The Time of the Hidden

The Inn of the Kings Crown

I ran over to Theo and knelt beside his body, tears clouding my vision. My hands and breath were shaking as I gingerly turned over his body. I heard his soft breathing and had relaxed a little. I then examined the body. There was a small scrape on the top of his forehead, and his face was smudged with dirt. I looked down at the wound on stomach, that was drenching his shirt with blood. The tears that were weld up my eyes began to fall. My insides ached at the sight of his pain. I need something to stop the bleeding. Unlatching Theo's satchel, I pulled out the cloak the inn keeper in Mendrick had given us. I ripped off a large piece of it, wrapped it around his waist.

The rain began to increase, and the world was dimming with the setting sun. We needed somewhere to spend the night. The inn we had visited that afternoon came to mind. We weren't far from the city.

As the rain strengthened he began to come through.

"What's going on?" He groaned drowsilly. His eyes opened, squinting up at me.

"Are you okay!?" I anxiously asked, wondering the seriousness of his condition.

"Well, besides everything hurting, I feel fine. Now, what happened?"

"You got hurt." I said frankly, gathering up everything, then draping his arm over my shoulders. "Now stand up, we need to get back to the city." He gently stood up with me. As we started walking, he began limping, and unbalanced.

"What's wrong with your leg?"

"Think it's just a sprained ankle." He hissed in pain as we walked. "Now, how did I get hurt?"

"We were attacked by grievers." I frowned. "Wait, what's the last thing you remember?"

"In the castle."

I stopped walking. My thoughts instantly went to the kiss. Then a question popped into my mind.

"What's the last thing you remember is doing?"

"Just exploring. Why, did something happen there?"

I blushed at his question. "Oh no, nothing of importance." I lied nervously. He raised an eyebrow.

"Why so nervous? You probably embarrassed yourself, and are just glad I conveniently lost my memory." He laughed then quickly regretted it.

It was my turn to laugh. "I'm not the one who embarrassed themselves." I silently cursed my self for igniting his curiosity.

"Wait, what do mean?"

"Oh, nothing."

"What happened in the castle?"

"Nothing."

"Skyler."

"It appears the universe wants you to forget."

"Really?"

I smiled. Then I frowned. I probably should tell him, but how to tell him? I'll just leave that as a problem for future me. It's been a long day, and is gonna get even longer.

We entered into the city, and I made sure our cloaks were covering anything that would attract attention. We made our way back to the Kings Crown Inn. We entered and the blazing fire felt good against my soaked clothes. Theo squinted at the light of the common room. I set Theo down in the first empty chair there was. He sagged down into it with a groan. He untied a small pouch from his belt.

"Here take this." He held out the pouch, and a blank look took his face.

"What is it?"

He sat there staring off at nothing, unresponsive.