Over the course of the afternoon, Hikari and Agnea worked with Pala to prepare a meal for the rest of the travelers. Pala had been planning on just sharing a pie with Garud that night after she finished dinner, but since they were having so many guests over, she was going to need help. Agnea gladly volunteered, and Hikari joined them both without a moment of hesitation. Doing what he could in the kitchen felt like the best way to thank the Bristarni family for everything they had already done for him, especially since Garud was adjusting his clothing without so much as asking for payment. Hikari had wondered if he should pay at least a little bit, and he was more than willing to part with some of his leaves in order to give Garud what he needed, but Agnea had correctly guessed that he wouldn't want anything. When Hikari tried to ask, Garud had told him to not bother. Agnea had explained that was just the kind of person Garud was; deep down, he was generous and sweet, and he wouldn't ask Hikari to pay him for anything he was willing to do out of the kindness of his heart. 

Since Garud wasn't going to accept any of his leaves, Hikari wanted to do something else to try and help, and the best way to do that was to ensure dinner that night was the best it could be. Hikari had thought the travelers would end up securing meat from Ochette's hunt or just buy something at the local tavern, but in the end, Pala had insisted on cooking something for them. She wouldn't be able to make food for ten people and two animals on such short notice though. Even if Hikari was unfamiliar with the traditions of Cropdale and the ways in which the people there cooked, he wanted to learn. If this was important to his friend, then he was willing to do anything. 

"Is this the right house?"

Hikari perked up when he heard the muffled but familiar voice of Partitio on the other side of the front door. He turned away from what he was doing and darted over to the entrance to the Bristarni home. When he pulled the door open, Hikari found Partitio standing there with Throné, Temenos, and Osvald. They had all finished their various adventures in town for the day, it seemed, and now, it was time to reunite with the rest of their friends. Hikari realized only after Partitio said something though that he and Agnea had neglected to tell them where to go once they were finished in the rest of Cropdale. Agnea had been so focused on getting Hikari back to the Bristarni house so Garud could fix his clothing that she had completely forgotten that was something the rest of the group was going to need to know. 

"It is," Hikari confirmed as he opened the door enough for the rest of the travelers to step inside. It was a bit of a tight squeeze, and Ochette and Castti weren't even back yet, but Hikari was hoping they would be fine enough with being close together until they could come up with a better way to seat everyone. "How are all of you doing? Was your time in Cropdale nice?"

"Oh, it was incredible!" Partitio beamed. "The food here is incredible, and I loved tryin' all the raspberry flavored desserts they've got around here! The only thing Throné and I weren't able to get our hands on was a slice of pie. The bakery in town ran out earlier today, and we didn't really stand much of a choice with how late in the day we got here."

"Well, you won't have to worry about that!" Agnea grinned as she gestured over to the counter. The pie Pala had been working on earlier in the day was sitting at the edge of the kitchen, and Partitio's eyes lit up the second he saw it. "We're going to finish up dinner as soon as we can, and once it's done, everyone can enjoy Cropdale's finest! I'm sure you're all going to love it."

"As much as I love eating in taverns, I must admit that nothing beats a meal cooked at home," Temenos smiled softly. "Is there anything you need the rest of us to do? We would be more than happy to help if there was something you required of us."

"You can just go on and sit down at the table over there," Pala answered, jabbing her thumb over her shoulder at the dining room. "If there are too many people over here in the kitchen, then we're just gonna end up makin' a mess, and that's not really what I'm lookin' to do. It'll be a lot harder to clean up with so many people 'round here too."

"We'll get out of your hair then," Throné nodded, leading the rest of the group over to the table and taking a seat. Hikari and Agnea had pulled out a miscellaneous collection of chairs earlier in the day to make sure there was enough room for everyone. Some of them had to be pulled from slightly unexpected sources, but Hikari was still glad they could pull together enough for everyone to be able to put a plate down and eat. They wound up needing to get creative in order to find enough table space, but they got there in the end, and Hikari was willing to take that as a victory. 

"Do you know where Ochette and Castti are?" Osvald asked. "We didn't see them around town today."

"I was wonderin' about that too," Partitio admitted. "I'm really hopin' the two of them didn't end up in any kind of trouble... It'd be awful if they found themselves in a sticky situation when the rest of us couldn't be there to help. I know they're more than able to handle themselves in a fight, but I just can't help but worry a little bit, y'know?"

