Chapter 12: 12. Urgency

That morning, Arika was the first one to wake up. She groggily rose from her spot on the ground, grimacing at the soreness in her neck as she wandered over to kick Euric awake. It took her a solid three kicks to his side before he finally answered her back by shoving at her leg and groaning as he rolled onto his back and groggily sat up.

Without waiting to see him wake up further, she moved on toward the tree that Desmond could be seen lounging in. At the sight of him, Arika frowned as she approached.

He didn’t seem very sad on the offset—especially not when they’d first met and he’d threatened Euric’s life so easily. But after last night, she was sure he was hurting inside. He had no parents, and no one else to look after him, so he was forced to live out in the wild. Forced to take care of himself at such a young age instead of just being able to be a kid.

Arika’s heart wept for the boy, but she clenched her fist in determination.

‘I can’t change what’s already happened, but I can help him.’ She decided, knocking her knuckles against the tree in lue of trying to reach the boy. She saw his leg twitch as he let out a groan and slowly rose, rubbing his eyes. ‘I can take care of him. So that he has time to just be a kid.’

Desmond quickly swung his legs over the side of the branch, dropping lithely onto the ground next to her before she had a chance to take a step back. His landing was deathly quiet, and Arika was immediately reminded of just how strange Desmond was. He was just a kid, sure, but he’d already shown how strong and resourceful he was. Not to mention...

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