To say that it was not peaceful during her time alone in the bedroom would be an understatement, for Misumi spent her days beneath the blankets, sleeping and healing. Cleo and Kenji took care of her at first, with intermittent visits from Sapphire, and when Amelia was feeling better, she also took part in helping out. On occasion, Sinopa would come in and tell exciting stories of her adventures, though it was a mystery whether they were true or not, and even Desmond and Flanigan said ‘Hello’ every now and then. All in all, it was a passive time, a quiet time, and Misumi rarely did more than sit up from the bed.
Currently, she was laying down flat on her back with a high fever, aching too badly to fall asleep. Sapphire assured her that the fever was on its way down, but still—teetering on the edge of vertigo and vomiting would never be a good feeling. And while lying there, she raised one arm and held her palm straight up as if trying to grab something, only for her eyes to latch on to the bruises that stained her skin.
Even if it was just for a few hours, she had died.
Her friends watched.
Somehow, Amelia managed to bring her back, but even so, Misumi would never understand what it was like for her friends. They must have felt hopeless. Weak. They must have felt like failures for having lost her.
Weakly, she closed her fist and let the arm fall down, at which point she buried it below the covers once more. So many people wouldn’t have a second chance like she did.
On that note, Amelia volunteered to help raise as many of the fallen as she could; of course, that only amounted to one person aside from Misumi, as it had to be done within twenty-four hours of their death, and Amelia got terribly sick whenever she cast the spell. Still, at least one other person was revived.
Sighing, Misumi closed her eyes tight, then opened them again. “I really am alive, aren’t I? It’s almost too good to be true.”
The bedroom door suddenly swung open and in walked Cleo, who brought a pitcher of water and a bowl of soup. She sat down on a chair next to Misumi, placing the tray in her lap.
“I brought you something,” she breathed while grasping the tray at both ends.
Misumi shook her head and sunk into the blankets, burying half her face. “Do I have to? I really don’t feel too good, so I’d rather just—”
She was cut off by Cleo’s immediate demand: “Nope. You need to eat, so sit up and I’ll feed you. Or do I need to force the food into your mouth?”
There was no arguing with Cleo when she got bossy, not unless Kenji was present, and thus Misumi acquiesced. Besides, she had yet to eat that morning, and a helping of soup might make her feel better or cause the vertigo to go away.
Upon sitting up with her back against the headboard, Misumi was given one spoonful of soup at a time, disallowed for feeding herself due to how poorly she handled her utensils the day before. And for a while, there was silence; but that changed the moment she brought up a topic neither of them was prepared for.
“So, umm…” Misumi began. “…when I died…what exactly were you thinking?”
As if paralysis had struck like an icy wind, Cleo went catatonic, stiff, and she pulled away and sat against the chair’s backrest as he face revealed a pain brought on by great loss.
“W-Why do you ask?”
“I’m just curious, that’s all.”
The color in Cleo’s face melted away as she went pale, unable to think of an answer right away. However, once she collected herself, she managed to speak.
“W-Well,” she started, looking everywhere but Misumi’s eyes. Her words came out slowly, as if she truly were remembering those moments scene by scene. “I was terrified. And broken. I thought about you and every time I could’ve been nicer, or helped out more. And I thought about…us. Not that I expect you to know what I’m saying. I’m sorry. Please, just forget about it, okay? What I thought isn’t important now.”
“But of course it is.”
Misumi leaned forward, putting her face directly in Cleo’s line of sight, causing both of Cleo’s cheeks to burn red as she frantically snapped her neck in the other direction.
“How you feel and what you think will always be important to me,” insisted Misumi. She titled her head to the side, a little confused. “I don’t see why that’s such a bad thing.”
“Yeah, but my feelings are…different.”
“Huh? How is that?”
Cleo’s face was so red it looked like heated iron on the verge of exploding, and steam whistled out her ears to release some of the pressure. She spoke with fragility, poking both pointer fingers together, “B-Because I…you know…I…really like you…”
A sudden knock at the door made Cleo squeak and jolt to a rigid sitting position, and when it creaked open, she ticked her head like the second hand of a clock to see who had entered. It was Flanigan. And from the look on his face, he had something important to say.
“Hey Misumi,” he opened up. “Got some guests here to see you. Is it alright if I let ‘em in? It’s okay if you’re not feeling up to it.”
She nodded. “Yes, it’s fine.”
As Flanigan stepped aside, four people wandered into the room—two adults, two children—and immediately upon seeing their faces, Misumi recognized them. Those kids were the family she helped reunite during Dead-Eyes’ rampage through the city. But why did they come here? Why find her?
Before another second passed, the mother and father, both of whom were covered in dirt and quite sorrowful, got on their knees and groveled, weeping for her forgiveness. Their tears caused their children to sob as well, and Cleo freaked out, rising from her chair so fast the soup and water almost spilled. Flanigan, however, just left and shut the door behind him.
“We’re so sorry for the pain we’ve caused you,” the father wept. “We shouldn’t have lost our own children in the chaos. We should have been better parents.”
Misumi grew flustered and quiet, unsure of how to respond. “But it wasn’t your fault…”
“Of course it was!” cried the mother. “The members of your guild explained everything. Because of our failure, you were killed by that…thing.”
