Suna awoke to a bustling drone of human life. The monotonous, amalgamative hum of myriad voices and drawn wheels.
The sky was washed with a young blue. Suna was in thought.
She peeked her head over the rooftop's edge. Part of her longed to see Lilt's and Beryl's figures emerge among the growing crowd of people. But her hopes were unfounded and dashed. She ended up seeing a bit down the road what seemed to be a congregation of people. They raised signs, and they shouted, in unison. It was clear to Suna – they were hunters. Suna's interest was piqued, but she didn't really want to personally delve into such a crowded, chaotic scene.
It was interesting. They formed a line around the Hunter's building, but occasionally, especially strong looking people would stride through, entering it. No one seemed to pay any heed. So, the weaker people are protesting, and the stronger ones are unaffected? Suna was confused. She was also a bit annoyed; she and her Friends would have to move to yet another city to accept commissions.
It all seemed complicated. The young man she talked with the preceding day also seemed to be enveloped in some sort of 'situation'. She was confused why they didn't simply move if they were not happy with their life. She didn't get it. What was stopping him? People? Humans are stopping him? It doesn't make sense. Obviously, no one's directly preventing him from moving…
Would Suna… have to interact with these people? She tried to imagine herself, in that crowd of protesting hunters, holding up a sign, and directing her anger to some sort of intangible entity, like the Guild. She just couldn't. No part of her envied that, none of her wanted to ever do that. Was she just not understanding something? That was likely. But she also didn't like being stuck in a crowd, one voice of many, completely submitting to whims and directives not her own. If she were them… she would leave, and keep leaving until she found a place where she could be her. She truly didn't understand why these people didn't do that.
Suna pondered, not exactly eager to reinitiate her attempts at communicating with strangers. It didn't exactly go too well, last time… So she observed. Some time this day, likely around the evening, she expected her friends to show up. She didn't want to miss them. She would tell them about Stilt, about what she learned regarding this city, and they would go from there. She missed them.
She leapt down from the rooftop. A poor unfortunate soul had to withstand the fright of someone suddenly descending from the sky directly in front of them.
"Hey."
"S-Suna! Where, where did you even come from!?"
Suna pointed. To the rooftop.
"You, you actually slept outside? That's not good for you!"
Suna tilted her head. She had slept outside so much, if it was bad for her she figured she'd know by now.
"Sigh, come on in. I'm opening up shop." Stilt took out a ring of keys, unlocking a nearby storefront. Suna followed Stilt inside.
"You can, I dunno, hang out until your friends show up or something. Make yourself at home." Stilt gestured to a seat located behind some sort of counter. Suna was more interested in the various bits and baubles that were put up, for sale. She perused the contents of shelves, tilting her head as she attempted to discern the potential uses for the majority of these strange-looking trinkets and gadgets.
"Yeah, it's just a bunch of random stuff, useful and not. Hunters come by, but there's also lots of nice things to put in your house that are nice for daily life." Stilt performed a variety of menial tasks, tidying things up, reorganizing things, interfacing with some sort of Magical-looking device on the counter.
"Oh, come on, the way you're looking at all this stuff, how do you expect me to not think you're a kid?" Suna glared at the rude young man. She walked up to him, and kicked him in the calf. Stilt just laughed.
Suna at some point finished looking around the store.
"Um, Stilt… how would I know when my Friends get here?"
"What, you didn't set a time or a place to meet up at?" Stilt facepalmed.
"Well, our separation was a little rushed…" Suna worried.
"You're sure they're coming here, right?"
"Um… Yeah." Suna tried to be confident. But it was hard.
"Haha," Stilt gave Suna a pat on the back. "It'll be alright." Suna felt a bit better.
Some customers came, perusing sections of the store like Suna did. They asked some questions of Stilt, who'd respond, casually. Some even asked about Suna. Suna looked to the side, not really wanting to say anything. Stilt just said they're looking after her, temporarily, for a relative. Suna… felt like a kid.
"Hey, what do you think's in here?" A girl's voice faded in, becoming clear with the opening of the door.
