• Without Forage

Noticing Spheris return back to the floor empty-handed, Thorin frowned. "Wait? What about yours?" he asked. 

Spheris only glanced at him, giving no reply. 

Thorin's frown stretched. "He didn't get any?" He glanced at the spot where the knapsacks had appeared and saw that there was nothing left. His expression turned to worried confusion. 

"Spheris didn't get supplies." he announced.

"Hah! Would you look at that!" Nero jeered. 

Cerene casted a glance at Spheris, lips pouted. "Are you sure?" she asked Thorin.

"Well, it certainly seems so. Everyone's holding one knapsack, right?"

Nero couldn't stop chuckling to himself. "Oh heavens, this is gold."

"Well, how do we know for certain that it's Spheris who didn't get a knapsack?" Cerene pointed out. "Maybe someone else took his."

"Cerene, come on." Nero said with an amused smile. "Who are you kidding?"

"What?"

Spheris, who was the subject of their conversation, didn't at all seemed interested in anything they were saying. He was sitting on the floor once again, concentrating in his shadow ball.

It didn't come as a surprise to him that he didn't receive any forage. He expected some, just like the others, but not getting any didn't surprise him. If there was anyone who wasn't going to get one, it was him. 

Perhaps all that revolution and talk about change from Lord Bellunder were all blither... lies. Or maybe the Duke had no say in the matter, and it was just the Meisters who refused to grant him forage. 

Whatever it was, Spheris wasn't surprised. 

His attention finally shifted to the other Avatars when he heard Thorin suggest that they should share their supplies with him.

"Share!?" Nero exclaimed humorously. "Let me get this straight. You're asking me to intentionally reduce my odds for survival so I can increase his?"

Thorin sighed. "You don't have to put it like that."

"Well, that's exactly what it is."

"Come on, Nero," Cerene pleaded. "He's part of the team now."

"No, no, no." The stubborn boy said. He pulled out a blanket from his knapsack. "You guys wanted me to accommodate him in the team, I have. But I'm not sharing things with him, no way. He's the one who stole Bastopher's Essence, he brought this on himself." 

Nero then lied down and covered himself with the blanket. "Let him reap the consequences of his actions. Who knows, maybe this is the only punishment the Meisters could give him, seeing that they're not allowed to harm him."

Spheris squeezed his brows. 'Perhaps he's right.'

"You don't even need that blanket! You told me that the cold doesn't affect you since you got your powers." Cerene accused.

Nero cast a defeated gaze at her. "Well, it does now!" He turned away from them, making himself comfortable in the blanket for sleep.

"I don't need your forages," Spheris said, putting off the shadow ball and lying on the ground. "I can handle the cold."

"What about food?" Thorin asked. "And water?"

"I've starved and thirsted for longer." He replied, using one hand as a pillow to cushion his head while the other rested on his chest as he closed his eyes.

"And what about Talon?" Cerene added.

Spheris's eyes tore open instantly, gazing onto the ceiling of the cave. 

"You might be able to stand the cold, and survive the hunger and thirst, but what about your bird?"

He shifted his eyes to her, saying nothing but still reluctantly agreeing that perhaps she was right.

Proven right, Cerene walked to her forage and returned with a blanket and a loaf of sugar bread. "Here," she said. 

Spheris gazed at her hand for a few seconds, his ego tearing at him, it infuriated him that he had to accept help from her—a Royal Gentlefolk.

But casting a glance at his loyal companion, he knew that the princess was more than right. With reticence, he sat up and gave Cerene another stern gaze, she returned with a look that urged him to just take it.

He took the sugar bread. "You can keep the blanket," he said, unable to imagine himself wrapped around a girl's blanket. 

"Suit yourself then." she replied, then returned back to her corner in the cave. 

Spheris then turned to his side where Talon was and signalled the raven to come eat. As it devoured the bread, he petted it gently on the head, still feeling relief that they were reunited. 

