The unusually pleasant sound of grass being crushed beneath worn greaves metaphorically resounded throughout the East Forest as Houren made his way around the green, the man's narrow gaze scrutinized the details of the forestland as he went along. The grass was in tussocks, comparable to the lice infested head of a man who absolutely refused to comb his hair. At that very moment, Houren had a sudden thought; that the old hermit that he had been tasked to find and deliver a package to would be an elderly man sporting a haircut not dissimilar to the tussocks Houren had been observing. It was not a particularly profound or imaginative thought, but it was enough to put slight smile on the mage's otherwise neutral features.

Houren's employer for the job, an older gentleman by the name of Khalash had been more than happy to shove some rations into the Fairy Tail mage's arms before heading off for his monthly foot massage. "Don't forget to give my regards to the hermit, Vol!" and "Sara gives the best massages in all of Fiore!" were the last messages that Khalash left Houren before going off for his appointment. Perhaps it was worth noting that the employer addressed his employee for the day by an affectionate nickname, probably because Houren was already a regular at the Magnolia drug shop. He had heard the store owner talk about his hermit friend before, although truth be told, although he listened as intently as he could, Houren never heard Khalash finish the story even once.

The tale of the old hermit and his ware selling friend was too long to be appreciated in a single drug store run. Yet, when this job became available, Houren was more than happy to help. He frequented the East Forest too, he had never been in all that deep before, but he had never met any hermits there either. In other words, his curiosity had been piqued.

At this point, the Fairy Tail mage had come deeper into the forest than in all his previous trips combined. Suddenly, it became obvious to him, as in the distance, he could spot a tree that was distinctly different from the others although he couldn't exactly pinpoint what was so different about it. As he ventured closer, this became more obvious, and soon, he found himself at the very front of an old, yet very large oak tree that seemed to have been remodeled into a home. Of course, it was not the kind of house a person of Houren's size could thrive in, but it did blend into the environment almost perfectly, had it not been for unmistakable door, painted in cherry red. Without hesitating at all, he knocked on the door, and patiently waited for a reply.

"Hello, is anybody home?" he threw in for good measure.

475/1000

"Please come in!" a friendly, yet patently older voice replied. With all things considered, and under the current circumstances, Houren had absolutely no reason to believe this voice didn't emanate from the old hermit, and as such, decided that it would be safe to follow the voice's instructions and enter. He pushed on the entrance, and effortlessly, the little red door swung open to reveal a well furnished and cozy living room. The elderly hermit, a lot shorter than Houren had imagined, was sitting comfortably in his chair, seemingly tapping away on some sort of type writer like device. Upon seeing his guest's face, and with a crinkle of the nose, he turned to face Houren

"And you are?" he tilted his head to one side, puzzled. Judging from the reception, it was obvious that the hermit was confused, but there was no innate hostility in his voice. Instead, his tone seemed to assume that Houren's arrival was nothing but an accident or unintentional mistake, albeit not a completely unpleasant one. The mage, deciding not to reply verbally, simply put the delivery package on the floor, being forced to bend slightly as he entered the room.

One look at the rations, and he understood the gist immediately.

The hermit began to chuckle, but with things as they were, Houren did not join in. "So that old man has an appointment with his Sara today, is it?" he spoke as though he had suddenly had some sort of epiphany, and all the problems of the world were futile to the truth he had just discovered. "He often does this, that Khalash," the hermit continued, hopping off the stool he had been sitting on and heading over to the kitchen, which was connected to the living room; the border that separated them was a simple change in tile decoration. Opening one of the drawers, he searched inside for a moment before brandishing a small jar.

Sensing Houren's obvious discomfort, the hermit gestured for the tall man to sit, a request that the mage was more than happy to oblige. Jaunting over slowly, the hermit handed the jar to Houren. "These are the herbs I've collected. A bit more than last time, so I think he'll be happy too," and upon hearing this, the mage accepted the jar graciously. When his hands were free again, the hermit dug into his pocket and pulled out what seemed to be a stick of licorice; he offered the stick to Houren too, and without words, it was accepted as well by the Fairy Tail mage.

"That's for you. It must have been tiring to have to come all the way just for me. It doesn't taste very good but... well, you'll see."

With a curt nod, Houren took this as the cue for him to leave, and he duly retraced his steps until he was in front of Khalash's drug store once again. The man was already smiles, but his mood actually seemed to brighten up more when he was presented with the herbs. By the time Houren could hand the herbs over, his monetary reward was already waiting on the counter for him. "Thanks for this!" the ware seller began to inspect his herbs, taking little heed of Houren as he took his money and left. As he exited the store, he suddenly got curious about the piece of licorice he had been given, and decided to take a bite.

It did taste bad, but he hadn't felt this good in months.

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