"We, we should, you know, be looking for-" The androgynous voice stopped, abruptly. They saw Suna. And Stilt, who was sitting by her, behind the counter.
Suna wanted to erupt into glee and relief, jumping into her Friends' arms. But she couldn't. The air was thick. Lilt did not seem to be nearly as ecstatic as she was. Rather, they were quite apprehensive.
"Suna…!" Beryl was different. She jogged over, and Suna went out of her chair to hug her. She hugged her tight. She was getting a little tired of being on her own. The longer she was in this world, the more foreign it felt to her.
"Haha, you're squeezing me!"
But the two weren't oblivious to Lilt's strange behavior. They both separated, and looked at Lilt, gauging their reaction.
Their face was indecipherable. But there was pain on it.
Suna looked at Stilt. Pain. Regret.
These two knew each other. That much was obvious.
For a long time, the two stood there, as if frozen in time. Lilt broke the spell of silence.
"Hey… Brother…"
"...hey."
It was terribly awkward.
"So, these are your friends, huh, Suna?"
"...yeah." Suna didn't really know how to penetrate the awkward situation. She didn't really try to.
"..."
"..."
"...So you're… not going to apologize?"
"What for?"
Lilt's fists clenched. "For… For leaving? For leaving me?"
Stilt looked down, at the counter. "Lilt. You know I couldn't take you. It was too dangerous-"
"Then why'd you go, then? If it was so dangerous?" Lilt's face contorted. "I… I told you… that I'd go with you… that we'd always be together… isn't that… isn't that what you said…?" Lilt seemed about to cry.
Stilt wore a guilty look. They struggled to respond.
"...whatever." Lilt left the store. Beryl and Suna left, but Suna glanced at Stilt before doing so. Their pain was readily apparent on their face.
"Lilt!" It was now Suna's turn to chase her Friend. Of course, they weren't at all capable of outrunning her. But it was still hard. It was hard, not knowing what they were going through, why they were feeling hurt. She realized. This is likely how her Friends felt when they chased after her, in Girgess. She felt a bit more guilty about it, now.
Suna and Beryl eventually caught up. Lilt was shaking. They were crying. They found a more peaceful alleyway to take them into, away from prying eyes.
Suna didn't know what to say. Neither did Beryl. So Suna hugged Lilt. There wasn't much else she knew how to do.
Lilt shook. But they eventually hugged her back. Beryl could only look on in concern.
The three walked the streets, slowly. Lilt seemed to be feeling better, but they had yet to speak a word about what had happened. Suna saw a familiar shop. She led them into it.
All three of them munched on meat buns.
It was hard for Suna to talk, but she did so, anyway.
"Um, Beryl… you guys were quick, huh?"
Beryl giggled. "Yeah, we rushed as quick as we could after your little fit, you know?" Beryl flicked Suna on the forehead. She let her. She felt she deserved it. "With our new money, we didn't have a problem with renting a horse." Beryl looked at Lilt, who silently chewed, their head hung down. "It was fairly uneventful. We didn't get here long ago."
Beryl looked back at Suna. "So it's…" They fidgeted. "Just, double-checking, you know, it's, um… it's okay, if I hang with you guys for a bit?" She asked Suna.
Suna smiled. "Of course."
"...thanks."
Beryl continued eating her bun. So did Suna.
The two found themselves in another inn. Lilt got their own room, so Suna and Beryl were stuck in their own.
Suna never found the chance to talk about the Hunter's strike, Lilt seemed too glum to talk with throughout the entire day. She was worried.
"It's okay. Tomorrow, they'll feel better." But Beryl's words of comfort did nothing to ease Suna's worry. This all felt familiar, in a terrible way. Not knowing what her Friend was going through, being unable to do anything, as they hurt. She didn't know what to do. She was scared.
Beryl saw how scared and worried Suna was. She was worried. For Suna.
It was the middle of the night. Suna just could not sit still. She weaseled out of Beryl's arms, and made her way into the hallway. She knocked on Lilt's door.
No response. She knocked again.
She was worried.
