A Chaotic but Perfect World: In the Epping Forest

One hour ago

---
One hour ago, before the groups showed up at the NT camp...
-One moment...
Emily was making the final retouch on the drones.
-And now?
Dan deadpanned for the (wait, 1, 2, 3...4 I guess?) fourth time.
-I'm almost done, be patient.
She answered.
-You know, I've been hearing "be patient" a lot these days. And, to be honest, it is painful to wait, but at the same time, being patient is helping me enjoy and treasure the little things. Like your kiss on my cheek.
Oliver spoke to rolling eyed Serly again.
-You're too happy for that kiss.
She bluntly stated.
-Exactly my poi- OW!
He quickly lied back in his old and painful position.
-Well, that wound is doing something, at least.
She smirked.
Emily and Dan chuckled at her comment.
He smiled.
-At last it's ready!
Emily exclaimed.
-Finally. Now give it to me.
Dan snatched the screwdriver from her hand.
They blinked at each other then he turned his face away.
-Sorry about that.
He said in his low voice.
Emily stared at her hand and then at him.
Oliver patted on Serly's lap as a hint about Emily's feelings.
She smirked.
Selena walked in from the kitchen.
-Supper's ready.
She looked around her and sighed.
-I see everyone's busy, so I'll bring them here.
Emily coughed for attention.
-I'm not busy. I can, you know...
Selena looked at her.
-I bet she's going to say help them out by eating instead of them.
Oliver joked.
Emily rolled her eyes.
-Well, of course that's what I was going to say...obviously.
Everyone laughed.
She shook her head no and sighed then went into the kitchen.
-Hold up, Emily! Save food for us too!
Selena ran after her.
-Ah, wonderful! She's going to help her out!
Oliver said with a straight face.
Emily and Selena walked in with the plates in their hands while laughing with Serly and Dan.
-Oh, no, we don't eat plates, you didn't have to bring them.
He continued to make them laugh.
They put four plates of tuna salad on the table.
Selena went and brought a coffee table for Serly and Oliver.
Emily, then, put two plates on it.
-Yay, it's tuna salad. I love tuna salad.
Serly smiled.
-I'm jealous.
Oliver commented.
Everyone chuckled.
-That's a new low point in my life. I'm jealous of a dead fish!
He exclaimed.
Serly laughed.
-That dead fish is food!
-I'm also food!
He smirked.
-That's not true. If you really were food, you would've been eaten by Emily.
Everyone except Emily laughed.
Serly helped Oliver sit, while Emily jokingly said.
-You're all being unproductive and making fun of me, but I already finished my salad. Looks like I'm having the last laugh. Ha ha ha.
Once again they all laughed.
-And how about you keep being productive and feed me?
Dan side eyed her while working on the drones.
Emily fake coughed.
-Correct me if I heard it wrong. I should feed you?
Dan stared at her.
-Is there a good reason you can't do it?
-No, no, no, no, no. I can do it. But I first need fresh air.
She awkwardly smiled and quickly ran out.
The room was quiet before Emily returned.
She walked to the table, sat down, took his plate and fork and got to work.
-And right after you're done, send the drones to digging.
Selena ordered.
He nodded.
Oliver put his plate down after eating up his salad and groaned.
-My back hurts. The wound is burning. Is that supposed to happen?
Serly blinked unenthusiastically.
-No. Your wound just doesn't like you and wants to cause you pain. It's definitely not normal for a stabbed back to hurt.
Oliver looked down, chuckled and smirked at her while she finished eating her salad.
-Then damn it.
After staring at each other for several seconds, he reached for her face and caressed it.
She avoided eye contact and looked down.
Then he landed a kiss on her forehead and smiled.
She looked up at him. Her eyes were sad, despite her slight smile.
Oliver pulled her closer and hugged her tightly, his fingers interlocked with hers.
-I love you.
He whispered in her ear and kissed her cheek.
She turned to him, their faces almost sticking to each other.
They looked at each other's lips and back in their eyes.
She caressed his face and brought her lips closer to his ear.
-Lie down, my dear. I'll be back in several minutes.
She kissed his cheek and stood up to take the plates to the kitchen.
He didn't take his eyes off her and lied down.