"I'm sure they're fine... We haven't heard anything from them today either though," Agnea said from her place in the kitchen. "They were the first ones to get here since Ochette wound up running ahead, but I'm sure they're alright. If we absolutely have to, then we'll be able to go out and search for them in a little bit. We're almost done setting up dinner, and we can look for them while the food is cooling off."

"I just hope none of them wound up in trouble because of the duorduors in the forest around here," Pala frowned. "I know how mighty dangerous those things can be, and I wouldn't want any of your friends to get hurt because of one of 'em... But they wouldn't be foolish enough to go into the woods near a town they don't know anythin' about, right?"

Hikari wanted to immediately say the answer to that was no, but he admittedly didn't know if that was true or not. It wasn't a matter of Castti and Ochette being foolish though; instead, Hikari knew how much Ochette liked adventures and hunting, and she could have decided she needed a taste of both that day. If she was desperate enough to get out and do something, then she could have wound up in all sorts of trouble with only Castti there to keep her from losing her grip completely. Agnea had told them about the duorduors near the village though, so surely they wouldn't end up doing something too dangerous in the name of getting their hands on a bit of meat. Surely Castti would know to talk Ochette down if they truly wound up in a dangerous situation. 

"I see someone outside," Throné suddenly cut in, and Hikari snapped himself out of his thoughts. For a split second, he found himself worrying if the soldiers from Ku had figured out where he was again. He had changed clothes in Oresrush, but if he hadn't been careful enough, then he could have been followed without realizing it. Hikari liked to think at least someone in the travelers' group would have noticed it if that was the case, but he couldn't ever be certain when it came to a situation like this. The soldiers of Ku had caught them all by surprise back in Conning Creek, and if he had slipped up, then... 

Hikari's thoughts all came to silence though when Osvald went to open the door. Ochette and Castti were standing on the other side, their arms full of collections of berries. Hikari stared at the fruit in their arm with wide eyes and a dropped jaw. They had gone berry collecting, and that meant they must have wound up in the woods near town. He had just thought they should have known better than to do something like that, and yet, there they were, holding something they only would have been able to get their hands on if they had ventured into the jaws of danger. 

"Oh, so this is the right house!" Ochette grinned when she saw Osvald in the doorway. "We had to ask some of the villagers where Agnea lived since we weren't sure. I think this fits her."

"Well, I wanted to ask the villagers to make sure it was the right place," Castti corrected. "You were certain of it because you were able to smell Agnea in the area, but I wasn't sure if I wanted to barge into a house without at least making sure it was the right one first."

"And I was right about it just like I knew I would be," Ochette told her. "My nose knows exactly where I should be going and what I should be doing. I'm glad you know not to doubt it now."

"I never doubted it before, Ochette," Castti assured her. She looked up at Osvald a moment later and shook her head. "Can we come inside? We have something for all of you?"

"You went looking for berries," Osvald remarked, seemingly having gone down the same train of thought as Hikari. "I would have thought you would have wanted to stay away from the forest. Agnea told us about the duorduors that live there and how dangerous they can be."

"Yeah, but they were no match for us!" Ochette chirped, and Hikari stopped in his cooking to turn and face her with wide eyes. "Well, they were no match for Castti. We wound up running into one, but he wasn't all that scary once we got him to calm down. Castti kind of kicked his butt though. All it took was a single swing of her axe for her to send him back in the direction he had come from. He was so scared of her after that, and she had to apologize over and over in order to get through to him!"

"Ochette," Castti tried to scold, her cheeks filling with pink. She shook her head and walked over to the counter, setting down the berries she had gathered in a basket Pala had brought out for her and Ochette. "I think you might be scaring everyone with how you're talking about it."

"You ran into a duorduor?" Throné asked, her eyes wide. "The same kind of monster that Agnea had to fight against when she was trying to help out with the festival before she left on her journey?"

"And... And you won?!" Agnea cried out, unable to restrain her shock. "But you don't know anything about fighting against them! How were you able to do that?"

"Oh, it wasn't that bad," Ochette answered with a shrug. "We were just trying to talk to one of them, but he was really worked up, so we had to try and calm him down before we could get through to him. He wasn't trying to attack us for the sake of it though. There was a scary monster in the forest at some point in the last few weeks, and the duorduor was trying to help the animals to get away from it. That's all. Castti was able to knock him down pretty easily though."

"How about we start from the beginning?" Temenos questioned, unable to hold back his confusion for even a moment longer. "I think the rest of us may have missed something by not being there."