Lilt awoke to see Suna's face, close to theirs. They let out a small exclamation of surprise.
"Suna, you can't just, break into people's rooms!"
Suna was glum, Lilt could see, in the faintly lit room.
"I… was worried." Suna was crouched on the floor, Lilt laying on the bed. "...um. I can, um, leave, if you want."
Lilt sighed. "No, it's. It's okay." They turned, looking up at the ceiling.
"...I, um. I had a friend." Suna spoke quietly, in the darkness. "They, um, they were hurting. And, and…" It was hard for Suna to talk. "She, um. She told me to leave. And then they hit me." Suna shivered, kneeling by the bed. "I, uh, I must, I must have been insensitive, I must have said the wrong things… I, uh… it's okay, if you need time… but I was worried. I just… I don't want to mess up… again…" Suna cried, soundlessly.
"...Suna. Get off the floor, will you?"
"Huh?"
Lilt made room on the bed. "It's cold on the floor."
Suna gingerly crawled into the bed. She fidgeted, uncertain of what to do.
Lilt broke the tender silence. "Sorry. I didn't mean to worry you. I'm… I'm okay." Lilt turned towards Suna, facing her on the bed. "I… I'm okay. And I'm certainly not going to hit you, okay, Suna?" Lilt felt bad for her. They wanted to reassure her, to hug her, but they were too embarrassed to do that.
"...Mm." Suna nodded, looking at Lilt worryingly.
Lilt pat her on the head. She didn't seem to mind.
And the two fell asleep.
"Sorry. I should've told you guys what's up."
"Hah, you two are such drama queens. Hopefully it doesn't spread to me, too." Suna and Lilt didn't really mind Beryl's rough words.
Lilt stared into space, in thought. "He… Stilt. He's my brother. It seems you've met him, Suna."
Suna silently nodded. "They got me food."
"Um, how did you meet him, by the way?"
Suna did not want to answer that question. She gave a glib dismissal, but Lilt didn't seem too hung up on it.
"Well, anyway. Um, I kind of, um, don't want to stay here, haha. Sorry guys, after we just got here."
Beryl gave a shrug. She didn't seem to really care.
"Well, we can't even take commissions here, anyways. There's a 'strike' going on? Whatever that means."
Lilt and Beryl were surprised. "Oh, really? I guess we don't have a choice but to move on, anyway, huh? That's… kinda fortunate."
Suna was glad that she didn't have to get too involved with what seemed like a messy, complicated mess.
"We should check if it's still going on. It would be nice to pick up a commission we can do on the way to the next city." Beryl suggested.
Suna didn't really want to go back to that crowded, chaotic gaggle of people, but she didn't want to shoot down Beryl's valid words.
Lilt looked at Suna. "Is that okay with you?"
Suna looked ambivalent.
It was still just as crowded. No, it was more so. The people seemed even more fervent. Suna didn't like it. She was uncomfortable.
"It's okay, we can leave." Lilt said, concernedly towards Suna.
"Yeah, this doesn't seem like the kind of thing to get involved with." Beryl gave her opinion.
But Suna heard it. Through the all the crowd's loud voices and noises. She couldn't just leave.
Suna delved into the crowd, maneuvering her small body through and between larger hunters. To Lilt and Beryl, it was as if she disappeared.
"Please! Someone, Help!!"
The voice was desperate. Suna was annoyed at these hunters. For suffocating such a desperate cry for help. Aren't they supposed to help people?
Suna made her way to what she thought was their location. She could only hear snippets of their voice through the sea of loud voices. She hated this. She hated this feeling of being a pebble packed in, of parts of her body constantly touching others no matter how she tried to avoid them. She hated it. But she endured.
It was a kid. They were yelling at the top of their lungs, but even the people around them didn't seem to notice. Suna was a bit repulsed by these oblivious, indifferent people.
"Hey. I'm here, it's going to be alright." Suna tried to assure the kid. She caught their attention. They were panicked, and sniffling. Suna grabbed the kid's hand, and tried to lead them out of the crowd. She felt pushed and pulled, at the mercy of this crowd, which she was currently traversing the densest parts of. It was infinitely harder trying to move with this kid, who seemed to get snagged by everything. She had to manage each of their limbs, which seemed to move erratically and frantically as they tried to remain upright and moving.
