Honest

Amachi kept running.

Honestly, I had no idea how.

His breathing had turned rough a long time ago, and every few steps his knees shook badly enough that I thought we were both about to hit the ground.

Somehow, he kept moving anyway.

My arms hung weakly around his shoulders while my chest punished me for every step he took.

"Ah..."

"Fourth?"

"Keep... going."

That was about as much talking as I could manage.

(You should stop talking entirely.)

Noted.

My forehead dropped against Amachi's shoulder. His shirt was soaked with sweat, and his breathing sounded awful.

Considering he was carrying another human being through a forest after his legs had barely worked not long ago, this clearly wasn't going to last much longer.

He's going to collapse.

(I know.)

I glanced behind us.

The trees stretched endlessly between us and the village, with no sign of the Raven anywhere.

That didn't make me feel safe.

"Amachi..."

"Hm?"

"We need... somewhere to stop."

He didn't answer, probably because breathing had become a full-time occupation.

A few minutes later, the trees finally began to thin.

At first, I thought we'd reached another clearing.

Then I saw a roof.

...

A roof?

"Wait."

Amachi slowed.

Ahead of us sat a small collection of buildings swallowed by weeds and vines. Old wooden houses leaned beside broken fences, a dried-up well rested near the center, and one building had a tree growing straight through its side.

The whole place looked like nobody had lived there in years.

(That's creepy.)

Best thing I've seen all day.

We didn't exactly have many options.

"There."

I weakly pointed toward one of the houses that still had four walls.

Amachi nodded and stumbled toward it.

The door barely survived being pushed open.

CREEEAK.

Dust immediately attacked my lungs.

Bad timing.

I coughed.

"AAH—!"

Pain ripped through my chest, curling my body against Amachi's back.

"Fourth!"

(I TOLD YOU NOT TO DO THAT!)

I'll inform my lungs.

Amachi hurried inside.

There wasn't much left in the house—an old table, two broken chairs, a pile of rotten wood, and something that might once have been a bed.

Honestly?

Five stars.

Amachi carefully lowered me beside the wall.

"Slow..."

"I'm trying."

The moment my back touched the wood, another stab of pain ran through my ribs.

"Ah... damn..."

"Sorry."

He quickly grabbed some old cloth from what remained of the bed, folded it behind my back, then placed another piece beneath my head.

After that, he simply stood there staring at me like he desperately wanted to help but had absolutely no idea how.

"Amachi."

He immediately looked at me.

"What?"

"Sit down."

"But—"

"Your legs look like they're about to resign."

He glanced down.

They were still trembling.

Amachi finally dropped onto the floor beside me.

For a while, neither of us said anything.

We just tried to breathe.

Mine hurt, while his sounded like he'd sprinted across half the continent.

But for the first time since the village attack, we'd actually stopped moving.

I closed my eyes.

Just for a second.

(Don't fall asleep.)

I'm resting my eyes.

(That's exactly what people say before passing out.)

Five seconds.

(No.)

Three.

(Fourth.)

I opened my eyes.

Happy?

(Extremely.)

He was still worried. I could tell even when he tried to sound normal.

My hand moved toward the leather sack.

Still there.

Somehow, after everything, we still had the stupid orb.

Zaw had nearly died protecting it. I'd been blasted through the chest while carrying it, and Amachi had dragged me through half the forest without letting it leave our side.

Then—

CRACK.

Something snapped outside.

Amachi's head shot toward the door.

So did mine.

The house went quiet.

(Fourth.)

I heard it.

Amachi slowly pushed himself upright despite his shaking legs.

"Stay down."

He looked at me.

"Fourth—"

"Stay."

Another sound came from outside.

CRUNCH.

Footsteps.

My stomach dropped.

We'd run so far, cutting straight through the forest without following any road, and somehow he'd still found us.

How?

(Doesn't matter.)

The footsteps stopped.

Then came a voice.

"I know you're in there."

My blood went cold.

The Black Raven.

Apparently today had decided there was a minimum amount of suffering required before sunset.

Amachi stared toward the door.

I looked down at the sack in my lap.

And something inside me finally gave up.

I didn't have another clever plan. My chest felt like it had been crushed from the inside, Amachi could barely stand, and Zaw was somewhere behind us in a condition I didn't even want to imagine.

The Raven had found us anyway.

(Fourth...)

I know.

This time, I didn't argue.

Zaw had told me exactly what to do.

If we couldn't escape, give up the orb.

Don't die for it.

My fingers loosened around the sack.

"Amachi."

He looked back at me.

