Exile

Part 35

The group stopped when it got dark and set up tents. Alana felt horrible for just leaving without telling Vigor. He was always protective of her. He was the big brother she never had. Maybe she should have asked him if he wanted to join the group.

"Alana," said Italzi, pulling her out of her thoughts. "Will you go get some sticks for a fire?"

"Alright."

She walked around, picking up sticks, until she came across Dimitri, sharpening his knife on a rock. He looked horrible.

"Hey, you good?" she asked him.

"Uh, yeah, just tired," he sighed.

"How about you head back to camp? I'll do whatever chore Italzi gave you, deal?"

"Oh, okay. Thanks," he said and walked away.

Alana felt bad for Dimitri. He had just joined the group so he was new and now he has the pressure of choosing between his father and his new friends. Alana decided to try to be nice to Dimitri.

Also, what was up with him and Cindie? They seemed like they knew each other.

After she had collected a large number of sticks, Alana returned to the campsite. Cindie was cooking something, Atlas was reading a book, Immi was playing her flute, Italzi was inspecting the map, and Dimitri was sitting on a rock, looking out of place. Alana decided to sit down next to him.

"Hey Dimitri," she said, smiling.

"Hi."

"Do you have a nickname?" asked Alana. "Honestly, I can't think of one for Dimitri. That's a hard name to make a nickname for." Alana thought for a moment. "Dim? No, that's weird. Dimi, no, that's weirder. AH, WAIT, I GOT IT. TRI! BAHAHAHA."

Atlas heard this and broke out into laughter, "LIKE A TREE. DIMI-TREE."

Everyone started laughing, even Dimitri himself cracked a smile. Alana was proud of herself for making everyone laugh. She felt she needed to make the group smile even though the potential fate of the country depended on them. This was a good moment, and she wanted to cherish it.