The father raised his head, clasped both hands together, and put them to his forehead as if praying. “We will always be grateful to you for saving our children. But we mustn’t let your good deed go unrewarded. Please, tell us how we can repay you. Anything. We’ll do anything you ask. Just say the word.”
“R-Really, I don’t know what to say…”
Misumi watched the family as they wept, begging her to allow reparation. But what could she ask for? Saving two children is something that anyone would have done, and she didn’t expect anything in return. Besides, getting killed Dead-Eyes was her own fault, not theirs. She cast her eyes toward Cleo, hoping she might be able to help, but no, she was just as flustered by the whole scenario. Dealing with groveling strangers wasn’t her strong point.
“I guess you could invite my friends and I to dinner,” Misumi blurted out. “When you’re ready, of course. I understand if your home was damaged or something like that.”
“Is that all?” the mother questioned, peering up from her position on the floor. “Please, let us do more for you.”
The father added, “Indeed. We mustn’t neglect to fully repay you.”
There was much back and forth between them, but in the end, Misumi insisted that all she wanted was dinner when she had recovered enough to get out of bed. She didn’t need money. She didn’t need payment of any kind. All that mattered was that the children were alive, and that she was there to see them again. Therefore, she continued to assert that dinner was all the family needed to do in order to repay her. And before she knew it, the mother and father were on their feet, and the two children came closer to give her a hug.
“Thank you, Miss Adventurer,” the kids said in unison. “For keeping us safe.”
In the moments that followed, a tearful goodbye was offered on both sides, and the family vowed to make the best dinner they could possibly provide, and that Misumi and her friends would always be welcome in their home. According to them, that was the least they could offer. However, Misumi knew it was unnecessary and far too kind on their part, but she smiled at them on their way out, glad to have made a new set of friends in Duncaster.
******
It had been more than two weeks since Dead-Eyes attacked the city, and in all that time, Misumi had been lying in her bed fighting off fevers, aching pains all over her body, and occasional nightmares. But now it was time to get out.
She could walk without falling down, talk without croaking like a frog. She could breathe without the muscles in her torso begging her to stop. Everything was going her way, and that meant she was well enough to leave the guildhall for the first time—and also accept dinner from a very grateful family. Together with Kenji, Cleo, and Amelia, she was strolling through the city at night, limping slightly and occasionally needing to pause, but luckily, her friends were there to move at her pace. Though it was slow, they stayed right beside the entire time.
“Are you sure you’re up to this?” Cleo asked. “No one’s forcing you to go out.”
Misumi caught her breath and rubbed at two different aches in her left leg and ribs. “I’ll be fine. Thanks, though. Hey Kenji, can I hold your arm as we walk?”
A few steps ahead, Kenji extended his right arm outward. “It’s all yours, Princess.”
“H-Hey, wait a second,” stuttered Cleo. “You could hold mine instead. I mean, it’s not as muscular…but the extra softness might feel nice. My shoulder’s pretty soft too!”
But they had already begun to walk, continuing down the street as Misumi latched onto Kenji’s arm for better balance. Many of the shops were still closed, but others were lit up inside, selling their wares like always. There were taverns with music playing, bakeries that smelled so sweet and alive, food stalls that sold things like smoke fish, vegetables, and rice. Though many people were still in mourning, the city of Duncaster seemed to bounce back rather quickly.
Kenji, Amelia, and most every other member of the guild helped with the rebuilding of several homes, also hauling debris away from the streets. There was still much work to be done. But at the same time, people were beginning to relax. The fear had died down, as did the chaos caused by the disaster. Various burials and cremations had taken place at the Cathedral and all over the city, and the King held a ceremony in honor of the deceased, a gathering of the whole population where everyone lit a sky lantern and sent it floating off into the night sky. Even now, Misumi wished she could have attended, but she managed to see the cloud of candle lanterns as they drifted up to heaven out her bedroom window.
After following the directions given them by the kind family whose children she rescued, Misumi and her friends located the house, which was miraculously still standing despite the destruction all around it. There were two crumbled buildings nearby, heaps of rubble, wheelbarrows of brick and wood. Yet in the home’s downstairs window—the calming light of a warm fireplace, flickering and dancing in the serenity.
“This is their home, correct?” asked Amelia as she approached the door.
Misumi answered, “Mhmm, this is it.”
And before anyone could knock, the door swung inward as two smiling faces greeted them from within; it was the children, and they were very excited to meet their guests.
“Miss Adventurer!” they exclaimed, running out to greet her.
The two kids—brother and sister—hugged Misumi at the same time, then began asking all sorts of questions, overloading her brain until she hadn’t the ability to answer a single one. They asked about the Spire, about her guild, about her family, about her friends, about her class. If there was an answer to be had, they asked the question.
However, it wasn’t long before the childrens’ parents appeared in the doorway, also wearing the biggest smiles their faces would allow. The father crossed his arms while the mother clasped both hands together.
“We’re glad to see you,” stated the children’s father. “All of us.” He eyed the whole ground, happy as a clam that he got to not only eat dinner with Misumi, but four of her friends as well, and he waved them all inside. “C’mon now, before you catch a cold. Dinner’s almost ready. And guess what? We made more than enough for everyone, so feel free to eat as much as you’d like, got it?”
As the kids yanked on Misumi’s clothing, she too put on the kindest smile and nodded, content with the evening before it even began. “You got it, Sir. But we do promise not to eat you out of house and home. Adventurers like food, but we have manners too.”
