Message to the Moon - Book 1: The Forest

Chapter Five - Cave

"Hey. Hey kid. Wake up." I didn't respond to Ze-dric calling for me. "I can see your eyes open, kid."

"No you can't. I'm like ten feet away from you." I had set the fire in the middle of the cave and laid him on the other side. I thought it would give me time to bolt if he decided to try and capture me and move with those wounds. That's it. Yeah.

"I have better eyesight than you think." He said as I turned over on my side to look him over. I put a hand over my mouth to muffle my laugh. "What's so funny?"

"You just... Oh my sky child, I didn't realize how silly you look with all those bandages as I put them on." I continued to try and stifle my laughter. He didn't look pleased.

"Hah hah." It was monotone and most definitely sarcastic. But he sighed and sat up with what was definitely a very loud groan of pain. "But thanks." He added, not looking my way.

"You did save my life. I'm sure you would have done the same if our roles were reversed." I shrugged it off, pulling myself from my blankets. I quickly stored them away. "Though, you're like, super heavy." I joked before starting up the fire again.

"Or you're just weak." He was facing me now and out of the blankets I gave him. Wonder if he'd notice I gave him the least torn up ones. "These look like they went through a lot." He asked, and handed them my way, avoiding the fire.

"They wouldn't be if we didn't jump off a damn cliff." I retorted, grabbing the blankets quickly and storing them with the others. "We'd probably both be dead if not for them. Don't be so rude to them."

"They're blankets..." I looked up and squinted at him.

"Everything has feelings if you care about them enough." I went back to the flames, materializing a whole camping cooking set there." I didn't move to properly set it up until the light faded.

"I don't... Think that's how that works." He was watching me closely now, shuffling closer. I'd think he was genuinely curious if it wasn't for the borderline scowl ever present on his face.

"Says you." I shrugged, pulling out a few eggs that I need to use before they go bad.

Crack. Sizzle. Scrambling.

"How do you do that?" Ze-dric asked, leaning closer.

"Cook?" I joked, fully aware of what he meant. "You just heat thing up and-"

"No, the poof thing."

"... Poof thing?" Snort. "You mean my magic?"

"Yes, that." This guys kind of a goof if I look past his scary presence.

"Well, for one, I call it the bloop thing. Because it looks like the items just bloop right in. Bloop bloop."

"It looks like a poof to me." I laughed at him.

"I've been doing this my whole life. I think I can decide that it looks more like a bloop."

"Maybe it just... Used to look like a bloop and you were so used to it looking like that you never noticed it change into a poof."

"I-" Oh no. "How could you say that? Now I'll have to go through an entire identity crisis about bloops and poofs. This is a mess. A tragedy. How dare you, Ze-dric."

He laughed. A real, genuine laugh. Neat. "You're weird."

"You're weird." I waved a finger in his face.

"And you forgot about the eggs."

"Crap!" He was right. They were burning already and I had to act fast. Fumbling with untentals and the eggs, I eventually got them off the heat and into small bowls. "There. Phew. Here, enjoy half burnt eggs."