Three days passed and they had just left Fay's cottage.

They were currently walking in the direction of the nearest human village. Fay was against them heading anywhere toward human civilization, saying it was dangerous. Specifically, dangerous for someone like Rey. But, Rey preferred it if he wasn't constantly trying to protect Leon at all times and he was also more comfortable being around humans.

It was going to be a three days walk. Just keep heading east through the forest and eventually, they'll see an exit. The village was just a few miles away from it.

Rey summoned one of his black, smoky tendrils and used it to wrap around his and Leon's wrists. It was so they wouldn't get separated.

Lately, Rey's been feeling like Leon was going to disappear any second now. He didn't like the feeling. So, he's made measures to make sure Leon was only ever a certain distance away from him.

And yes, Rey still called him Leon.

And he will continue to do so until Leon remembers his own name.

Unfortunately, he doubts that'll happen anytime soon.

From those three days, Leon had changed. He didn't know if it was a good change or a bad one.

Leon did stop trying to kill himself, which was good.

But he also stopped doing many other things.

Like eating, bathing, walking, talking, just basic needs.

He was like an empty shell, just living because he could breathe.

Rey did force Leon to eat during those three days. It was unpleasant. It resulted in some premastication and suffocation, but he would do it again and again if it meant that Leon lived. And Leon did start eating afterward, but only because Rey was feeding him.

As for bathing, that was ten times easier than forcing Leon to eat. They'd seen each other's naked bodies many times before, now it was just a matter of cleaning. Leon didn't fight, he just sat there and let Rey take care of him. It did annoy Rey, but if Leon wasn't going to clean himself then he was going to. Hygiene is important.

For walking, Leon's leg was still broken so he couldn't really walk in the first place. Leon really just laid in bed the entire time and if Rey wanted to move him, he would just carry him around. Thankfully, before they left, Fay had decided to heal Leon's leg, wanting to make Rey's life a little easier. Fortunately, as long as Rey just pulled Leon along, Leon would walk.

And for talking, well, Leon never spoke after that night. Not a single word. Not even now. He does cry though. Many times he screams. But words, there was nothing.

It was like Leon had become a child, an infant. Unable to do anything.

"Why?" Fay did ask him once when he was feeding Leon, "Why do you take care of him after everything he's done? He doesn't even think you're real. He actually hates you,"

"He's still my friend of ten years. And those ten years, he stood by my side suffering in silence," Rey replied, "Whether he did it for his own reasons or even if he hated me through it all, he still gave me ten years of his life. That was real to me. Now, I would do the same,"

Rey was willing to live like this. If it meant keeping his best friend alive, he would. He would find a reason for his best friend to continue living. But that didn't mean it would stop him from continuing his own journey. He was still planning to explore the world. Now, he was just bringing his friend along, like he's done for the last ten years.

A teardrop landed on Rey's hand as he finished tying the knot around Leon's wrist.

Leon would cry randomly throughout the day. Just tears that drop from his eyes.

Rey softly ruffled Leon's hair, brushing the snowflakes off, "We'll find it, your reason to keep living,"

He took off his scarf and wrapped it around Leon's neck.

While the snow wasn't falling heavily, the temperature was getting colder. They didn't have the right clothes for the weather, but Fay was kind enough to lend them a few things. Well, lend Rey a few things. Just a coat, a scarf, some gloves, and a blanket.

Once they were far enough from Fay's cottage, Rey had given them for Leon to wear instead. Leon was still human and he didn't have any magical powers to keep himself warm. This should at least help a bit.

Even though Rey had tied Leon to him, he still took Leon's gloved hand in his and began walking. He was sure Leon would disappear the moment he looked away. This assured him that Leon was still there. At least physically.

And they walked through the deep forest, Rey leading the way.

They passed the area that they have destroyed.

They passed the bones of the shadow wolves.

They passed the flower that still glimmered in the one ray of sun.

They walked until sunset before Rey decided it was time to stop and eat.

They stopped by a river. Fortunately, the weather wasn't cold enough to freeze the river yet. Rey sat Leon down by a large rock, trusting that the tendril will do its job. Rey was able to control the length of the tendril, so as long as Leon didn't try to run away, Rey wouldn't feel the pull.

He walked over to the river and blasted the water. Like a geyser, the water shot high into the air, fishes jumping and flopping everywhere. Rey caught a couple of them by stabbing them with his tendrils and pulling them back.

Rey frowned.

He remembered the first time he did this, Evelyn and Leon got so mad at him. They scolded him for how he was destructing nature and how he shouldn't be using his powers for something as simple as fishing. Fishing was a survival skill, it was important. And not just that, he could be attracting beasts or enemies to them. In short, he just had an earful of why he shouldn't be doing this.