And then. Abruptly, they emerged. Into open air. The change was startling for Suna. She looked back, the kid still holding her hand. People started to quickly notice her. She looked around. All around her, there was a staunch, dense crowd. She looked back. It was the Hunter's building. She didn't know what to do, she just wanted to get to somewhere more open so that the kid could calm down, but she must have lost her sense of direction amidst the crowd.
Hey! You! What are you doing!? Scab! Traitor! Filth! Scum!
Words she struggled to even parse out were starting to be directed at her. She shivered, under the quickly uncountable gazes that smothered her. What should she do? There was nowhere to go, everywhere was a crowd, except for the closed building behind her. She started panicking.
"Uh, um, I, I'm, Uh," Suna tried conversing with this monstrous behemoth, but it was of course completely futile. Its anger seemed to rise, and she felt it. Every shade of resentment, wrath, fury, all of it was being thrown her way. She was scared. Terrified. She wanted to dash and run away, but there was nowhere to run to.
She started emitting pathetic noises, covering her head, her body sinking lower and lower into the ground as more and more crushing waves of vitriol enveloped her, sealing every exit.
She was scared.
"What is wrong with you all!!!" Someone. Someone emerged, shielding her from their wrath. She looked up. It was Lilt. Their small frame. Their tiny back. They stood tall.
Lilt turned to Suna, extending a hand. Suna shook, but she endeavored. She grasped it, weakly.
Lilt brought Suna and the child close to them.
"Empric Fantalla!"
They surged into the air, splashes of water covering the heated mob of hunters.
Suna hugged Lilt. She would not separate herself from them, even as they got to a peaceful spot, reuniting with Beryl.
Suna shook. She shivered. She was scared. Lilt caressed her back and head as gently as they could, but their hands seemed to shake as well.
Suna was being poked. She lifted her face off Lilt, just a bit, to see who was messing with her.
The child. They looked shaken, yet their eyes showed clearly their sincerity.
"Thank you, Miss. I…" They seemed to be grappling with the events that had just occurred.
Suna remembered why she was there, in that terrifying crowd, in the first place. She reached out her arm, and pat the kid on the head. She gave a ginger smile. And then she went back to squeezing onto Lilt.
Beryl was sort of left wondering what had just happened. But she wasn't rude enough to barrage Suna and Lilt with questions. She probably didn't have to wait long to piece together what had happened.
Seeing Suna still shaken up, Lilt took it upon themselves to check on the kid.
"Are you doing okay? You'll have to forgive my friend, haha, she's a bit of a scaredy-cat, haha. Ow!" Lilt was pinched on his side.
The kid responded. "I'm, I'm okay. I, There's, I need help! My, my village is being attacked by a Monster! So my parents sent me here to ask for help, but…" Their face was downcast.
"That's okay! We'll help!" Beryl interjected, looking for Lilt's approval. They gave an affirming nod.
"That's right." Lilt did their best, despite their black-haired obstruction, to put a hand on the kid's shoulder. "You were brave, coming here all on your own. It's going to be okay, okay?"
"B-But, they, they told me, I have to made a request, through the Guild, but, the Guild, it's-"
"It's okay. We're going to take your request. The Guild, right now… isn't really functioning. But we're not going to let your village's people die, alright?" Lilt looked towards Beryl. "Anything you need to do before we leave?"
Beryl laughed. "Heh, you guys move quickly, huh? I don't mind that at all. Let's get going already."
Yet another wagon ride. Lilt had a lot on their plate. Their Brother, Suna, this kid and their village… They felt a bit overwhelmed. But looking at Suna, who still clutched onto them, tightly… they felt like they needed to step up. To keep this Group going when its de facto leader seemed to be change their mood and decide things on a dime. But Lilt didn't mind that about her at all. They were kind of getting swept up in her pace, but they were getting used to it. What they did mind, however…
"Hehehe." Was this rude girl, who wouldn't stop teasing them, sending them looks as if to shame them.
