The Value You Hold

Noah was a couple days in to his unhealthy plan of keeping Lynn from hurting herself out of survivors guilt. He was prepared to go on like this the rest of his life if it meant keeping his promise to Clayton to keep her safe. Though, just because he was prepared to do it forever, didn't mean he could. One night he went to sleep at a normal time because the next day would be the anniversary of his family's demise. Each year he would go to visit the grave that he and David had made for them and ramble about life. Every visit he would reminisce about the events after he had lost his family, all the way up until that current grave visit. Like he said when he was younger, he wanted his talks to get longer and longer. Noah would also ask for life advice, and despite obviously getting no response, it sometimes helped him to feel a little better about life.

Noah: "I'm heading out. Keep an eye on Lynn for me please. David won't be here since I took over the day and night shift."

Lawrence: "Of course. Edna, Ellie, and I will take good care of her. Now go on your visit, this day is for you."

Edna: "Don't be back too late."

Ellie: "Yeah, it looks like it might rain later, so come back before it does!"

Noah: "Alright. I'm off, see ya!"

Noah started the trek through the woods. By this point, he knew which path would get him to his old home the quickest. It still took a long time to get there, but it was much faster than ever before. Not after too long, he stood before the grave.

(Present Day)

Noah finished looking back on his journey up to that point. He knew this talk to the grave would be important, so despite the rain that started to fall, he stood at the grave, and started to talk.

Noah: "Hey dad, mom, sis. I'm sorry that I stand here and complain each year, but this time I need you all more than ever. So if you can actually hear me, please listen. Lynn is hurting right now, and I don't know how to fix it. I'm broken myself, but even though I have a new family, friends, and even a daughter to look after, a part of me is still broken. Those nightmares never stop, and I feel like they actually never will, no matter what I do. But even if I can't stop my hurting, I still want to stop her from hurting. She lost everything as well, but she won't accept anything new. Each day she just goes through the motions, and that hurts to see. I really care about this girl, but how do I let her know that. I'm showing my concern to her by staying up each night, but what if that's actually hurting her? I'm not there during the day, so is that making it harder for her to accept life as it is? Why the hell does this have to be so complicated? I've been through this so why can't I get her through it? It's annoying. I don't want to lose anyone else. This country is annoying. Why do the innocent have to suffer because the strong are in fear?"

The rain continued to pour harder as Noah stared at the graves in silence. He then clutched his fists.

Noah: "I know what I have to do. My happiness won't guarantee that those around me will be happy. I'll throw everything away for them. For David, I'll become what he couldn't. For Ellie, I'll become a father that she can be proud of. For Lynn, I'll take this country and flip it upside down. I will become her hero. I will become everyone's hero. That damn trial doesn't stand a chance."

His motivations have soared. With his decision made, he must move forward.

Noah: "Thank you all. I love you. I'll see you next year, but for now, I have to talk to someone."

Noah started to run back home.

Back at the house, Edna was preparing dinner as everyone sat at the table.

Edna: "Sure is coming down out there, yeah?"

Lawrence: "Glad it doesn't seem to be a thunderstorm or anything like that."

Lynn: "I..."

Ellie: "Lynn?"

Lynn: "I'm sorry..."

Lynn suddenly rose from the chair and bolted out the door.

Lawrence: "Shit! I'm going after her, where's my coat?"

It took a couple minutes for everyone to get their rain gear, and by that point Noah walked in. He saw the three of them in a panic and noticed Lynn was nowhere to be seen. The door was already open as well, which basically confirmed his worst fear.

Noah: "WHICH WAY?"

Lawrence: "Oh Noah! She ran to the forest off to the left."

There were a couple times Lynn had come to the village to play with Noah as kids, though as they got older, Noah would just insist on visiting at her place. One of their favorite places to go was a tall ledge, not quite large enough to be dubbed a cliff, but it was dangerous. The view was stunning, but Noah feared that the ledge is what Lynn was heading for.

He didn't care to get a coat. Noah started to run as fast as he could to try and catch up to Lynn. It was dark outside and the rain wasn't helping his visibility, but he knew these woods better than anyone else. Avoiding the obstacles on the ground, Noah was making an efficient dash through the trees. She had a couple minute head start, but at the rate he was going, he just might make it in time. The rain started to devolve back into a light drizzle and the moon peaked through the clouds. Ahead of him he could see Lynn not too far, she was just about to clear the forest to get to the ledge. Luckily, there was still a decent enough distance between the clearing and ledge itself. Noah pushed even harder than before, and halfway between the clearing and ledge, Noah grabbed Lynn and fell to the ground with her, getting covered in mud.

Lynn: "LET GO!"

Noah: "LIKE HELL I WILL! WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING!"

