"Y'all fight too much, calm down," Irik whispered as he turned Ptolema face towards his. She watched him as he turned to make sure they were far enough away that the other two idiots could not see or hear them.

His eyes swirled around to meet hers as they stood there, now facing eachother.

"Do you think what we are doing is right?" She says pushing out of his strong grip.

"We weren't doing anything right from the start so why is this any different?"

"Because with every breath we take away from one of these creatures is a breath that the king receives."

"Look, I care care damned less about that shit-head of a king, but right now we need to focus on doing as were told."

"Why?"

"The longer the king trusts us, the more of his guards dial down. Think about it, the more as he thinks of us as allies, the more we'll be able to get into his secrets and more. Then, we strike and blow his head off his fucking body."

Ptolema looks into his beautiful grey/white eyes as he smiles as her, that beautiful smile. "How do you do it?"

"Do what?" Irik lifts a brow.

"Be so calm around the king?"

"I'm almost two million years old, I've mastered a few tricks during my life."

They both laugh while walking farther into the forest.

Ptolema finds a small pond and dips her fingers in into the muddy water of the beautiful pond. She twirls her fingers around three times and, automatically, the water turns crystal clear. Irik stares at her in shock, but then looks to her hand where she was holding a cleaning potion she had taken out of Adina's bag. He gives her a small bucket, he had but around his belt earlier, to fill it with the clean water.

It sparkles in the sunlight as Ptolema scooped the clear water into the wooden bucket. Some water splashes on the side of the wood, but not enough to worry about.

She scoops the bucket into her left hand and drags it back to a large, light brown, tree.

"We can set all the supplies we find or need here until it's time to leave," Ptolema says as Irik looks at her with wondering eyes.

He laughs as Ptolema stumbles over a tree root. She coughs her anger on him as he tried to help her up, but she refuses to take his offer. Instead, Ptolema stands with sudden grace, and kicks Irik in the ribs with her right leg. He groans while stumbling backwards, falling into a shrub. They both laugh - actually laugh. Their smiles are brighter than the sun that shines down. As Ptolema sees Irik with his huge and wondrous grin on, she notices a slight change in herself: she feels happiness.

Ptolema has not felt happiness for a long time. She savors the feeling, almost drowns herself in the feel of being happy, for she may never feel this way ever again.

She helps him up off the ground, still laughing with her happy soul. Her soul is on fire with the happiness. She quickly realizes that she must shove the fire away, bringing the darkness in, in-caving her soul once again. The darkness folded its power into her mind, suddenly she felt stronger.

Happiness is a weakness, she repeated in her head. Kolo taught her how to survive, she must follow his rules, or die. Ptolema burned her happiness with the darkness from inside herself. The happiness faded away completely.

Irik noticed her darkening features as she turned from day to night within seconds. To keep peace with her, he decides not to ask questions, and quickly erases his happiness as well.

They both forget why they had been happy in the first place as they pick up more wood.

"So, you're poi, right?" Ptolema asks with her voice calmer than the wind that blows against her cheek.

"Yes, I am," Irik answers, matching Ptolema's calm tone.

"Are your parents alive?"

"I don't like talking about my history."

"Why?"

He didn't answer her, instead he punched the closest tree, making bark fly everywhere. A huge dent, about two feet deep, now imprints on the innocent tree. The tree had done nothing to hurt Irik, yet he punches it out of anger or... Ptolema understands what had happened to his parents before he even opens his mouth.

"They're dead," his tone changed as the words ripples out of his mouth and into Ptolema's ears. The hairs on her arm rose as she repeated his words in her head.

They're dead.

They are dead.

They died.

They were killed.

Dead.

Killed.

Dead.

The words floated in her head, as she pieces together Irik into her mind. She knows how his life came to be, she's always known somehow. Someone must have told her, but she just knew. It scared her to know so much about one person without knowing him. She pushes the images of his family away from her mind and looks at Irik.

His eyes are filled with stars; the night sky shining brightly. There is no fire in his eyes, but yet multiple sparks that are ready... ready for action. Ptolema had not noticed that she was smiling until Irik looked at her and smirked.

"What?" She asked almost dropping everything in her arms.

"You're smiling," Irik answered, "You look pretty when you smile."

"I'm sorry" was all Ptolema said before running ahead of him.

After a few more miles down, they found Dorian and Asher by a different tree she had left them by. Ptolema decides that it is smarter to not ask them any questions about why they had move trees.

"Y'all took forever!" Droian cried out laughing.

"Not like I see you doing anything but sitting on your ass," Ptolema retorts.

"Aye, chill. Anyways, I don't think we should camp here, I think we should follow a stream until we get out of these woods."

"Why? And even if we did do that it would mean walking for three days straight without any sleep. Droian, we need sleep if we want to fight."

"Because something happened and we can't stay here anymore."

Ptolema knew he was not lying, but she also knew that what he is asking to do is close to impossible. She ponders on whether or not to make them camp here and not be a wuss, adding in the possibility of their death by whatever might have scared Droian and Asher away.

"We will walk up the stream for a few miles until we see a clearing of small woods, then we will sleep there. And in the morning, we will walk the rest of the woods."

No one disagreed or said anything after that.