Lilt rolled their eyes and ignored this boisterous girl. Sigh.
The kid fidgeted with worry. Occasionally, Beryl or Lilt would reassure them.
But Lilt was getting worried, with how long Suna was clinging to them.
"Hey. Are you alright?" Whenever Lilt would throw a question to Suna, she would just bury her head deeper into their stomach.
Lilt thought back to that crowd. That Mob. They didn't understand. What had Suna done to them, to draw such profound ire her way? Did Suna provoke them? Lilt only went to investigate because the crowd was getting riled up, and they were worried about Suna. They remembered what it was like, facing such an amount of people. They weren't surprised Suna was so shaken. But it had been a while since they left, now. They wondered. Was this crowd a worse enemy than It for Suna? Was it worse than those manic Hunters? Was it worse than that pale beast? Suna didn't seem to be too familiar with customs and 'normalcies', so they wondered. Did she grow up in the mountains or something? Did she ever have a family? Lilt imagined what kind of past she could have possibly had.
The carriage ride was not too overly long. They all got out. Suna still clung to Lilt.
"Hey Suna. Don't you think it's been a while, now? Do you think you can talk to me?" Even the kid started getting worried about Suna's strange behavior.
"...l-l-l-lilt…" Lilt was surprised they were talking now. "...p-p-p-people… are scary…"
Lilt pat her on the back of her head.
"Hey. You two go find a place to stay. I'll go deal with the monster."
"Wha-No, Beryl, it's dangerous!" They both had a rough idea of the monster's characteristics, thanks to the child's recollections and descriptions that they recounted from people in the village.
"No, it's alright. Suna needs somewhere safe. She needs you." Beryl looked Lilt in the eyes. "If things get rough, I'll just run." She turned.
Lilt wanted to stop her. But it was true. Suna was in no condition to fight anything. And Lilt did not want to leave her alone. Well, it was more like they couldn't. So what choice was there, really? They left the Hunt to Beryl.
When Lilt and Suna arrived at a room the villagers let them stay at, her actions were peculiar. She took a desk, and shoved it up against a corner of the room, and she dove under it, huddling there. Lilt didn't really know how to react. Suna wasn't talking to them. She seemed to be in complete defense-mode. They sighed. They were going to step out, to get some fresh air.
"NOO!! Don't Leave!!"
They sighed again. It seemed they couldn't leave, either. So they made themselves comfortable on the bed. Suna was silent, motionless, in the corner of the room.
Was Lilt annoyed? Not really. It was hard to tell. They were far more annoyed at that group of people for hurting Suna like this. Suna felt so pure, and seeing people mar her innocence really irked Lilt.
"Lilt."
"Yes?" It was the first time she spoke since the wagon ride.
"I'm sorry. For keeping you here."
"No, it's okay. You're going through something rough. I want to be here, for you."
"But, we haven't even known each other that long, I'm, I'm just a stranger-"
"No, Suna. You're not a stranger. You're my Friend, remember?"
"...mm."
Friends… Lilt didn't really have any. Truthfully, Suna was their first. They spent most of their life confined to that place, constantly studying, constantly under pressure to improve. The rare few times they were able to leave, Lilt never connected with anyone. They didn't act like any other kids. No one else was being pushed, like they were. So why? Why couldn't Lilt just live a normal life? Why couldn't they be like the other normal kids? At some point, Lilt accepted it. They accepted that they'd live the rest of their life estranged from society, estranged from others. So, when they were told that they had hit a wall, that they'd need to gather experience from the real world in order to progress, they were dumbfounded. All they had known their whole life was rigorous study, and constant supervision. Being suddenly thrust into the deep end, with absolutely no experience… it was terrifying. It was stressful. Lilt's worries knew no bounds. Even just basic communication, they always seemed to mess up. They were awkward, they were different. Lilt had resigned to simply live their life in seclusion, but now they couldn't even be spared from humiliation.
Lilt grew fed up. With their stupid parents. With people. With everyone. They hated everything.
