A CRESCENT MOON

Chapter 6

I felt stirring in the bed beside me, I opened my eyes to see Amethyst staring back at me.

"Good morning, angel."

I hate how the smallest of things can make me flustered so easily. Amethyst has this weird power of me.

"Good morning."

I managed to say without stumbling over words. Amethyst smiled at me which made my heart skip a beat. She is so beautiful. A thought popped into my mind, I wanted to kiss her. No, that would be weird right? Friends don't do that, I think.

"Can I ask you something personal, Micah?"

The question caught me off guard and I pushed all my racing thoughts aside.

"What do you want to know?"

"Yesterday you said you had nightmares. What are they about?"

"Oh, well you could say I went through a traumatic experience as a child."

"Do you want to tell me about it?"

I pondered for a few seconds whether I did want to talk about it or not. I already told Felix what happened or at least a sketch of what happened, and I trust Amethyst undeniably.

"I was only ten years old when I found my mother's lifeless body and there was blood everywhere. The images of that scene still haunt me to this day."

Amethyst gave me a kiss on my forehead.

"You're safe with me."

I hugged Amethyst tighter. Those words meant so much to me. Our sweet moment was interrupted by knocking on the door. Suddenly Shimoto came barging in the room.

"Amethyst, have you seen Micah she isn't in her..."

Shimoto and I make awkward eye contact and I can hear Amethyst giggling.

"Well, Micah, if you aren't too busy sneaking into other people's beds, would you like to join me outside for combat training?"

"I will join you outside in a minute!"

Shimoto laughed at my jumpy response and left the room again leaving me and Amethyst alone again. I quickly gave Amethyst a kiss on her cheek and ran towards my own room. Amethyst had me provided with new clothes and I looked through them to find something suitable to fight in. I grabbed a pair of trousers and a blouse. My actions of the last few minutes are finally getting processed in my brain. O my lord! I gave Amethyst a kiss on her cheek! I didn't even think about that, I just did it! That is definitely a friendly gesture as well, right? My lord, I hope I didn't cross any boundaries. No time to think about this now though I can't keep Shimoto waiting. When I entered the garden, I saw Shimoto carrying two wooden swords.

"Hey, nice of you to join me. I am going to teach you hand to hand combat, but also sword training."

He threw one of the wooden swords towards me and I just barely caught it. Shimoto spent the whole afternoon teaching me sword techniques and I think I'm getting the hang of them. We finish up training with a match. Shimoto goes for the offence, and I am able to keep my defence. Shimoto goes in for the hit, but I get out of the way just in time. Right then I saw an opening and went for it. I was about to hit Shimoto and win, but Shimoto was faster and hit the sword out of my hand. He held his sword up to me and I raised my hands in surrender.

"Not bad, Micah."

We sat down under the weeping willow to catch our breath.

"You know, you should ask Amethyst for a sword match once. She is more skilled with the swords than I am, and I think you can learn a lot from her."

"Maybe I will and then I will come back to challenge you and defeat you."

"I can't wait."

"Hey, can I ask you something?"

"Sure, what is it?"

"I already asked Felix his story, but what did my father do to you? If you are willing to share, of course."

"He did what he does best, killing families."

"How did it happen?"

"It's quite gruesome, are you sure you want to know?"

"Yes, it gives me more reason to fight him, more anger to release."

"Well then. Me and my family lived a quiet life, away from humans. Suddenly one day the humans showed up though and we weren't prepared for the fight they brought. My mother was the first to die by their hands. I was fighting twice as hard to protect me and my siblings as well. However, at some point I got knocked out and when I woke up again everyone was dead. I buried their bodies so their spirits could be at peace. I have a family of twelve, but I only buried ten people. I realised my big sister must still be alive and I set out to find her. Eventually I found out that Mason had killed her in the end as well."

"You lost so many people, I'm so sorry for you."

"It's alright, they are in a better place now."

"My father will pay for this."

"What did he do to you? If you don't mind me asking as well."

Shimoto was the third person I told my story to. He had the right to know honestly. I knew his story, so it was only fair that he knew mine. I noticed Amethyst looking through the window at us, she was in the kitchen presumably making dinner. I waved and smiled when she waved back.

"You really like her, don't you?"

The sudden question caught me off guard and I felt like I was caught doing something illegal.

"What- What do you mean?"

"I can see it in the way you look at her. You like her more than just a friend."

"Is it that obvious?"

"Maybe not for everyone, but I will let you in on something. I know that look you give her because I also look at Felix that way."

"I remember seeing you two at dinner looking at each other. Trying to catch each other's eyes."

"Do you think he likes me back?"

"I think you should confess to him and find out for yourself."

I smiled at him and together we laughed. We sat there talking until Amethyst called us in for dinner. Dinner was delicious again and it was so much fun talking to everyone. I never had friends before, but I imagine this is what it feels like to have them. When it was time for bed I got up and went to my own room. I wasn't quite ready to face Amethyst alone after my bold move and my conversation with Shimoto that made me realise there is a chance I like her as more than friends. I tried to sleep, but the nightmares wouldn't let me. I bolted awake for the fifth time before I gave in and made my way into Amethyst's room. I simply crawled in her bed into her arms and laid there.

"Nightmares?"

I nodded into Amethyst's chest, and she pulled me closer into her arms. I felt a kiss on my forehead and that was enough for me to drift peacefully off to sleep.