But now, he had no Evelyn. No Leon. No one would scold him if he did this, or anything, for that matter. He wondered if Leon, the real Leon, would scold him.

But he doubts that'll happen anytime soon.

Leon was just an empty shell now, staring into space, not doing anything. He locked himself up, away from everything, away from reality.

But that was okay because Rey was willing to wait. Wait till Leon comes back, the real Leon this time.

For now, he'll just take care of him.

Rey built a small fire and began heating the fish he caught.

He sat next to Leon, wrapping a blanket around them. He activated a spell, heating up his body to keep them both warm from the snow.

Then, they just watched the fire in silence, the fish slowly cooking.

" . . . "

Rey was never one to speak, but he felt like should fill up the silence somehow.

"We'll arrive in the village soon," Rey said, knowing Leon wouldn't reply anyway, "When we're there, we'll find an inn. I'll also have to look for a quest,"

The currency in Terole was different than the one in Aruvar. Luckily, Fay gave him the little money that she had. She preferred to stay in the forest, in her cottage, away from everyone. So, she didn't have a need for money nor did she ever use it. So, she gave it to Rey. It was probably just enough to get an inn for one night.

Rey would have to work to make more, which was fine. He was already planning to do that in the first place. And the fastest way to do it was to take on quests. He doubts it, but he still hoped there was an interesting one in this village, or any at all for that matter.

Sizzle.

Rey quickly took the fish away from the fire. It was slightly burnt, absolutely plain, and still held its fishy aroma, but whatever. As long as it filled their stomachs.

He ripped a piece of the fish and brought it to Leon's mouth. Leon chewed it slowly and after what felt like forever, he finally swallowed. And then, Rey would rip another piece to feed it to him again. Rey did feed himself too while Leon took his time. He wasn't going to just wait every time Leon swallowed.

Eventually, they were done eating their fish. It didn't fill their stomachs, but it would last them for the night.

Rey leaned back against the large rock, staring up into the night sky. The constellations were different here. The stars also looked farther away. He wondered what kind of things he'll encounter on this journey.

Drop.

Another tear.

Rey brought his arm around Leon's head and leaned it on his shoulder. His fingers ran through Leon's hair, massaging his scalp until he fell asleep.

He gazed at Leon's face. Despite how peaceful Leon looked asleep, his tears still continued to fall. Rey could only wipe them away and hope that whatever he encountered on this journey will also help Leon come back.

Rey slowly closed his eyes and went to sleep.

The night slowly went by. The snow continued to fall around them. Thankfully, with Rey's ability, they would not freeze in this winter. In fact, the snow would even dissolve the moment it landed near Rey. It wasn't hard for Rey to keep this warmth going for a couple of days, it was just a small spell. A spell that even novices could master.

A slight pull drove Rey to wake up.

Leon had sat up, awake. He observed his surroundings, his head turning left and right. Then, as if he realized something, he sat still, unmoving, eyes wide open, mouth agape.

He sat like this for a couple of minutes before his body began to shake.

He planted his head into his hands, scratching at his face and pulling on his hair.

He gurgled noises and choked on tears.

Then, unable to contain himself, he opened his mouth,

"AAAGHHH!"

Rey was silent as he watched Leon flail his arms and legs, tearing into himself, yelling at the sky, and even breaking his skin and making himself bleed.

He watched as his friend lost his mind, falling deeper into his madness.

And for the first time, ever since the death of Evelyn, a small tear made its way down Rey's cheek.

He didn't know he still had tears to shed.

Slowly and softly, he wrapped Leon up in his arms, stopping him from hurting himself. Then, he laid back down, still holding Leon close. He caressed his head, something he had realized that helped Leon relax.

Rey continued to hold Leon, even after Leon had fallen back asleep. He did so, not only to comfort Leon but to also comfort himself.

To tell himself that Leon will come back. That he will find a reason for Leon to keep living. That everything will be okay. That he won't be alone in this world.

Rey didn't want to be alone.

He hated being alone.

It was too lonely.

Like this, they traveled for another two days. Rey leading the way and Leon following behind.

They did run into a couple of beasts. Not anything dangerous, just some incredibly large wild boars. Rey used his spells to kill them. It was easier that way, especially because he had Leon to protect. He knew there was no way Leon would attack, nor move for that matter, he would just await his death.

But anyway, the boar's meat was tastier. And now they could sell the remains in the village. So, while Rey was pulling Leon along, he was also pulling along a dead wild boar.

Then, Rey saw an opening. A bright opening blinded his eyes.

It was the exit of the forest.

What lay before him was a vast, open view of plains, mountains, and rivers. And from afar, he could see a small village.

"We're almost there," he muttered as he squeezed Leon's hand, "Let's go,"

 

A/N:

So actually, everything before this chapter is like a long prologue lol

The actual plot starts here. tee hee