Reclaim What's Ours | The Promised Neverland (Emma x Ray) |

Unwelcomed

"Like this?" Norman asked in a slow, quiet voice.

Norman held the bow in his hands. His arms were stretched out, finding the right balance to shoot the perfect arrow. Norman tried his best to keep his calm. He was determined to get this right. To aim at the hole carved into the tree.

"Norman, your breathing," Ray commented from behind, "Stabilize it."

Norman listened to Ray's words. He slowed his breathing, taking deep breaths in and out. He tried to clear his mind of all thoughts, no matter how hard that was... Because as much as he tried to clear his mind, it was like there was a fog there. A fog of people who just would never leave his mind.

It contained all the people he cared about. All the friends that they left behind at the hideout. It had Ray and Emma. His duties and responsibilities. A fog of all those things circled around in his mind, like a ghost haunting him until his bitter end. This was a part of him that he just couldn't get rid of.

He took a shot.

The arrow whizzed through the air.

"Ah, another miss," Emma said matter-of-factly. Norman sighed. Another failure. Emma and Ray watched as Norman went and retrieved the arrow, pulling it out of the wood of the tree.

Norman gave a laugh. "This is much harder than it looks!" Norman said. He looked closely at the arrow in his hand, crafted by his two best friends. A sharp arrow... crafted quite finely. It was all their years of experience at play. "How does someone even shoot an arrow? You two are so good at it that you make it look easy."

"Practice," Ray said. He made himself more comfortable on the grass, stirring the pot of soup as Emma watched him. "I just learned the techniques and trained myself."

"Liar," Emma said, poking Ray in the chest. "The first time you shot an arrow, it was right one the mark."

"So sue me for being a genius," Ray mocked, sticking his tongue out at Emma. Norman laughed as he walked, taking his seat next to them as they had their little dispute.

Practice.

Ray had a point. Unlike his friends, Norman wasn't as fit as they were. He could wear all the travel gear he wanted and hold a bow and gun for as long as he wanted, but that doesn't change the fact that he was not present for their journey. He missed out on a lot of things back in the day... back when he was stuck being experimented and tested on. They roamed around the demon world, taking care of their family without him.

So he had to train. Train his muscles to be as strong as theirs were. Train his mind to learn and adapt. He wanted to be just like them... Just like his friends...

"So," Ray said as he served soup bowls out for lunch, "You really are getting better. You're definitely better than you were a week ago."

"That's a relief," Norman replied, "It's a valuable skill to have here out in the wild. I underestimated how hard it was for Zazie, Barbara, Ciclo, and Vincent to protect me."

A week. They've been traveling for a week now, and ever since they left the hideout, Ray and Emma have been training Norman for life out in the wild. It was weird to see Norman traveling like this when they've always known him as a weak-bodied boy. But so far, he's been holding up okay. He was slowly but surely learning the ropes.

He came here on a mission. Sure, one was to help Emma and Ray rebuild the shelter, but the other was confessing to Emma herself. He had to know her feelings... and especially Ray's. whose actions are still confusing him.

They've been at it for a week, and ever since, Norman's been observing their every move. There hasn't been anything suspicious, as far as Norman could tell. Still, there was a certain unease he felt. Was it the way Ray looked at her? Has he always looked at her like that? Was it just the nature of their relationship nowadays?