And so, Ochette launched into a story of the afternoon's events. She had wanted to enjoy some of the duorduor meat there in town, but since it wasn't anywhere near up to her standards, she wound up wandering into the woods to try and find it. If nothing else, Hikari could say he knew her well since the reason for her exploration outside of Cropdale was just what he would have expected it to be. She didn't end up walking out of the forest with any duorduor meat though. Instead, she and Castti were able to make a friend in one of the duorduors, and Castti dubbed him Wooly-Ooly. Before they became friends though, Ochette and Castti fought against Wooly-Ooly, and that was when Castti proved just how strong she was by knocking him out of his rage in a single hit. Castti guiltily said that she had healed his wounds to try and make up for it after the fact, though Ochette remained proud of her for just how strong she could be when she was willing to reveal her full power. 

Ochette meant it when she said there had been a monster there in the woods at some point, and that was why the hunters in Cropdale had been struggling so significantly as of late. The monster had frightened off all the animals, though Ochette and Castti weren't able to learn much more about what it was or what it could have wanted. It seemed that not even Wooly-Ooly was aware of what the beast could have been or why it was there. The lack of information was certainly distressing, but Hikari could only hope the people and animals of Cropdale had it all under control. If it had been weeks since the last attack by this dark beast, then surely that meant it was just a one-off incident and that everything would be fine in the end. 

Once the story had come to a close, Temenos leaned over the table and pressed his elbows against the wood. "I never would have imagined you would have had such an exciting afternoon," he commented. "That certainly explains why none of us were able to find you in the streets of town though."

"We had a lot of fun," Ochette grinned. "I think everything turned out really well. Even if I went into the woods hoping to find meat, walking out with a new friend isn't half bad either. It was great to be able to talk with all the forest animals. They were all really sweet, and I couldn't have asked for anything better."

"Where did you get the berries then?" Throné asked with an arched eyebrow. "You didn't go into the forest looking for them, so did you just so happen to find them when you were in the area?"

"Oh, right," Ochette began. "There were bushes in the forest that had a bunch of them, and Wooly-Ooly shared them with us. These same berries grow back on Toto'haha, but they're in a much smaller supply, so we tend to have to fight the animals if we want to get our hands on them. The animals in Cropdale are really nice though, and they were more than willing to let us have what we wanted. So we decided to bring some back to share with all of you!"

"They're delicious," Castti smiled. "I love the taste, and Ochette adores them too. You can tell just how lovely they are if Ochette is willing to have fruit over meat for the sake of having them."

"It's true," Ochette agreed. "What should we do with them? Do we want to try and make them into another dessert? Or should we just have them out for anyone to be able to eat whenever they want to have something sweet?"

Agnea and Pala exchanged brief glances before they allowed themselves to smile. "I think we can squeeze in one last dessert tonight," Pala said. "Though we're probably going to need all hands on deck if we want to get it done in time for everyone to be able to eat."

"You want the rest of us to help out then?" Partitio asked, something eager rising to life in his eyes.

