Chapter 8

"I thought it was only necessary to put the burnt part of the body under running water..." I trailed off, the sound of gushing water nearly drowning my voice out.

"That's right..." Strawberry replied as he stared innocently at me.

"Then why did you push me in?" I glanced up at him, my entire clothes soaked in the river water as I folded my legs and gave up trying to comprehend it.

"I panicked... But your burn is fine right?" he crouches, meeting my gaze with his upturned eyes as they sparkled innocently that I couldn't bring myself to say anything bad about his actions.

"... It doesn't hurt. To begin with, I don't think it was that bad." I averted my eyes, playing it cool as he nods his head.

"Well... it's a little cold but after sitting in here, my body has acclimated to the temperature. Why don't you join me?" I extended my arm towards him as he taps his lips to ponder a response.

"Hmm... but we don't have dry clothes on us."

"Ack! Now that you mentioned it... Why don't we just bask in the sun to dry ourselves later then?" I chortled as he broke into laughter.

"That's just asking for a cold."

Despite laughing at my idea, he joined me in the river. At first he shivered from the temperature but gradually got used to it as he walked around while staring at the shiny stones in the riverbed.

"Careful, it's slightly deeper near that area." I grabbed a hold of his hand, pulling him towards me as he bumped into my chest.

"Oh, sorry... did that hurt?" I brushed his hair back as he tilts his head upwards to meet my gaze.

His upturned pink eyes reflected the ripples of light from the river as he parts his slightly moist lips. My cheeks heated up as the corners of his lips tugged to a smile and a rosy pink tint coated his cheeks.

"It's alright! Lucien is so conscientious." he wraps his arms around me as I reciprocated the hug awkwardly, my thoughts spiralling as I wracked my head to recall what that word meant.

"Hmm... Oh! Look! There are small fishes here!" I broke our embrace as I slipped my hand into his, tugging him gently as I led him to the small school of fish I spotted.

"They are so tiny..." he mutters to himself as I squeezed his hand and smiled.

"That's what makes them more precious! Just like how children are to their parents—" I blurted that out without thinking when he suddenly lowered his head.

I forgot we were orphans, left at the church for them to raise us. It was a mistake.

"Uh... umm....." I stammered, uncertain what words to use to comfort him as he clutches onto my damp shirt with his free hand.

"... Then my parents... Am I not precious to them?" he lifts his teary gaze towards me as my heart fell.

"Th-that... No... Y-your parents... Uh..." I glanced around, thinking of what convenient story I could come up with as I glanced around for ideas when the sparkles of light against the water reminded me of the stars in the night sky the first day I met him.

"Your parents... like mine... had to go somewhere far away... however, they never left you. Remember that night sky we watched together?" I waited for him to reply as I stroked his head lightly.

"Yes... it was beautiful..." he replies in a soft voice as he buries his face in my chest.

"They had to become stars... lighting the sky as they watch over us from above."

I know how absurd that sounded but I had to spout something somewhat plausible so he won't be sad.

"But that's only at night..."

"No, no. They're present in the day as well. Just because the stars aren't visible in the day doesn't mean it doesn't exist." I smiled to reassure him, to which he beamed at me, chirpier than the time he seemed so downcast.

"Well... why don't we do something fun? It seems you liked the colourful stones... why don't we pick some and make a story with them?" I squeezed his shoulders, peeling him off me as I bent down and picked up a pink stone I happened to spot while we were conversing earlier and handed it to him.

"... This..."

"Oh... uh... just hold on to that. It reminded me of you. A pleasant colour." I grinned before taking a few steps in a different direction so that I could look through the riverbed in that location.

But... Wow! The river is crystal clear. I can even see my feet buried in the riverbed as I walk.

***

"Did you get enough?" I peeked over Strawberry's shoulder as he blushed and hid the stones he found.

I wonder whether it was a mistake on my part or the shadow blocking out the sunlight because most of the stones he picked were black or of a darker tone of colour. I shrugged it off as I told him I was going to get ready on the riverbank as he nods while going through the riverbed once more for his final selection.

I decided to conjure a story of a peasant boy who lived off the street. He would opt for stealing as a means to survive. But that was only his cover, he often steals food for other children he was helping and would only take small portions of the food he managed to haul that day.

One day, there was an announcement that the military needed more hands and would pay handsomely to those who joined. Thinking of it as the answer to his prayers, he scrunched up whatever penny he saved from selling wild flowers and told the other children to use it sparingly before enrolling as a soldier.

Originally, he failed to make it into the army. The first reason was his age, the second was he seemed too scrawny to partake in their training. However, he didn't give up and continued enrolling and training until he was eventually accepted in by a high ranking official who watched him push his limits everyday.

With the mindset to support the other children, he worked tirelessly and put all his effort into his blade work. He would write to them, sending chunks of his pay to them to support them.

Eventually, he managed to secure a position as one of the royal Knights of the King despite his low ranking in the hierarchy. When he returned after years, the children were all grown up. They could hardly recognise him but his personality had hardly changed, being the big brother everyone could rely on.

They then reunited and more peasants strived to become someone just like him, not allowing their dreams to be quashed from their social ranking. In return, the king who was pleased with the change in his society enacted a verdict that states that anyone could get a place in the palace but it depended on their skills. This in turn demanded the aristocracy to get off their high horse as even sons of prestigious nobles would not be able to get the desired position if they were out doned by mere peasants.

A fine story if you ask me! I could be a storyteller with this skills!

I laughed to myself, feeling accomplished as I praised the deep blue stone I had circled around with other stones, giving it the main character feel. Of course, things won't work that easily, but it's nice to have dreams.

And so we began our storytelling contest(?). Turns out, despite his innocent looks, Strawberry loves stories with dark backstory or upsetting ending as he recited a story of a man who was consumed by his own vengeance, becoming a host to all the great demons and eventually led the world to destruction. Not even the children were spared as the main character came up with the idea to purge the world for the new to take over.

However, once his rage was abated, he realised how foolish he had been. With not even a soul spared, he had been left all alone in a world void of colours and filled only with smoke and signs of destruction. Since he had become a host to the demons, his soul was already bound to hell so there was no turning back. Death was not even an option.

"So...? How was my story?" Strawberry smiles sweetly as I scratched my chin.

"Uh... It's good. Where did you come up with it?" I asked him as he simply smiles without answering me.

I wonder why that was more concerning than the story he managed to come up with in seconds. I know I glossed over it, but his description of every scene was so vivid I could see it playing out in front of my eyes.

"Uh... well, why don't we head back for now?" I noticed the ray of the sun had gotten stronger, a sign that it was close to afternoon as he shook his head in protest.

"But won't sister be worried about us?" I frowned as he giggled.

"I told her we were going on a date." He grins as I rubbed the back of my neck.

Well, I guess she was a sucker for pretty faces just like me.