Sen kept you warm last night! Is mama okay?” Her voice was energetic, but sounded very sleepy.

“Yes, mama is okay. What about you? Did you sleep okay?” I sat up and pulled Sen close onto my lap.

Rubbing her eyes again and leaning into me Sen mumbled, “Sen just needs some sun. Once the sun rises higher, Sen will be better!” Sen put more energy into her words towards the end, and once she was finished, she hopped off of my lap and started pulling my hand to stand me up. “Come on now mama! We gotta go on a journey!” She almost didn’t seem like she was tired a moment ago.

I let her pull me to my feet and packed away the blanket that we slept with. It had gotten a bit dirty since we have had to sleep on the ground a couple times now. I hope that we can make it to the city before things get too nasty or I run out of food. I suppose Sen will be fine though since she can take nourishment from the ground. 

—

We were able to walk well until midday where we stopped again for lunch. Sen took a similar pose while I ate to sprawl out next to me and take in some sun. However, when I finished eating and looked over to Sen to get us ready to go again, I found that she had nodded off with a peaceful smile on her face. 

I couldn’t take it upon myself to wake her, so I decided that I would carry her and allow her to sleep. She really did seem tired after all. Picking her up was easy. Actually, probably too easy. She felt really light. Was it because she was made of grass? I hadn’t noticed a difference when she was laying on top of me or sitting on my lap. In fact, she should almost certainly be heavier in my arms than she felt. 

Strange, but there are only so many things that I can figure out with all of these magical things that I was not nearly well enough versed in to take a proper guess. For now, I settled Sen into a comfortable position with her head resting on my shoulder and started walking again. 

Now that I think about it as well, it was quite easy to walk even while carrying Sen. And my feet aren’t sore at all even from all the walking over the past few days. Strange things keep piling up, but I don’t have the knowledge to tackle them, so I can only continue forward. 

—

Soon after lunch I could finally see city walls in the distance. On these mostly flat plains that meant that it was still quite some walk away, but at least I could see it now. I quickened my pace a bit while being careful not to jostle Sen too much and wake her. 

It took a while, but I did finally get close enough to be able to be in eye shot of the guards that were in front of the gate at the end of the road. I could clearly see them even from a long way away somehow, but they had just noticed me it seems. I could see them turn their heads towards each other and say a few words. I couldn’t tell what they were saying, but they were brief in their exchange before turning back to face me as I approached the gates.

I decided it would be best to wake Sen up before we got any closer so she didn’t get startled by unfamiliar men. I placed a kiss on her forehead and whispered to her, “Sen sweety, wake up. We are almost there.” 

Sen stirred in my arms and rubbed her eyes. “There? Oh! The city!” Sen’s eyes filled with energy and she hopped out of my arms. She grabbed my hand and pointed with the other while we kept walking. “Wow! Those walls are so big! They look way nicer than Lady Inza’s!”

True enough, the walls were very big. They must have been the height of several men standing on each other’s shoulders. They were built out of beautifully carved black stone bricks. Each brick seemed to have an artisan's touch the way that it fit so well with the others around it. The only thing visible over the ramparts was a single tall tower made of blue stone, though that was a little too far away to see too clearly. 

As we admired the stonework, we finally came close enough to the guards that they were within earshot. The guard on the left, a burly man with a mustache bushy enough to completely cover his mouth, spoke out first. “HALT! Come no closer!” His tone was somewhat hostile, which took me off guard and I halted mid stride.

The set of guards walked up, hands on their weapons. The guard on the right, a more slim figure with a helmet that covered all but his scowling eyes, spoke next. “By order of the guard, you and the girl are under arrest! Do not resist.” 

Sen stood next to me still holding my hand with a confused look on her face and her pointer finger on her free hand on her lips. “A… rest? Mama, why do the men want us to go to sleep? Sen just woke up.” 

Without being able to really process all of the things happening, I didn’t have enough time to decide if it would be better to leave before the burly man grabbed my hands and the slim man put a set of shackles on my wrists. They clearly had some kind of magic to them, as I felt some kind of pinch when they locked them shut that wasn’t a physical pain. 

Sen spoke up when my hand was taken from her grasp. “Hey! What are you doing to mama!?”

The burly man answered Sen. “We won’t hurt you so long as you follow and don’t cause any trouble. Come along.” With that, the slim man walked around behind us and the burly man turned to start walking inside the gate pulling a chain that was attached to the shackles. 

Since it has come to this, it might be better if I just listen. I was starting to panic, but Sen holding the hem of my tunic as we were dragged along kept me from acting on my first thoughts. 

Maybe that merchant really did say something.

MegaSuperKami

Hello all, I have another chapter pulled together. I apologize for the lack of update recently. I was doing fairly well for a bit there until the last couple weeks. I was conflicted as to whether or not I should have posted another announcement that I wasn't doing great and I was going to take a bit longer. Unfortunately, conflict like that often wins in the favor of doing nothing due to indecision. I don't want to drone on too long with negativity, but I wanted to say something since I was AWOL for a bit there. Thanks to a kind prod I was able to put the finishing touches on this chapter today and get it out. For now, I can't promise any consistent releases and things will come out as I feel they are ready. Thank you everyone reading this again for your support. I hope you enjoyed some very cute Sen time. It brought me a great deal of joy to write.