Kingdoms (kaimaki fantasy AU)

Chapter 9: Early Morning

Kaito didn't know how he slept in the first place. Though his mind was plagued by the execution last night, his heavy, sleep deprived body forced him to sleep. Day one of doing nothing but walking really took more of a toll on him than he figured. All that he knew was that as his eyes were closed, he could still see the horrifying execution of Sayaka. How could anyone be so twisted as to lead her into a sense of false hope, making her fall into a bottomless pit of despair? No one should ever die like that. It just increased the danger even more to him. Kaito was still trapped in that repeating nightmare when he felt a foot nudge him in the back. It actually felt more like a soft kick.

"Wake up. Time to go."

Kaito's eyes blearily opened upon hearing Maki's voice. Looking out at the corner of his eye, he saw her form standing over him. She was wide awake, obviously used to waking up so early with her rucksack strapped tightly on her back. It was quite dim inside the tent, showing that it the sun may not have quite risen yet. Kaito nodded, making a hand gesture that he'll be up and out in a minute. He was worried that she was going to ignore the fact that he was waking up, forcefully drag him outside the tent. However, Maki silently stared at him before exiting the tent, letting him wake up on his own. Kaito was glad that she decided to do that. He got up, despite his body protesting it. It felt like he was made of metal that had rusted over, making it difficult for him to move. He was certain that he heard his back click a little as he stretched. He's not sure if he'll go camping again anytime soon.

Ignoring his body's protests, Kaito crawled out of the tent, satchel securely held on his shoulder. He had made sure that nothing was missing because as far as he knew, any of the bandits, Kokichi especially, could've snuck in and took something. Everything was still there, much to his relief. Kaito was right when he thought that the sun hadn't risen yet. In the east, the sky was slowly fading from dark blue to orangey yellow. There were still the last few stars in the sky. It was a little cold, but Kaito had a feeling that it will start to get warmer as he and Maki moved. No one else was awake yet as far as they could tell, so they can move out of the camp silently enough. Maki stood a little ways from the tent, patiently waiting for him. As soon as he got out, she started walking and Kaito quickly followed her. They were just on the edge of the camp when-

"You two weren't going to leave without saying goodbye, were you?"

Kaito and Maki turned around to see Kokichi and Gonta step out from behind a tree, with the smaller riding on the giant's shoulder again. Gonta had his hands clasped around something as Kokichi was carrying a sword sheathed in a scabbard in his hands.

"Sorry, but we can't stay much longer." Maki said, wishing to leave right at this moment. They can't be delayed any longer. If the guards had decided to search the woods, the camp could be attacked.

"Because you're running from the Queen?" Kokichi smirked as he hopped off of Gonta's shoulder. Kaito and Maki tensed up as he said that. "Oh come on! It's wasn't that hard to figure out." Kaito noticed Maki slowly reaching for her knife. He had a bad feeling about what Maki might do, which could potentially put them in more trouble. He quickly grabbed her wrist, stopping her actions.

"You're not going to rat us out, are you?" He asked, a warning tone in his voice.

"I was going to, but then I thought, nah! It's not worth my time. Besides, I'd probably be executed too." Kokichi grinned. Kaito and Maki were still unsure to trust what he had just said. However, he did have a point. He helped them out, which could be a death sentence. He wouldn't gain anything from snitching on them. "At least let Gonta say goodbye to Maki. He'd be very upset if he wasn't given the chance." Kaito shared a look with Maki. A couple of minutes surely wouldn't hurt too much. Maki looked over at Gonta before sighing a little. She was clearly outnumbered at the moment. Gonta smiled sadly as he approached her and Kaito stepped aside.