Then he realized that Thorin was watching. He looked up at him, a question on his face.

"You gave him the entire loaf?" Thorin said. 

"He eats a lot when he's hungry."

"Oh." He pushed his glasses to his eyes and then sighed. "I have more sugar bread. Cornballs as well if you're interested."

"I'm fine." Spheris stated, his expression stern. 

"Alright then," Thorin nodded. "Good night."

Spheris frowned, a feeling of aggravation swelling within him. He hated that he had to accept help from the Royals, but what stung him most was being pitied. He couldn't stand it. 

If Thorin had looked at him a second longer with that sorry expression in his eyes, he would have lost it. 

In fact, he preferred that they hated him with every bone in their body than pity him like he was some ignominious helpless Heathian.

He was not.

He glanced around the cave, noticing everyone had gone to sleep, covered with their blankets. 

Well, everyone except Akemi. She was sitting with her knees up, and undoubtedly had been watching Spheris the entire time. He gazed back at her and they shared this gaze for a reasonable amount of time. 

But then she straightened her legs on the floor and covered herself with her blanket, going off as well to sleep. 

Spheris sighed inwardly, looking away from her. 'She is... odd.' he thought. 

Odd in a way that was interesting—at least to him. Why was she so quiet? He'd never heard her speak more than a single word, and yet with those red eyes that she possessed, it seemed she had quite a lot in her mind to say. 

What did it matter? She wasn't his business. As for now... for now... oh.

Spheris yawned. Sleep was finally here.

For now, he wanted to sleep. He returned to the dry stony ground and dozed off almost instantly.

- ☯ -

Cold.

Spheris wondered why he hadn't felt it before. The cold was vehement, seeping into his bones and causing him to shiver and roll over consistently.

Then he heard his name. In a whisper. 

The person continued to call him softly, but Spheris struggled to wake up from his sleep. Even with the cold, his slumber was much too delectable.

He felt a hand on his shoulder, shaking him in an attempt to pull him from sleep. Then, finally he opened his eyes, seeing the image of Thorin's face in front of him.

Without his glasses, the boy's eyes seemed hollow and tiny, but Spheris could still make out the look of concern on his face.

"Here." Thorin placed the blanket over Spheris's body. "I wanted to let you know first so you wouldn't get mad when you wake up."

Spheris tried to oppose, but he was not quite awake yet.

"You're shivering quite a lot and I can increase my body heat with my powers, I don't need a blanket." Thorin patted him on the back and returned to his corner.

Spheris didn't have much to say, his eyes were closing on their own once again. Hence, he simply dozed off, feeling much warmer.

- ☯ -

Spheris woke up again that night. 

It felt like hours since he awoke the first time, but looking around the cave, it started to feel like bare minutes. Were nights longer in this realm?

Everyone was still just the way they were. Nero was snoring loudly, Cerene and Thorin were fast asleep, Akemi—

Akemi wasn't there. 

He got up to his feet, waking Talon up in the process. Where did she go? Her blanket was empty and there was a left over piece of cranberry cake. 

Spheris's tummy rumbled, but he gazed down at Talon and smiled. "Alright, have a go." 

While the bird devoured the cake, Spheris looked around the cave, his gazing stopped at Thorin. Something was strange.

That was when he realized that Thorin was sleeping with a blanket. This confused him because he remembered the boy sacrificing a blanket to him that same night. So he had another one? And the whole sacrificing thing was just some kind of act? 

Spheris smacked his lips and sighed. He stepped out of the cave into the night and Talon quickly followed after him. 

Somehow, the cold he had felt earlier that night was no longer and even the savory slumber was completely gone from his eyes.

There was something that he needed to do. 

He walked farther away from the cave and stopped at a rocky field with as much space as he required.

It was time for him to find out what he could he really do. Umbrage Manipulation, right? He looked up to the caliginous night sky. 

'Well...' he thought. 'Lots of umbrage here.'