Tears of a Dove

XV: North vs. South (Postlude)

The same day, at dusk

Arwel looked up at the sky, realizing the sun was minutes away from being fully set. He hadn't realized that he lost track of time. "It's getting rather late. Shall we rest?"

Miku contemplated the idea of stopping. She didn't want to be found in the forest by a wandering soldier again, but she also didn't want to travel in the dark. "Certainly. I'm getting tired, anyway."

Grabbing wood for a fire, Arwel sat down and tried to get a spark going. Miku quickly became tense and ran over to him with her hand in front of him. "W-Wait!" she stammered. "We can't be found!"

"Relax," Arwel smirked. "We're so high up, nobody can ever find us."

Miku looked at him with worry and sighed. She wrapped her arms around herself and began to shiver, as the temperature was dropping quickly. "Alright. I trust you."

Arwel nodded and ignited a flame in just a few tries. He stared at the flame while thoughts were brewing in his mind. "I just can't believe it. It feels like we've been apart for so long."

Miku sat down next to him. "Tell me about it. I thought I was about to become the leader of that godforsaken army."

"Really?" Arwel chuckled. "They respected you that much?"

"Yeah. Until I started to realize that I was being used as a weapon."

"A lot was expected out of me as well. Even the General himself looked up to me, and I never truly understood why. It just shows the lack of quality in Kazu's army."

That name haunted Miku every time she heard it. She knew that Arwel was right, though. "Sometimes I wonder where the darkness lies."

There was silence. "What?"

"Throughout that long year, I experienced a side of me that I've never seen before. It wasn't me." Miku sighed as she thought of how to carry on her story. "I gained strength that I never knew I had, but it wasn't out of valiance. It was out of this strong bloodlust that had grown so large inside of me. I killed many, and the more I killed, the happier I became. I even let a friend die. I thought I had gained his trust and honor, but in the end, he died because of my ignorance. He was the only person there that showed me any human-like traits; everyone else was just programmed to do what the higher ranks demanded them to do. I fell under that category. But this man was different. I guess the good guys don't always win." She stared at the floor and began silently crying. Arwel noticed and tried to comfort her by embracing her side.

"Things happen when you're under those circumstances. I never thought I had the knowledge and bravery that helped me stay alive until I was put under that pressure. I'm just glad we escaped it."

"I just wish I could have saved everybody," Miku sniffled as she wiped away her tears. "Why can't everybody just come to an agreement in this world? People are dying because of others' opinions. The sad truth is that this world will never come to an agreement on anything."

Arwel sighed. "I thought the same thing. I guess we just have to leave the past in the past. If we take our past into the future, we won't ever change."

"That's why I'm glad you're here," Miku stopped crying to lighten up the mood. "If you hadn't have found me, who knows what I could have done, or worse, who knows what could have happened to me?"

"I love you, Miku Shirata," Arwel said as he looked into Miku's eyes.

"I love you too, Arwel Ghongzhou," Miku replied as they shared their first kiss in a year, under the last glimpse of the setting sun.