Lynn: "ISN'T IT OBVIOUS! I CAN'T TAKE IT ANYMORE SO JUST LET GO!"

Noah: "NOT A CHANCE THAT I'LL LET GO. GIVE IT UP!"

Lynn: "I'M IN PAIN, DON'T YOU GET IT! WHAT DO YOU KNOW ABOUT HOW I'M FEELING!"

That struck a nerve with Noah.

Noah: "I KNOW EVERYTHING DAMN IT!"

Lynn got quiet as Noah's voice was even louder than before.

Noah: "I KNOW ALL ABOUT THE PAIN YOU'RE IN! I'VE LOST MY FAMILY AS WELL! I DON'T KNOW IF YOU NOTICED, BUT EDNA AND LAWRENCE AREN'T EXACTLY MY PARENTS! I LOST IT ALL TOO! THEY TOOK ME IN AND I DECIDED TO MOVE ON!"

Lynn started crying heavily.

Lynn: "I'm sorry, but let me go."

Noah knew he had probably gone a little too far. He turned Lynn around and embraced her tightly.

Noah: "You don't have to suffer alone. People care for you."

Lynn: "Everyone who cared for me is dead. Even if my mom is alive somewhere else, she obviously didn't care for me..."

Noah: "I care for you."

Lynn: "You're just saying-"

Noah: "Ellie cares for you. David cares for you. Edna, Lawrence, and everyone else in the village cares for you. So don't act like you're alone. I know how much it hurts right now. Nothing can be more painful. You'll have nightmares, you'll suffer, but I'll be there for you each step of the way."

Lynn: "You're lyin-"

Noah: "It isn't a lie. I care for you. I really do. You've been one of my only friends for all these years. All the times we were together, I cherished them deeply. I honestly did. Don't make me care for you and then try to pull something like this. You have value. Everyone would be devastated if you were gone."

Lynn had no response, she just continued to silently cry in Noah's arms.

Noah: "I promised your dad I would keep you safe. For my sake, and for his, keep living, please. Because of you, I decided. I'll take on the trial of ice. I'll earn magic and I'll take down the king. I don't care about my humanity if it means keeping you and everyone I care about safe. I realize that now. So don't die on me. Be my strength, be the thing that I value. I'll tear this world down from the bottom up so that you can life a peaceful life in it. So please, don't do this to yourself."

Lynn: "Fine... you win."

Lynn grabbed onto him as hard as she could and started crying loudly.

Noah: "Thank you. I know this isn't easy, but you can lean on me. Any time you need someone, come bother me, because I'll always be there for you. So let's go on home, get cleaned up, and have something to eat. How about it?"

Lynn: "Yeah, but... can we stay like this. Just for a little longer."

Noah brought her closer.

Noah: "Yeah, sure thing."

After a while in his embrace, Lynn was ready to go back. As they got back, Lynn apologized for the trouble she caused and was met with a hug from Ellie despite still having mud on her. Noah, Lynn, and now Ellie, got changed from their muddy clothes and the household had dinner. It was decided that Lynn would in fact stay with them rather than go off on her own. Eventually they would get her a bed of her own, but for now Ellie would still be with Noah at night. Things were looking up.

Later while everyone was sleeping, Noah had his nightmare as usual. When he woke up, he noticed Lynn was missing from bed. He got up, careful not to wake Ellie, and went outside onto the porch, where Lynn sat on the steps, illuminated by the moonlight.

Noah: "Can't sleep?"

Lynn: "Just a nightmare."

Noah: "Yeah, I get my fair share of those."

Lynn: "This is actually the first once I've had since the day of."

Noah: "Oh, so they don't happen each night? Must be nice."

Lynn: "What happened to making me happy?"

Noah: "I don't remember ever saying that I would stop messing with you."

Lynn: "I'm going to need you to redo that scene from earlier then, but add that line this time."

Noah: "I'll pass. It was a necessary omission from my speech."

Lynn: "Yeah right."

There was a brief pause with her words.

Lynn: "What do you plan to do now? You said you'd pass the trial of ice, but do you know what you're going to do once you pass?"

Noah: "Kick the king's ass for starters. A world where you and Ellie can live in freedom... that's the world I'm striving for."

Noah sat down next to Lynn. As he did, she put he head on his shoulder.

Noah: "Oh? You finally fall for me?"

Lynn: "As if. The way you screamed at me earlier lost you a ton of points on the attractive scale."

Noah: "Maybe you should have come up with a less cliché way of not listening to what I was saying then, or just listened in general."

Lynn punched Noah for that and they laughed. He hoped he could continue to have these nights forever. He healed her soul for now, but there was still a lot of work to do. Noah has found his resolve, but he still needs to pass the trial of ice before he can attempt to do anything more. His true journey begins now...