"Lyra... Lyra!"

  Ash shook her body, trying to wake her but she remained unconscious. The sun was still high in the sky but it was clear it would not remain that way for long.

  Lyra peeled her eyes open weakly and let out a moan. "Get your hands off me." She said in a distasteful voice before pushing herself off his body and trying to stand only to fall into his hands again.

  She hissed at him and pushed him away, "Touch me one more time and and I'll cut your fingers off." She waved her dagger in his direction.

  Ash took a step back and watched her fall into the trunk of a tree, he cleared his throat and spoke. "You're sick, I can help."

  Lyra let her back fall to the ground and tried to calm her breathing but her chest only kept heaving. She locked eyes with him, her vision blurring slightly. "I'm fine, let's get moving."

  Ash felt he had to do something, but what that would be it was hard to know.

  Kip watched them from a small distance away and said nothing. He had no way to help them or any particular reason to, he still had not decided if he wanted to ally himself with them. Since their goal was not one he ever wanted to take.

  "This is why I hate quests... Someone always dies." He said under his breath.

  Ash bent down slowly and said in a very soft voice. "I might not know how to use a sword but I was born here. Back in the village, some kids would get sick and we would brew special tea herbs for them. I'll go get some."

  "Don't you dare leave my sight, I can stand just fine." The elf said with a loud grunt as she tried to stand only to fall back to the ground.

  Snow whined and jumped into her arms.

  Ash could see that her face was getting more read, and she was sweating. Her pointy ears were bright pink and sagging. He hated to be in positions where he had to make a decision, it always left him nervous and unsettled. Tomas was always the one who led the charge if things went wrong, he was the dear brother who always looked out for him and others. Ash was more comfortable being the one who was always looked out for, of course he would lend a hand from time to time. But he could never contribute the way Tomas did, standing there in such hard situation he asked himself what Tomas would have done.

  Ignoring Lyra's pleas for him not to leave her sight he started to walk towards Kip, when he reached him he stopped and spoke. "I think I saw some herbs when we were coming, it will take a while but I can't leave her on her own."

  Kip seemed to get the message but he said nothing at first, his eyes drifted from the troubled young man to the woman laying on the ground telling him not to go. He eventually sighed and said. "Are you sure? It will be dangerous for you also."

  As had also thought about that too but now that his head was much clearer he actually remembered something about himself. "I can handle myself around the woods, it's no different than home."

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  He started to walk forward but Kip reached out and squeezed his shoulder tight. "If you are not back in an hour at most I'll come looking for you."

  He gave the former scribe a nod before continuing to walk deeper into the forest. After he left Lyra called out to him, with heavy laboured breathing and her breath wheezing. "Get him back here, I can walk fine."

  Kip surprised her by his reaction, he walked up to her leaned over and spoke in a slow and menacing tone. "Then run after him. Right now you are a liability, I don't have the power to save you but that kid might so you better shut it and wait for him to return."

  Lyra felt her gaze eyes flicker or a moment, it took all her willpower just to stay awake. Still she managed to talk with the little bit of energy she had left in her. "He needs me by his side, he already tried to kill himself once. He might try it again, and this time succeed."

  "Might!!" Kip interjected. "He also might not. When I look at his face I see a boy broken and trying to patch himself back up. I see some wanting to save a life, he seems like a good kid."

  Her breathing grew more chaotic and laboured, she dug her fingers into the dirt trying to awaken her senses if only by a bit. "Good people like him don't last long."

  Kip took his seat right next to her and looked up at the sky, "Not in our world, they don't. In our world, they break and fall. But good people can also become strong."

  She wanted to object but her senses started to dull, and she lost every sense of self. She jerked her head open to fine that night had fallen over the forest and the world was bathed in white snow.

  Snow was cuddling in her laps, she could see a small fire, with the bundle of dry wood crackling in them. Kip was currently telling what sounded like a bizarre tale to Ash who seemed lost in thought. He looked in her direction from time to time, when he realised she was awake he ran to her side and took out a small number of leaves from his satchel.

  "I didn't find the herbs for the tea but I found these, we chew this to remove body impurities." He handed it to her, which she took hesitantly.

  She locked eyes with him and said nothing for a while. She was still wondering how she had been asleep for so long, and she also thought why he had risked his own safety for her. Not wanting to look down on his good gesture, she took the leaves and placed it in her mouth.

  She chewed down on it and the leaf speed to burst open and melt on her tongue. The liquid that poured out of it had an acrid taste so profoundly potent that she gagged.

  Ash seemed to predict this, before she could throw up the herb he had so painstakingly collected he wrapped one hand over her mouth and used the other to pinch her nose. It forced her to swallow it instead of throwing it up, he dropped down next to her and drew in a deep breath.

  "That was close, thank goodness." He said with an exhausted look on his face.

  He found Lyra glaring at him with a very angry look on her face, he chuckled nervously as he handed her a some water from her bottle. "Sorry, but it will help."

  She took a huge sip of the water trying to wash the bigger taste from her tongue but it persisted. Her body grew weaker and she then slipped into another deep sleep. This time when she woke up it was late in the night and the world was freezing.

  A small blizzard had picked up and her body should have been frozen but she felt a strange warmth coming from the body of Ash hugging her tight from the side. She embraced the warmth, his body brought. She would have pushed him aside if she was her usual energetic self but this time she chose not to. The reason was oblivious to her.

  Kip sat in the distance, she could not tell if he was keeping watch or had fallen asleep. The winds had put out the fire which barely managed to give any more warmth. Snow had buried herself in their embrace and was snorting quietly.

  Her body begged for more warmth and moved on it's own, she snuggled closer to trying not to wake him. But from the way his body reacted she could tell that he was already awake.

  "Sorry, you were freezing and body always seems to run warm. I can barely feel the cold." Ash's voice came in a very low tone, so soft she almost felt reassured by it.

  She said nothing for a short while, "You're awake." Her tone was somewhat cute and petite.

  Ash blinked twice, staring at the tree branches covered in white. "Every time I sleep, I have the same dream. I see my home burning, and then an egg calling out to me."

  Lyra hesitated a bit before she spoke again, "You don't seem afraid."

  He could not help but smirk, "I usually am, I always cried over the little things back home. Tomas practically called me "Crybaby Ash". But today when I thought you might die and I could do something about it, it changed me I think."

  She wanted to pull away from him and find safety in the trees above but her body told her different. "That's twice you saved my life."

  "Well you did save me twice." He said.

  She nodded, "I guess that makes us even."

  They said nothing for a long time that Ash was beginning to think she had actually fallen asleep. He wanted to say something but chose not to.

  "If you have something to say then say it, I can hear you breathing on my neck." She said coldly.

  He smiled a bit and then said. "This thing in me... Am I really going to give birth to it?"

  She paused for a long time before giving him an answer. "You know, that's a mighty good question."