---
-Stay still, it's going to hurt a little bit.
Eve tactfully pulled the arrow out of Sam's shoulder.
He growled in pain.
-Everything's fine, don't worry. The arrow has went into your bone's surface, but I'll brew a potion for you to speed up the healing process. The potion doesn't taste so good and the healing process will be painful, but an hour later, your shoulder will be working perfectly.
She calmly explained to him while treating the damage.
Sam exhaled and watched around the room.
His eyes got stuck on Camilla, who was watching them in the corner.
His face had no expression.
She quickly looked away the moment their eyes met.
-Here it is. If you want, you can drink it after supper.
She gave him a cup of green liquid to him.
Sam stared at it disgustedly.
-Yeah, I'll... drink it after supper. I don't want to lose my appetite.
He smirked at Eve and she giggled.
-Very well then. I'm putting it over here.
She put the cup in the cupboard.
-If you forget it or can't find it, just ask me.
She told him sweetly.
He smiled at her as she left.
Then his eyes turned to Camilla again.
-Why are you sitting in that corner all alone?
His voice was monotone, like his face.
-I don't feel like talking.
She answered quietly.
Her eyes were as red as a blood moon, and her voice was wavy.
He leaned back.
-How come?
With the same toneless voice, he asked.
Camilla shrugged.
Sam stopped continuing the conversation.
The room was unusually quiet.
Camilla's sigh interrupted it.
-Look, i-i'm sorry. I didn't realize my behavior and kept acting selfishly. I shouldn't have kept telling you how to do what and judge you. I completely understand why you're mad at me, I would've been mad at myself too. I just...I just wanted you to know that I regret all that and apologize.
Sam didn't answer nor look at her.
She lost hope and expressed it by heavily sighing and looking away.
-I'm sorry for shouting at you and making you cry. I acted...too aggressive and childish. I overreacted.
He suddenly spoke in low voice.
They looked at each other and sighed.
-Well, I'm off to supper.
Sam stood up and walked away.
Nathalie walked in.
-Camilla, Theresa said you have to keep some weapons in your magic.
Camilla looked at her.
-Oh. Sure, I'm coming.
Nathalie nodded and turned back while Eve entered.
-Sam?
She walked into the kitchen.
-Sam, you have to be careful with your movements now. I forgot to tell you that, I'm sorry.
He smirked at her surprisedly.
-No problem.
She looked in his eyes, then at his shoulder.
-Oh dear. Your bandage...
Before each other, they looked like a hobbit and a human. Large height differences. He was very tall, but she wasn't short.
-Can you...sit down so I reach your shoulder?
She asked him kindly.
-Sure.
He smiled, probably because he was so tall he had to sit down.
Eve worriedly began fixing his bandage.
-Again, I'm so sorry that I forgot to tell you. I'm just very stressed and tired right now.
-You don't have to apologize for that. It's understandable, you're a very busy healer!
Eve smiled at him lovingly.
-I don't know. I still feel guilty. One wrong movement could've caused great damage and it's my responsibility to warn you.
Sam chuckled.
-You're this worried for not warning me, while I neglected dozens of responsibilities and felt nothing until others told me about it.
Eve laughed.
He sighed.
-I'm a pathetic annoying useless piece of trash.
She gasped and lightly hit on his head.
-Sam Kingsley! Don't say such things about yourself. You are very loyal, fun, friendly, funny, resourceful, intelligent, honest, caring and there are so much more traits in you! Calling yourself a pathetic useless piece of trash is simply wrong. It is true you have flaws, but everyone else also has flaws and you shouldn't put yourself down because of them. I used to put myself down every time I made mistakes and failed. It didn't go well. I lost myself and forgot who I am. I saw myself as my flaws, but a good friend of mine told me "you are not your flaws. It is okay to make mistakes and fail, because they aren't weaknesses, they are sources of wisdom and power." And this stuck with me from that day. What I'm telling you, Sam, is that you can correct your mistakes by learning from your past experiences. And hating yourself will only make things worse.
Sam chuckled as she finished her motivational speech.
-Thanks, Eve. I... don't know how I would live without you. You're...you have an important role in my life... thought I should tell you that.
