Is this destiny?

Sarah and Aiden went to check on Jesse.

Other than few bruises and a broken pride, he was fine.

"I am confident in my fighting skills. But whenever I am with you two, everyone is using me as a doormat.", Jesse sulked.

Sarah looked at Aiden. "What is your plan?"

"I didn\'t think much beyond this.", Aiden admitted. "Plan is that if your Master kicks us out we will wait somewhere nearby in the forest for you to finish. But I got a feeling that he does not mind if we stay here."

"There is one bed in the cabin they let me use. It\'s big enough for both of us.", Sarah told Aiden. "And we can ask if they can give us one more for Jesse."

Jesse imagined spending the night close to these two who can\'t get their hands off from each other and cringed internally. "Don\'t worry about me. I went through extensive training for survival in the wilderness."

Sarah knocked on Jesse\'s head. "What wilderness? Besides these three cabins, there are two more further down. If you don\'t want to stay with us, I\'m sure you can stay in one of them."

Jesse took the initiative to talk to the disciples and make sleeping arrangements.

Aiden led Sarah toward the forest, and when they were in the privacy provided by the bushes, he pulled her in for a kiss. Oh, how he missed her. That familiar taste which he didn\'t savor for what seems like years. He gathered her against him, holding her tightly, trying to make up for the days they didn\'t feel each other.

While they were apart, if felt that the Earth stopped moving, and now it was spinning faster than ever, catching up with lost revolutions.

Sarah responded hungrily. She missed him immensely. Feeling his firm grip on her and tasting his sweetness made Sarah wonder, how was she able to hold on for so long without falling apart?

There was a persistent sound of a person clearing throat from other side of the bushes. It made them break the kiss reluctantly.

Sarah looked at Aiden with a big smile on her face and cleared her throat in response.

"Master requests your presence in the main cabin.", one of the disciples said.

"We will be there in a minute.", Sarah stated while trying to suppress her giggles between Aiden\'s quick kisses.

Sarah led Aiden to the training ground to get her jacket.

He observed the surroundings silently and then looked up. "It\'s getting dark soon. Considering your appearance, you have a place to wash up?"

Aiden didn\'t miss that this location does not have electricity or running water and Sarah does not look like she didn\'t clean herself in days.

"Yes. There is a creek close by, and disciples told me that there is a hot spring about ten minutes up the mountain. But I prefer running water."

Aiden arched an eyebrow. "Hot spring?"

Sarah can read his intentions based on that devilish smile directed at her.

"I came here to practice, to learn something new.", she reminded him.

Sarah is confident that if that master catches them when they are intimate, he will kick them out.

Aiden does not share Sarah\'s concerns. "Hot spring is new. I\'m sure we can learn something while in there."

Sarah rolled her eyes. Well, it\'s not that she is not interested, but she came here to learn fighting, alright?

In the main cabin, they saw Master Hollow sitting on the floor. He wants to know their story.

"What made you come here to ask for my guidance? You told me that you want to win a fight in order to get your freedom. But I am an old man, and I like stories… so tell me your story."

Sarah and Aiden exchanged glances and shared an understanding. This old man already knows more than they do about those two families. If they want his help, they need to talk first.

Sarah told him that her mother is a Lebedev and that she left that family about thirty years ago. And now that she and her sisters are of a certain age, it seems that the family is making their move to pull them back in. She also told him that her mother made a deal for freedom but Lebedev\'s always kept their eyes on them.

Master Hollow listened attentively and then it was Aiden\'s turn.

He was surprised that Aiden is not a Voronin by blood, but only by skills.

"Even if it\'s only skills… You qualify as a contender for a position of an Elder. And the fact that you don\'t have blood relations with them only means that no one will protect you when they inevitably find out that you are the outsider who has the skills."

Sarah held Aiden\'s hand and looked at Master Hollow. "I will protect him. He is not alone."

Master Hollow looked at Sarah with amusement. "You, young lady… can\'t protect yourself."

As much as it hurt her pride to hear that, she can\'t deny the facts. "That is why I am here."

"Lebedevs and Voronins. They value martial arts in order to determine who sits at the top, but they are more than just a group of fighters."

"So are we." Sarah stubbornly declared. "But in order for them to back off, we need to show them that they can\'t bully us."

"Back off?" Master Hollow laughed. "Think of them like a hydra. Even if you cut off its head, others will sprout. They are ruthless and they will find a way to force their will on you, unless you take over as a head of that monster. And if you manage to accomplish that, you will become part of that world… and isn\'t that what they want and what you are fighting against?"

Sarah frowned. "Are you saying that there is no way for us to win?"

"You tell me."

"I don\'t know.", Sarah admitted. "But I know that I need to get stronger."

Master Hollow bobbed his head in agreement. "One step at a time. Sometimes we see what is our next step only after we made the previous one."

There was a silence in the cabin for some time before Master Hollow asked Sarah. "Did you observe his fight when he arrived?"

Sarah nodded.

"Did you notice a change after I immobilized your legs?"

"My hits started connecting.", Aiden responded.

"Smart one." Master Hollow praised Aiden, but he didn\'t like that he answered instead of Sarah. "There will be food for you in Sarah\'s cabin. Where SHE sleeps. After that, my disciples will show you where to wash up."

Sarah and Aiden left the cabin after saying their thanks.

Just as the old man said, there was food for them there.

"It seems that we are to sleep apart.", Sarah said sadly while they ate. She was looking forward to use Aiden\'s arm as her pillow.

Aiden didn\'t respond. It\'s obvious that the old guy is not willing to let them sleep together. But Aiden does not want to talk about that. "Did you have any time to think, why he asked about my fight?"

"It should be a hint for me…", Sarah mused. "You saw that I\'m hurt, and your hits started connecting… Does that mean that my fighting will improve if I have some motivation on mind?"

Aiden shrugged. "That is for you to figure out. Everyone has their own trigger. I know that mine is you. I will do anything to keep you safe."

Sarah felt her heart swell from the love she feels for Aiden. The only thing sweeter than his words is his kiss which made her melt in his arms.

The door cracked open and a throat-clearing sound made them stop kissing.

"Master told us to show you where to wash up. We are going in two minutes.", one disciple said curtly before closing the door.

Sarah laughed while thinking that with Aiden and her together here, these people will clear their throats thoroughly.

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