❦ℂ𝕒𝕘𝕖𝕕 - ℝ𝕖𝕒𝕕𝕖𝕣 𝕩 𝕋ℙℕ❦

«38 - Recovery»

A/N: I'm so sorry! I thought I posted yesterday, but I guess I didn't... I hope it hasn't inconvenienced you in any way... Please enjoy the late chapter!

*Emma's POV*

"We made it...!"

We've made it the forest before light. Thankfully, it's freezing cold, so the Vampire tree won't attack us.

We locate the hole we made, over a year ago, and climb down. Winding through the tunnel system, some begin conversing,
"How nostalgic."
"So were back here, huh?"

"Emma, bring Cristy over here!" Anna calls, reaching the end of the tunnel. I set him down, with blankets draping over.

"Listen up. From today on, this is the place we'll be staying. It's not going to be as comfortable as the shelter, but neither the Ratri family nor the plantations know about this place. We'll be safe." Ray commands, "We'll take turns watching the outside. Let's decide on the details for that, tomorrow. Right now, you should all get some rest."

«•»

Cristy was shot. Those two are dead, two of our own! It'll be morning, soon. Where are Yuugo and Lucas? How did it go? What happened in the end?

Is (Y/N) safe? She went back saying she was worried, but did she get caught up in the fight...?

What should I do... if something happened to Yuugo and Lucas, it would be all my fault. Did I make an error in my judgment? But...

Two are already dead. I absolutely cannot let anybody else die. But with 60 of us, we'll have no mobility. If an enemy attacked in the middle of the night, we would be okay because Yuugo and Lucas are so strong, but if the enemy still has ambushes, we won't be able to handle it.

I thought that was the best decision, but was it? I wonder if there really was no other choice? I'm afraid.

So afraid...

"Emma."

I look up to find Yuugo!
"Yuugo! I'm so glad...! So you were okay. Where's Lucas and (Y/N)?"

"Don't worry about that. How about all of you? Is everyone else okay? How's Cristy?"
"He still hasn't regained consciousness... It looked like the bullet just grazed him. Zack said they were able to stop the bleeding, but-"

"Emma. It's not your fault."

Not my fault? Back then, if I hadn't told them to go on ahead... If I hadn't taken my eyes off him, that time. If I were just more careful from the beginning.

"Do you remember what I said to you, before?"

What he said before? Right, he said,
"Will that decision be the right one?"

"I was wrong. Trying to make the correct decision is important. But that sometimes isn't all there is to it. In the moment, nobody can know what the correct or incorrect decision is going to be. But what's important is the decision you make after and the effort you put in to make that decision correct. Even if the judgement you made results badly, what can do from there? In what way can you fight for what's important to you? If it were decided by judgement alone, life would be a real gamble. Have faith in your judgment, Emma. And no matter what the result is, move forward. If it's you, if it's you lot, you'll change the world." Yuugo inspires.

"Yuugo... Why are you talking like that? Won't you be right here with us?! We'll change the world together, right?" Tears flow from my eyes, as the realisation hits me like a bullet. Ah... I see now. This is a dream.