Lloyd nodded and sighed as he stared towards yesterday's events.
"It was an awesome teacher, my friend." Boyce began. "It taught us what we feared the most. It taught you the pain of loneliness and duty and it taught me that fighting, and killing, is unavoidable."
Lloyd placed his hand firmly on Boyce's shoulder, offering a silent thanks for his understanding and forgiveness.
"I know the need that you had for the company of someone like
Grenadine. I suppose the forest knew that and used it against you.
Yet, it didn't have the power to turn us against one another!"
Lloyd felt ashamed of his behaviour of the last few days but he did believe that Boyce was genuinely sympathetic about it all. He also knew that Boyce was right about the Forest using fear against its trespassers.
Boyce finally looked away from the Forest and riveted his eyes on Lloyd.
"Your father told me about Charnan." he admitted to Lloyd. "I can't tell you how very sorry I felt about that. That's the only reason that I am able to understand."
Lloyd's eyes glided down to his hands. "I began to fall in love with her." he confessed, remembering how soft and smooth Grenadine's skin was to his caresses.
" She was very beautiful … too bad she was a gremlin."
"She was a lycanthrope." Lloyd corrected. "In ancient times they called her kind, werewolves!"