I held it toward him.

"Give it to him."

His eyes widened slightly.

"Fourth?"

"Just do it."

Talking made my chest ache, so I took a shallow breath before continuing.

"It's not... worth it anymore."

Not if Amachi had to get hurt too.

"We tried."

I swallowed.

"That's enough."

Amachi stared at the sack, then at me.

He didn't take it.

"...Why?"

I frowned.

"What?"

His eyes stayed fixed on mine.

"Why did you save me?"

...

Oh.

That.

Now?

"Amachi—"

"The attack."

His voice was quiet.

"If you didn't push me..."

His gaze dropped toward my chest.

"It would've hit me."

My stomach twisted.

I could've told him the truth.

Actually, funny story. I shoved you because I was furious and accidentally performed the greatest heroic act of my life.

Probably not the best timing.

I forced the corner of my mouth upward.

"Body moved by itself."

Amachi blinked.

Even my other self went quiet.

I tried to look considerably cooler than someone half-dead against a wall had any right to.

"Didn't even think about it. Guess I'm just that heroic."

(Wow.)

Shut up.

Amachi stared at me for a moment before looking down.

"But..."

His voice grew quieter.

"Wasn't I just a task?"

The fake smile disappeared.

There it was.

The question he'd actually been trying to ask this whole time.

Was any of it real?

I stared down at the sack in my hands.

"...At first?"

My throat tightened.

"Yeah."

Amachi stayed silent.

"At first, you were."

There wasn't much point lying anymore.

"Zaw told me to get close to you, and if I did, he'd give me a recommendation."

Amachi didn't look at me.

"But..."

A sharp ache moved through my chest, forcing me to pause.

"Ah..."

Amachi immediately shifted toward me.

"I'm fine—"

I stopped myself.

That would've been a ridiculous lie.

"...It hurts."

He stayed where he was, watching me quietly.

I took another careful breath.

"But it stopped being about the recommendation."

Amachi's eyes moved back toward mine.

"Honestly, I don't even know when."

Maybe that was better.

If I thought too hard about it, I probably wouldn't get any of this out.

"We trained together. We argued over stupid things. We wasted entire afternoons doing nothing."

I managed a weak smile.

"Then there was that fruit cake and you somehow got drunk from dessert, which is still incredibly pathetic."

Normally, he would've argued.

This time, he didn't.

That somehow made it harder.

I looked down.

"All that stupid stuff..."

My eyes started burning.

"It was fun."

Amachi finally looked at me properly.

"Really fun."

My voice cracked.

Damn it.

I rubbed at one eye with my sleeve.

"I spent years thinking I was completely fine on my own."

(Liar.)

Not helping.

I took another careful breath and kept going.

"I know how it started. I know why I walked up to you in the first place."

My fingers tightened slightly around the sack.

"But somewhere along the way, I stopped thinking about why Zaw sent me."

The words caught in my throat.

I forced them out.

"I stopped caring about the recommendation."

Amachi's eyes widened slightly.

"Eventually..."

I looked away.

"I just wanted to hang out with you."

For several seconds, he said nothing.

My eyes burned harder.

"I'm sorry I couldn't tell you before."

I swallowed.

"And..."

My voice caught again.

"...thanks."

I looked back at him.

This time, I didn't try to cover it with a joke.

A tear slipped down my cheek.

"Thanks for being my friend."

...

Another tear followed.

Great.

Apparently getting nearly killed hadn't been embarrassing enough.

Amachi remained silent for several seconds, simply staring at me.

Then he slowly stood.

"Amachi?"

His legs had been shaking only moments ago.

Now they were steady.

He turned toward the door while the sack remained in my hand.

I blinked.

"Wait. The orb."

He kept walking.

"Amachi?"

Another step.

"Hey, where are you going?"

He stopped at the doorway.

Something about him had changed.

His shoulders were straight, his breathing had settled, and the trembling in his hands was completely gone.

Then he looked back at me.

I froze.

His crimson eyes were still the same, except for a faint green glow beginning to gather around his pupils.

Almost invisible.

But definitely there.

What the hell...?

The glow wasn't what bothered me most, though.

It was his expression.

The fear that had been crushing him only moments ago had vanished.

Amachi wasn't relaxed, and he certainly wasn't happy.

He simply looked certain.

Like something that had been holding him down for years had finally loosened its grip.

He looked at me for a long moment.

Then he smiled.

Small.

Genuine.

"Fourth."

I couldn't answer.

Amachi turned back toward the door.

And quietly said—

"Thank you."