Of course, Lilt did not express this to anyone. They simply kept travelling, alone, eventually reaching a city. They forced themselves to register. They impressed the evaluator, who referred them. And they saw someone. Someone else. Alone. Different. That person, who stood out amongst the rest. Everyone else had someone. But she didn't. Maybe this person, maybe they'd understand me, even just a little bit. And so they approached her.
Lilt did not need to elaborate to themselves just how much of an impact Suna had on their life, even if they had only known each other for a handful of weeks.
Thinking such things, feeling certain things, of course Lilt didn't mind staying with Suna when she was hurting. It was getting a bit excessive, but they figured that for her, it was only that miserable. She was hurting just that much. So even if it seemed strange to them, Lilt tried to see things from her perspective.
Lilt came off the bed, and approached Suna. She retreated, and squirmed.
"Is it okay? If I stay here?" They propped themselves against the wall, by Suna, who didn't respond.
"..."
"...my Brother… He…" Lilt thought back. "He was my everything. The one thing keeping me sane. In a place that knew no sanity." Lilt looked up at the ceiling. Suna listened. "But one day… he left. Haha, it's funny. There was nothing stopping us from leaving. Ever. But, I dunno. It was just so hard to. I thought he was brave, for doing that." Lilt shook. "They were my Hope. They promised me. They promised that they'd take me. That we'd both leave. But they didn't. I was left there." Lilt had already come to terms with this. Their voice was steady. But it still hurt to talk about. "I mean, I guess I shouldn't have relied on someone else to save me. I should've left on my own, maybe. But. I dunno. They promised me, Suna…"
Suna started shaking, and shivering. The desk was wobbling, making noise. Lilt looked over, worriedly.
"Hey, Hey. What's going on?"
Suna was experiencing something. Her heart was tearing. She could not stop the tears. She couldn't stop her breathing from devolving into some sort of erratic mess. Her body was failing her. This corner, this desk, did not feel safe. She was worried. About Lilt. About Angie. About everything. She was scared.
Lilt tried to reach out, to comfort her. But their hand was swatted away. They didn't know what to do, or say.
Suna started emitting sounds that were hard to describe. Sounds of pain, of worry, of panic. Lilt was a bit scared. Did they say something bad?
"Suna. Suna, speak to me. Please." They made sure not to raise their voice. But it wasn't reaching Suna.
"Rnnnghhh…" Suna writhed. A wound. A wound had opened up. It was bleeding, profusely. She was bleeding. She was hurting. She wanted to run. She wanted to escape, to some forest, to be all by herself again. But she couldn't. She wouldn't let herself leave Lilt, and Beryl. She wouldn't allow herself to avert her eyes from her own self, her own pathetic, miserable, disgusting, undeserving self.
For she made a promise. One that she wasn't keeping.
She remembered Cyra. She remembered Angie. And how she starved for her. How she pushed herself to the limit, for her. How she helped them escape from that miserable hill.
She had wanted to forget. She had forgotten. She had swept it all under the rug. All of her feelings, all of her hurt, she had simply pushed it aside, to be forgotten. But it was there. It was still there. Lots of things were still there. Lots of pain, lots of hurt. It hurt.
Suna wasn't spasming. She was still huddled, underneath that desk. The sounds seemed to subside, but Lilt felt like they weren't calm again yet. None of their words seemed to reach Suna. They felt helpless. Like they could do nothing. They were useless. This is my Friend… and all I can do is just watch? All I can do is watch as she suffers, miserably? Lilt felt bad about themselves. They hurt, too.
Someone entered the room. Lilt saw, as they dropped everything, and rushed to Suna, hugging her. Suna weakly pushed away, but quickly resigned herself to the embrace.
Lilt felt useless. They got up, to leave the two alone.
"No! Please, Please! Please!! Don't go!!"
Lilt didn't deny the girl's desperate pleas. So they sat back down, just continuing to be there. For the girl, who seemed so fragile, so tiny, so small. The three simply sat there, in that room, saying nothing. Stewing in each other's emotions. But it wasn't pointless.