Reflection Of A Fool

"You weren't so discreet, were you?"

Aether whispered, while hiding from the people searching for them.

He whined at the situation he found himself in due to his companion.

Even after making him do all the work, she got caught while getting whatever toys she needed. It wasn't very pleasant.

He had made his first successful theft, and yet he was still hiding. Might as well not have put all that effort and gotten caught. He would still be in a similar situation, but at least in the other one, it would at least be his fault.

"It's not my fault!"

Avrie shouted, causing Aether to instinctively cover her mouth with his hand.

Not enjoying being silenced by a fool, she tried to take his hand off, but when she heard footsteps, she stopped.

She glanced at Aether, who had covered his mouth also.

They had hidden inside a crate left by some workers. And someone was just outside it, meaning any movement might as well be their last.

As the steps dimmed, they let themselves breathe, having escaped a close call.

But they knew that they couldn't stay here much longer. 

If they stayed, they would either get caught or the workers would come back to get the crate and notice its newly added weight.

Bad thing was that even if there weren't any footsteps, there could still be someone outside watching, or someone with an affinity that makes them invisible.

Meaning they couldn't just leave before checking to see if there was someone or something.

But one simple question remained...

how?

The crate was small, hardly able to hold them both. There weren't any shadows inside, only theirs, and even if there were, he doubted they would know anything.

Aether turned to Avrie, hoping she had any idea, but she too had no idea from the look on her face.

How much he regretted leaving everything behind when she came running to him. Hopefully, they didn't find anything. He would be very angry if they did.

'What did she even get?'

He didn't know; all he knew was that she now had a big backpack with her, which was great since they did need something to carry everything, but it still didn't make up for her being caught and having to hide.

Either way, back to the problem at hand.

If his powers didn't do anything to help, then maybe hers did.

An affinity that allows you to see the threads of essence. It's an affinity that specializes more in utility. And while it would have been more convenient if it were a combat affinity, he could see great potential in it. 

As a reader, her ability already allows her to manipulate the threads from nonliving objects, but maybe if she ascended, it could get strong enough to do the same to the living. If it did, it could be a very dangerous weapon.

There was the question of how she sees the threads, and what she needs to do.

Do her eyes have to gaze on her target? And if that's the case, to what distance did it work for?

And what is considered looking at a target, seeing the core, a limb, the whole body?

Or was it that it was always on, not having to be activated by anything?

But more importantly, could she see them through thin walls?

"Avrie, can you see someone outside?"

The witch stared at the walls of the crate, as if staring at something beyond it.

Was it that she could really see someone?

But as if timed to crush his hope, she frowned and turned her head to him.

"Of course I can't, dumbass. If I could do, don't you think I would have told you already?"

"Well, ho-"

He stopped and cleared his throat, a little embarrassed. He had wanted to argue, but he couldn't deny that what she said made sense.

She would have told him, she wasn't crazy to like staying in a tight container.

So then it was impossible to see the outside world while inside the box, meaning that they would have to risk it.

He took a deep breath, opened the crate nervously, and burst out in a flash.

Prepared to fight, he was delighted to see that there was no one waiting.

But they didn't wait. As he signaled to Avrie to come out, they ran through the shadows all the way to where Aether had left everything.

While moving down the streets, he let Avrie take the lead. Not only because she knew the town better, but her ability to see threads was better at seeing people than his shadow speech was.

It was also much faster and more secure.

As they reached the place, everything seemed to be intact.

Probably because before leaving, he had covered most of the things he stole with his cloak.

It was risky not wearing it, but at least he had his mask.

Either way, mask or cloak, or just none at all. Nothing would have made a difference if they got caught. It was just more that he felt comfortable hiding behind them than actually needing them all the time.

While stealing everything, he had his cloak on, and while in the first part of the plan they were needed, in the second, it was already dark enough, and when it came to meeting up, that never happened.

They started packing everything inside her bag: wines, water, fish, since they could be eaten without being cooked by a fire, firewood, and some raw meat.

He had also gotten a sword, bow, and knife. 

But they were too heavy to carry, so Avrie got the bow and knife, while he got the sword.

And while this meant that the day he would have to fight someone was drawing close, his mind was more preoccupied by the firewood.

Before, he didn't question why she had wanted them, and also the raw meat. It was strange. Fire couldn't be started, and he doubted that the meat would even burn.

But at the same time, it was the same girl who brought her own cat back to life.

Speaking of the cat, she had left her at the hut, saying there wasn't a reason to bring her along. 

Though when it came time to go to the inner rings, they would bring her with them. Since leaving alive wasn't granted, and she didn't want to abandon her.

He, of course, couldn't care less if that cat stayed inside the hut all his life waiting for them to come back, while they were already dead.

'...alright fine maybe a little.'

Examining the sword, he stared at the brilliant steel from which it was fabricated.

The blade was a little wider than normal, its fuller was quite prominent, allowing it to feel quite light.

But he also thought that it had a different purpose. For deflection.

If he turned it sideways, the sides were quite interesting.

The side was made from a different metal, one stronger than steel. It was made out of titanium.

Making the sides stronger made deflecting and guiding others much easier.

The whole sword looked to be made for that style of fighting.

Which was great, since it was exactly the same style Clarisse had taught him.

And while she did teach him it to use it. She always told him that the style would never work for him.

It required a lot of muscle and technique, something he lacked.

But more than the muscle, more than the technique… it wasn't his. That was the real problem.

She always said that while a swordsman grows, their own style grows with them. And while it seems that other taught techniques also get stronger. A swordsman's life will never be complete until they find their own.

But he wasn't a swordsman.

Heck, it was the first time he held an actual sword in his small hands.

So while it's better to start developing a style at a younger age, she wouldn't mind using hers from some time, right?

But as he turned the sword to look at his reflection inside the blade, he also noticed some people hiding in the darkness, following them.

He wanted to alert Avrie immediately, but that would only cause them to come out and attack them.

So instead, he gave her the sword to see for herself.

And of course, since the witch wasn't just a random one, she was able to recognize them, maybe with the help of her affinity, but in the end, did it matter?

Without saying anything, she signaled for Aether to follow.

But for where they were going, if he had to guess, somewhere they wouldn't dare follow.

And in the end, that place seemed to be a giant dark forest. One that gave him an awful feeling.

This wasn't a normal forest. It couldn't be. If it was, why would the other be scared to enter?

There had to be someone or something inside it.