ONE POINT FIVE (1.5 in the Amnesia Archives)

Chapter 6

Sarphi's POV

"I can't believe he's got a sword," I whispered to Prin as we spied on Aknon and Mesh whilst they talked to Cade and Niko. "It's a sword which is way too cool for him too." I knew that I should keep my voice down, but I couldn't refrain from expressing my awe and jealousy which came from the fact that my brother was being presented with and given one of the most beautiful pieces of weaponry I'd ever seen.

"Yes, and he'll use it to slit our throats if we're caught spying," Prin replied, her pale hand resting on my shoulder. "We had the bakery for five minutes, and we already abandoned it." I detected some form of humour in her voice, alongside guilt.

"We haven't abandoned anything; we locked the door behind us." The excitement of owning a bakery had worn off the moment Aknon left, but I was sure it would be back at some point. The idea of owning a bakery hadn't sunk in yet, and I still believed that we were simple visitors here. But I knew that tonight, when we go upstairs in the bakery and rest on whatever furniture was there, it would all come crashing down.

"I still can't believe that we've not been seen." Prin moved closer to me, she was practically behind me, and I was far too aware of her body against my own.

My cheeks warmed slightly, and I shook my head. "He's distracted." I knew my brother well, and I knew that he would try his hardest not to think about Prin, Onyx, and I. He would try his very best to get out of this place, get as far away as he could, before thinking of what he left behind.

"I was talking about Niko and Cade." Prin chuckled, making me feel a little stupid.

"Oh, they know we're here." I shrugged my shoulders, narrowing my eyes at the two innkeepers.

Niko subtly turned his head towards us and winked, proving my point.

That was when Aknon began walking away, Mesh following slowly behind him. My brother's tail was limp and trailing against the ground, displaying his sadness. The sight of his back was heartbreaking again, just as it had been earlier when I pretended I wasn't looking.

Prin put her arm around my shoulders and stood with me, beginning to lead me back to the bakery. "Come on, we have a lot to do." Her tone was calm and reassuring, not at all dismissive of my feelings. She wasn't going to tell me everything would be okay or tell me to cheer up. That just didn't seem to be her style. She was someone who would move on, continue along the path, even if she's dragging something behind her. In this case, that something was me.

The people of the wandering village didn't make much attempt to talk to us or greet us on our way back to the bakery. They probably could sense our emotions and figured it would be better to leave us be. But when the bakery came into view, I felt hope once more. I paused in my steps and looked up at it with a small sigh. This would be something we have to work on, maybe for years. We'd be working and living here for the foreseeable future, up until Aknon returned with Acer and Senka.

I knew that they would come back. I had a gut feeling, and I knew that Dwi wouldn't simply let us die one by one. Then again, they let us live our lives without telling us their involvement in our lives and creation. I didn't know their intentions.

"We'll need a new sign," I said quietly as we entered the front door once more. The bakery looked like any other would. There were a couple of tables by the door, and there were shelves to hold the products we make. "Do we even know how to bake?"

Prin laughed. "I'm sure that we could learn. Or there might be some kind of secret knowledge we both haven't tapped into yet." She grinned at the idea. "We don't need to do anything impressive just yet. There are no expectations placed on us."