"It'll be a little crowded, but as long as we all know what we're doing, I think each of us can help out at least a little bit," Agnea nodded, gesturing for the group at the table to stand. "Let's get to it!"

~~~~~

The next few hours were admittedly chaotic, but Hikari wouldn't have had it any other way. There was a deep love and an even greater excitement in the air as each of the travelers got to work on helping Pala to prepare their meal for the evening. Everyone had their own jobs to take care of, and they executed them all flawlessly. Even the travelers who were considerably less skilled with cooking gladly stepped up to help however they could with the process of preparing dinner for the night. Hikari hadn't ever been able to share a meal with others quite like this, and he was glad to have the chance for it now. Something about it all just felt right. 

Hikari was called away at one point during the preparation cycle since Garud managed to finish tweaking his new clothes, and so, he and Agnea vanished into the workshop to get him changed. Hikari had to admit that Garud's work impressed him even though he had already known Agnea's father was great at what he did. Somehow, the finished product was even better than he ever could have imagined. All of the spots that were previously too big now sat perfectly against his skin. The outfit was even tinted with shades of red to make sure he was able to keep at least a little bit of his past on hand while having to shed the majority of it. Hikari couldn't have asked for anything better. 

"Dinner's almost ready! Are you three just about done in there?"

Pala's voice cut through Hikari's thoughts just after he managed to finish admiring his new outfit, and he stepped out of the workshop into the rest of the house. The other travelers were setting out their dishes for the night, and Pala looked up as soon as she caught a glimpse of Hikari. When she gasped at the sight of him, the rest of the travelers followed suit in turning to look at him. Hikari had to fight to not squirm beneath their attention. He liked to think he was normally fine when put under pressure, but he couldn't help feeling embarrassed about just how many people were staring at him now. 

Agnea stepped up just beside him and gestured to his outfit. "So... What do you guys think?" she asked with a smile. "Papa really worked his magic to make sure Hikari looks his best from here on out, didn't he?"

"I would certainly say so!" Partitio beamed. "I mean, Hikari looked just fine before, but as long as he's gonna have to hide the truth of who he is, I think this is a great alternative. And the clothes fit so much better now than they did before!"

"I think coming to Cropdale and having your father adjust the clothes was the best choice," Castti agreed. "There's nothing any one of us could have done that would have even come close to making them look as good as they do now."

"I'll have to tell him just how much you guys like it then," Agnea grinned. "Maybe we can talk about it over dinner. There's a lot we still need to do before we'll be able to leave town, and the most important one is eat!"

"Oh, I'm absolutely starving!" Ochette cried out. "I don't know how I ever made it through helping to get all of the food ready when I feel like I'm going to melt the secondI have any of it in my mouth!" Beside Ochette, Mahina let out a few hooting noises, though Hikari couldn't make sense of any of them. None of the travelers could, and Hikari doubted that was ever going to change. Ochette didn't translate for Mahina either, instead sighing at her owl companion and shaking her head. "I have a big stomach! Even if I ate a bunch of berries back in the forest, I was bound to get hungry again. No one can just eat once and then never have anything for the rest of their life."

Mahina's expression shifted slightly at that, and even though Hikari couldn't understand her through words, he was certain he could guess what she was thinking. Mahina had made some comment about how Ochette was already interested in food so soon after she had indulged in the berries in the forest, but Ochette thought it was more than reasonable to be hungry again at a time like this. Mahina didn't seem to quite agree with Ochette's interpretation of her words, likely thinking Ochette simply wasn't understanding the point she was trying to make, but there was very little she could say or do to change that fact. None of the other travelers were able to speak up and press the point in her favor, so she would simply have to let Ochette walk away with this conversation as a triumph. 

"Well, I'm glad you're already hungry again," Pala declared as she set the last few plates down on the table. "We've got a bunch of great stuff here tonight, and it'd be a shame if it all went to waste. How about we sit down and get to eatin'?" 

"I don't know if I'll be able to wait for too much longer," Temenos admitted with a shake of his head. "The smell is delightful, and I haven't been able to stop thinking about it ever since I got here."

The travelers all settled down around the table, though it was admittedly a tight squeeze because of how many of them there were. Mahina wound up standing on the edge of two chairs to ensure she still had access to her food without needing a seat all for herself, and Acta coiled up in Ochette's lap for similar reasons. One table remained empty for a short while longer, and Hikari recognized it as the one Garud was set to claim. It was even situated just between Agnea and Pala. 

Even when he was trying on the clothing Garud had adjusted for him, Hikari couldn't say he had been able to get a particularly good read on what Agnea's father was like. Garud was a stoic man, and he didn't do much to let his emotions show on his face. Even if Hikari knew he was soft beneath the surface, he couldn't help feeling somewhat tense around him. It was strange in more ways than one; Hikari had handled countless battles with terrifying foes, and yet, he seemed ready to shrivel and fade away the instant he was faced with someone as simple as a friend's father. Garud had been so kind to him, but Hikari still barely knew how to respond to him. 

Garud walked out just before Ochette's hunger could get the better of her, and he claimed his seat in between his daughters. He looked over the table, the food spread upon it, and the people sitting around it quietly. Once he had seen all he thought there was to see, he nodded quietly, seemingly giving his blessing for the meal to begin. 

