The Sidekick

Chapter 15

The others were still glaring at us.

I didn't blame them. We spent the night in the woods and eventually found our way back in the morning. They were freaking out. They thought they had lost us.

Now, all eyes were on us, probing. Even Dorothy the lizard looked pissed.

They just let it slide, though, because today was the last day. Today was the day we would find the Pellucid. There would be time for questioning later.

We'd started out on foot towards the Lair, leaving our things at the clearing. I was trying extremely hard to ignore the hammering of my heart in my fingers when I felt my arm being pulled back.

'Listen,' Neil whispered.

'Do I have a choice?'

'No. Shut up and listen. This is important. It's also a secret.'

'Glad to know you trust me again.'

'Nys, I never untrusted you.'

'a) That's not a word. b) Yes you did.'

'When did I ever?' Neil looked apalled. But instead of avoiding the question, I decided to confront it.

'You never told me about you and her. That night, before Rosalind? I heard it all. You could've atleast let me know. I can keep secrets.'

'Oh.' He shifted uneasily. 'So you know about my misery.'

'Yes I- Hold up. Your misery?'

He scoffed. 'What, you thought I'd be happy she rejected me?'

'Wait.' I was officially confused. 'She what?'

'Looks like you didn't listen till the end, then.' He pursed his lips before continuing. 'Luna rejected me. Said I took so long that she got over me.'

'That's not right, though, she-'

'I know, Nys. I didn't want to tell you because it was such a big shock to me. I guess... I guess that wasn't fair to you. I'm sorry.'

'No, I- it's okay. Are you guys on good terms, though?'

'Yeah,' he smiled dolefully. 'We made up yesterday.'

So that's what yesterday was about. This was all too much for me to process.

'It's okay, though,' he added quickly. 'Maybe it's better we stay as friends.'

I frowned. This was an unexpected plot twist.

'We're close,' Luna called out from in front.

'What was the important thing you wanted to talk to me about?' I asked Neil, walking faster so we could catch up to the rest of the group.

'Right, that. I just wanted to say, don't put too much trust in-'

'And we're here.'

¬-¬-¬-¬-¬-¬-¬-¬-¬-¬

'Shouldn't we... go in?' I ventured.

The five of us (and Dorothy, because Ian insists) had been standing outside the gargantuan tunnel, staring at it for atleast ten minutes.

'I don't want to,' Luna said, her voice filled with fear. Scythe gripped my hand to steady himself. Out of everyone, Neil looked the most prepared. It was just as well, seeing as he would have to do most of the work.

We had discussed the gameplan a million times. While Scythe distracted the Behemoth, Luna would read its mind and find out its interests, and what made it sleep. Neil would induce sleep into the monster's mind, and Scythe, who would be the closes to the Behemoth, would reach into its heart. Ian would then teleport us all out of the Lair. My job, obviously, was to protect everyone from any sort of harm.

'I'll protect you guys,' I said, a tinge of boldness in my tone. 'Let's go.'

I activated a weak barrier to save energy, and in we went, single file.

'Hey Sunshine,' Scythe said, ruffling my hair as we went in. 'Nothing that will happen in here is going to be your fault. Know that.'

'Thanks,' I mumbled. 'You too.'

We stumbled on in the soundless darkness of the tunnel for a few minutes, holding our breath and trying to make as little noise as possible. I felt like a microscopic insect. If it weren't for Scythe's hand in mine, I would have crumpled to the ground then and there and refused to move.

Finally, I saw a minuscule shaft of light filtering through. Apparently, the tunnel opened into a cave. I strengthened my shield. Behind me, Scythe took a deep breath before morphing into a dove. He rubbed his beak against my hair.

'Good luck,' I whispered.

We stepped into the cave.