Bloodless

Next.?

"Hey, Cressida! I think I found something useful" Raze exclaimed.

At the sound of his words she was pulled out of her stupor. "what would that be?"

he looks at her and pulls his hands out from behind his back "This pack was hidden behind that shelf over there and there is some good stuff in here." he proceeded to take items out of the pack. There was a canteen, a compass, a pocket knife, some canned food, and at the very bottom a tobacco tin.

Dang, those are actually some useful items, she thought. "That's great but get rid of the Copenhagen, it's useless."

"That's what you think when really, " Raze opens the tin and pulls a rolled up piece of paper out, "it is the best part," he then begins to read what is written upon the sheet. "The knowledge that you seek and the destination you must reach become intertwined. To achieve what you wish, follow the help from this dish. Trust yourselves, watch where you turn, and share between one another; before you all get burned."

"Put that away, it wasn't meant for us. Someone made this pack and never came back. Whatever that's from it cannot be good." Cressida said breathlessly and her head spinning.

"Oh come on, 'The knowledge that you seek?' That is what I'm doing, and you seem to have a destination, even if you can't get there." Raze replied, talking very quickly. His mind was planning and making sense of a million things in nano-seconds.

Cressida shook her head. "this was someone else's, and they never made it back. Throw that away."

Raze stared at her with his jaw slightly dropping, "No way, what harm could it do? Besides, what is the worst thing that could happen from following what it says. It's like common sense, with a little extra."

She clenched her fist and said "whatever, do what you want, but I'm not going to be a part of that."

"So you're telling me finding this means nothing?"

"what is it supposed to mean? Someone wrote a creepy note and left it; doesn't mean we have to act on it," Cressida said as she rolled her eyes.

"You're so stuck in your ways, and bossy, have I mentioned that yet?" Raze said, his face getting redder.

"You make everything into something it isn't!" she said. In a mocking tone she added, "Wow, words on a page. Our destinies are forever linked and we must share and conquer. "

"I never said any of that. You must be a liar in addition to being bossy and stubborn." Raze huffed.

"Don't you dare call me a liar, Mr. I don't know why I am alone. I barely pushed you on that topic, but your time is up." Cressida crosses her arms, " Talk."

"I meant exactly what I said. " he said, talking slower.

" Care to expand upon it? actually, no, you better tell me more. You were right, I am bossy. Now please, continue" she stated.

"My mom and dad were-are government officials. They barely talked to me about work so I had no clue what was happening on the day. When law enforcers burst into my house on a balmy Sunday evening, I was flabbergasted.They didn't go willingly, my parents fought, and got themselves pretty banged up. Then they started coming for me too. I was terrified for moments as the enforcers handcuffed me. then I felt powerful like I could do anything, indestructible even. By the time, i was outside my parents were being driven away. as soon as my feet hit asphalt I aimed for the hardest piece and jumped to it. I was away from my captors and my wrists were free. I ran as far away and as fast as I could. When they were no longer in my vision, I started walking down the road that led me to you. "

Cressida was listening intently, her mouth stood slightly agape as her mind processed this. Next she said with an arc in her brows, "If all that really happened, then why are you so hopeful about every gosh dang thing?"

"I have hope because without it I may never see my parents again, I have hope so I can figure out what happened to them. Mostly, I have hope because you can't live without it. Being hopeless is almost as bad as giving up. " Raze said while intently looking at Cressida, he wanted to will her brain into understanding the need for hope and happiness even when nothing is going right.

she thought for a moment. If what this boy says is true then she had been going about everything all wrong. Perhaps he should be given the chance of succeeding in his own goals. even if it means she has to compromise and pretend to believe his coincidence. maybe letting hope fill her, well not even fill, maybe trickle; into her she could actually avenge er family's death. Perhaps if he asked for some of her background info she would give him a taste of her past life. of course he couldn't know that.

"Alright, thank you. We better camp here tonight though, we won't make anywhere else by total nightfall."

Raze just walked into the cleanest spot in the store, put the backpack down, and sat beside it. Cressida followed him after a moment's pause and then sat down across from him with her legs crossed. Her back was to a center shelf. Avoiding direct eye contact and not speaking, they simultaneously looked around their surroundings. They were lost in their own thoughts while awkwardly not talking.

Raze's eyes scanned the shelves he hadn't bothered to check. He knows he is supposed to be the positive one but he told her about him and she slightly ignored it. They came inside and still she hasn't talked about that moment of truth. While it felt good to let go and talk about it; it hurt to not acknowledge it on a bigger level. Deciding he couldn't leave that topic alone, he began to formulate something to say to her.

Cressida, on the other hand, was running her eyes over the ceiling tiles. This place looked as if could disintegrate at any moment, yet he still managed to find something useful, she thought. Her mom always taught her to believe in miracles, they saved many a baby before, as she always said. If they did what he words on the page said and it worked, that could be classified as a miracle. Resolving herself to the fact that the paper was worth a shot, she started to ask Raze about it.

They spoke at the same time. as Raze said "Cressida I think-" Cressida said, "Can I ask-" and then started laughing.

"sorry!" raze exclaimed.

"sorry sorry!" Cressida said also.

"well, that relieved some of the tension I was feeling," Raze said.

"same here," Cressida replied.

"Anyways, what did you want to say?"

"Well I've been thinking about what you said earlier ad maybe that paper was a great coincidence we should follow it all the same."