Road to Ruisea

❆ ❆ XXVII. CHIRO ❆ ❆

Chiro does not like to feel weak. Even if that's how he always feels.

But once again, Jae and Kumari lay him down, this time in one of the plush seats of the dining car, rather than his bed.

"I'm okay," he insists, but then winces as his spine presses against the back of the chair. "A-ah! Not okay!"

"Quit griping," Jae snorts. "I'm the one with a hole in my arm."

It's true — an arrow went clean through Jae's shoulder earlier, and he had all the bandages to prove it.

"You look like a Huven mummy," Kumari giggles.

"There'd better be a good doctor in Axeria," he sighs, rolling his shoulder and wincing as he does so. "I don't think my own handiwork will do me much good this time."

"There are good doctors in Qiluca," Chiro reminds.

"If we make it there," Jae sits down and plants his face down onto the table, groaning. "As if being on the run wasn't enough, now we're being chased."

"Just makes it more fun!" Kumari laughs nervously, patting his back. Chiro can still see the tear in her dress. He's happy she got out mostly unscathed, but still feels bad for burning her...

"It does not," Jae shakes his head from where it's on the table. "Just causes us more trouble."

"Jae's right," Chiro slumps, nearly banging his own head as he tries to lie it down. "This is really bad."

"Yeah..." Kumari twiddles her thumbs as she sits down. "Let's eat, and try to forget."

"Kind of hard to forget being stabbed by an arrow," Jae comments. "But food... Does have a habit of making things better."

So the kind waiter arrives, with his usual smile, and gives them their usual breakfast — even if it's well past noon.

"They say the train was on fire, did you hear?" The waiter says, as he servers Kumari a plate of strawberry pancakes. "But that it wasn't real. They say an illusionist is on board with us, that he was defending the train from pirates."

"One must've got on when we stopped in Huven," says Chiro, but eyes Kumari's face as he idly turns the spoon in his manna. She has a smile that isn't just from the pancakes.

"I feel a lot safer knowing there's an illusionist looking out for us," she hums.

Jae can't help but grin with her, "I think I agree."

"Magicians are well respected people," the waiter says as he pours them their drinks, just some juice and milk and water for Kumari and Chiro and Jae, respectively. "Such a shame there's so few of them now."

"I wonder why," and with that Chiro lifts his milk and downs it so he doesn't say any more than he already has.

The waiter gives another kind smile, almost a knowing one... Then leaves the three to their meals.

"Oh Chiro, Chiro," Kumari says through a mouthful of strawberry. "You really did scare me back there."

"Chiro," Jae raises an eyebrow. "Of all people. Scary? We just faced off with the most dreaded man in our world and you think Chiro's scary?"

But from the way he knocked over his glass of water as he reached for it, Chiro knows Jae is nervous.

"I'm sorry," Chiro looks away. "I really didn't want to burn you like that, but I wanted to keep Sho from seeing you..."

"Oh, that's not the scary part," Kumari shakes her head. "It hurt, but that's not why you scared me."

Chiro looks up again, "Then what part of me... Did scare you?"