Pala knew what he was trying to imply too, and she clapped her hands together excitedly. "Alright, everyone!" she cried out. "Let's dig in!"

Over the course of the half hour that followed, the travelers gladly enjoyed the meal they had helped Pala to prepare. Pala asked all of them questions about who they were and what they were traveling for, finding something fascinating in each of their words. She didn't seem to have much of an interest in going out to explore the world on her own, but she was definitely interested in learning about what the rest of the travelers had been up to. Garud said very little over the course of dinner, enjoying the food silently at his corner of the table. Hikari had thought the meal would be the best way for him to get to know more about Agnea's father, but in the end, he learned remarkably little. He supposed he should have seen that coming though; if Garud was going to reveal more information about himself, he likely would have done it long before everyone had to settle down for dinner. 

Even if he wasn't sure of how to handle being around Garud, Hikari was enjoying himself. As much as he liked eating at taverns with the rest of the travelers, he felt overwhelmingly happy and comfortable there in the Bristarni home. There was something special about a meal he had helped to prepare, and he wished they were able to do this more often. Unfortunately, it was difficult at best and almost impossible at worst because of the conditions under which the group traveled. They had a few items that could help them with cooking on the road, but they lacked access to a proper indoor kitchen. Inns didn't have publicly accessible kitchens either, so that meant this meal was likely to be their first and last home cooked dinner for quite some time. 

That only made it feel more special to Hikari though, and beyond that, it reminded him of what life had been like back in Ku. The people in the poorer districts of the kingdom had to work together in order to survive, and so, group meals like this were hardly uncommon. On nights where they were planned, everyone gathered together and did their part to help cook a grand feast they could all enjoy together. It had always felt special to Hikari because of the ways in which the food brought everyone together. They were all family in their own ways, and sharing food felt like the perfect way to express it. Hikari could see why Ochette was so fond of sharing food with others too; he imagined it had a similar impact for her as it did for him. 

Hikari looked around the rest of the table with a bittersweet smile before returning his gaze to his plate. He wouldn't ever be able to go back to the times in Ku when he had been able to share meals like this with his neighbors. Still, Hikari liked to think he was doing something to uphold the memories of those he had lost by enjoying himself like this. He would never forget the kindness his friends had shown him, and he would carry on the torch by enjoying similar pleasures with his friends. 

As much as it stung to have to leave behind the clothing of Ku that could have identified him as a fugitive, Hikari felt almost at peace with it now. He wasn't going to be entirely abandoning his culture. Even if he couldn't show it as freely as he would have liked, there would still be ways for him to express it. He could carry on the memories of those he had lost in moments like these where he was able to share how he felt with the rest of the people he cared about. The travelers were not the same people Hikari had bonded with in Ku, but they did not have to be. So long as he was able to carry on the legacy of the past while enjoying the present, he was more than fine with how everything was going to turn out. 

Once all of the food had been finished and the serving plates were empty, quiet fell over the dining room. Everyone was too full and tired to think of saying too much more, especially on the heels of such a lengthy and lively conversation. Hikari was going to enjoy this for quite a while, he was sure. Even after the feeling of fullness left his stomach behind, he was going to savor the memory of being able to share a dinner with the people who cared so deeply for him. 

Garud let out a slow breath once the food was finished, and he smiled up at all of the travelers. The grin was tiny, and Hikari could only barely make it out, but he was certain it was there regardless. "This was nice," Garud said simply. "Thank you for coming." 

Agnea's face lit up at Garud's words, and she nodded excitedly. "Thank you for having us, Papa!" Agnea was unable to express fully how much Garud's words meant to her in that moment, but Hikari could feel the joy behind her response. When she first said she wanted to travel the world, Garud had been hesitant. He offered her support just before she left Cropdale, but Agnea remained a bit worried he wouldn't feel the same way when she next returned home. In the end though, all of her fears had been for nothing, and Garud appreciated all of her friends. He was glad they had come even if each of the travelers acted as a reminder that Agnea was fated to leave him behind again when the morning came. 

Hikari smiled softly at Garud and his daughters, and he felt he understood not only Garud but everyone around the table a little bit better. This was what all of them had needed even if they hadn't quite known how to express it. Hikari was certain the memory was going to remain in each of their hearts for ages to come, and he wouldn't have it any other way. 

Hikari couldn't have been happier the travelers came to Cropdale, and he hoped they were able to return again someday. 

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This chapter is so cute. I'm going to explode. 

I had the idea for this chapter kind of on a whim, but I thought it would be a really fun one to write. I haven't been able to do enough with the travelers as a full group of eight, so here they are, all enjoying dinner together! I had a headcanon before writing this story that the travelers enjoyed a home cooked meal at the Bristarni home each time they passed through Cropdale, so I had to throw it in for this story too. It just felt fitting. 

Even if this chapter was a bit of a break from the story, I hope everyone still had fun with it. We're getting ready to wrap up the last crossed paths for now, so next time, we'll finish this chunk and then gear up for Castti's second chapter! Until then, I hope you all enjoyed this chapter. Feedback is appreciated as always. Have a nice day, everyone!

-Digital