Eve smiled sincerely.
-I will always be on your side.
She left the kitchen.
Camilla was watching them the whole time.
Tom walked in.
-Camilla? Are you... coming?
She stood up.
-I'm coming.
---
-And then Tom, Boris and Nat came out of the bushes. There we made the decision to prepare supper and...well, did that.
Marina took a big bite of her sandwich after telling Jonathan and Lisa the story.
Jonathan happily sighed.
-Do you know what I think the best part of this job is? The unity. The fact that we all come together to defeat the forces of evil and protect the people and righteousness!
Jonathan shared his opinion with them.
The girls nodded.
-Yeah, it's like being a real life superhero!
Marina exclaimed.
-It's this unity that gives me hope for the future. If we had nothing to do with each other, if we were uninformed of each other, there would be utter chaos and competition. I truly believe that if we want to succeed in life, we have to unite with righteous people and fight the wrongness. We are powerless on our own, but together, we can do anything...but sadly unity is rare these days because everyone wants validation and superiority...
Mary started optimistically but finished it realistically.
-Yes, I agree with you. We are all heavily flawed and have big weaknesses but it's these traits that make us unique and different than each other. If we unite and embrace our unique personalities, we will have peace and love in society. But people just bash and judge each other in order to feel superior. That is so wrong!
Lisa agreed.
Jonathan nodded.
-Yes, we're all tiny pieces of a big puzzle and we're incomplete without each other. There is a solution, but no one wants to do it.
-Right? It's because most people are greedy, jealous and way too prideful. They just don't want to solve the puzzle!
Marina burst out.
-And the bigger problem is they manipulate people so easily! They tell lies and those who don't know, more specifically the children, teenagers and young adults, those who haven't seen life and lived reality yet, they just get fed with all the lies and poison and in the result, we get a brainwashed generation. All that is so heartbreaking to watch.
Mary added more bitterness in the already bitter cake.
They all sighed.
-I became depressed from this conversation, can we talk about something... brighter? Happier? Wholesome?
Marina requested.
-So which fantasy book should we talk about?
Lisa joked.
Mary shook her head.
-Fantasy stories are dark too, except the end. But still, the protagonists suffer a lot in order to reach their goals. Even children's books are like that.
Marina shrugged.
-I mean, no story would be interesting without if there was no villain in it. Same about life. I guess we can't really expect everything to be happy and good.
-Or even anything.
Lisa pessimistically commented.
Jonathan smiled.
-There are things to be happy about, Lisa. For example, you have loyal and good friends, you have a home and family, you have a good job, you have great personality traits, you have the ability to provide for everyday necessities and many other things. While we do have problems and pain in life, we also have solutions and joy. Be happy and grateful for the things you have.
Mary nodded.
-Not everyone has these. But that doesn't mean you're undeserving to have them. That means you can use your talents to help them, inspire them, motivate them. You just have to do as much as you can and if you can't do something, then you tried. It's not your fault. It's the fault of those who have power but are too greedy and selfish to share.
-Yeah, like, come on! You definitely inspire me! You're great! You can't tell me otherwise, because actions speak louder than words.
Marina laughed.
Lisa sadly smiled at them and sighed.
-I don't know...
Marina, Jonathan and Mary looked at each other and turned to Lisa.
-Know this. You're an amazing person with so much potential and can have a good impact on people. But first, you have to believe in yourself, otherwise people won't believe in you.
Jonathan gave her an advice.
-Start with small steps, because every tree was once a seed. You just have to keep going and I believe you can do that.
Mary gave hers.
-Believe in yourself is all I will say. Well, actually, also love yourself and accept yourself for being who you are. You are unique and no one can be a better you except you. Become the best version of yourself and inspire others to do the same. I believe in you!
Marina lit the whole room up with her bright smile.
Lisa smiled down.
-Thanks for believing in me. I'll try my best.
-Yay!
Marina applauded.
-And stand back up when you fall down!
Jonathan gave her a shout-out.
-And don't feel bad for having breakdowns, because it's not how many times you have fallen that indicates failure, but how you fell down and didn't get up, or worse, how you didn't ever fall down.
Mary motivated her.
They all nodded and filled the room with love and acceptance.