59 On The Path To Nova

Sora was walking next to me as we continued on our path for Nova. His sun-tanned arms were wrapped behind his head as he sung a tune to himself.

" I fell in love with a spirit beast,

her hair was long and her beauty a feast,

she stole my heart on a summers day,

I pray the rain will go away,

Rain, oh rain, please go away!"

I looked up at the clouds and noticed was overcast, there was a slight chill in the air as I glanced over at Sora.

He was in his own world so I decided not to bother him.

[ Sora is a strange kid.]

I thought about the time we have spent together. He had had a very sad life so far. No family, not money a drifter at such a young age. I have heard that people who suffer tend to have to mature a lot faster.

[Maybe that's what happened with him?]

Although much of the same has happened to me, in this new life I had always had people to support me from behind.

How can this kid be so happy?

[ Maybe I am just being nieve. ]

When I was younger the world felt like it will never stop turning, Each day would feel like it dragged on and each year felt like it would never finish. When I was younger every little thing that went wrong felt like the end of the world.

I would watch at a distance as fellow students would run off crying because they had their hearts broken. How children who were not invited to a party or had a fight with a friend would think that the universe had failed them.

The world kept spinning though and the ones I watched who had their heartbroken ended up with a new sweetheart, the ones who didn't go to one party made friends in another group.

I, however, never got to experience it.

In my old life, day after day I sat on the same bench with Anzai, telling the same old jokes until he had to go to soccer. I still carry my wounds from my childhood even now, locked inside my innermost places like scars etched upon my soul with a blunted blade.

Thinking about it further...

[ He is probably just trying to forget about everything ]

Just like Anzai would.

I remember when he took those punches for me when we first met. He had a brilliant smile, in hindsight, I wonder if he was just trying to be brave on my behalf.

Because I was a coward.

" Hey, Sora. I know I just met you and all but I am grateful that I did. I hope we can be friends and if you ever want to talk about your parents or stuff that you find hard… I can umm. Listen." I fumbled out a sentence as best as I could.

Sora looked as if he had just swallowed a fly.

" Hey Yuta, are you okay? Haha, that was really out of nowhere!" Sora said after a minute.

" I just wanted you to know, it wouldn't annoy me if you wanted to chat. I think I can be a pretty good listener if you need it." I replied seriously.

" Mm, He said problems are like weeds if you bury them they sprout! Best to pull them out by the root by talking about them!" Sora said as he put on a low tone.

" Sounds like your dad was a pretty cool guy," I replied as I walked next to Sora.

We spent a while swapping stories about what it was like growing up. I, of course, had to omit most of what had actually happened. I mushed both Earth and Tama kingdom together that was just honest enough not to give away my name in Tama or my position.

Sora seemed to be hiding things from me too but just by looking at Soras face it seemed like it was cathartic for the both of us.

We had been travelling for a while. Laughing and swapping stories when a scourge of bandits had appeared on the main road.

Kibbles had run off just as we had noticed a bunch of heads that had stared us down.

At the head of the rat pack a woman who was commanding a group of what could only be described as a despicable bunch.

" Lookie what we have here! Two little-lost sheep on in the wrong place at the wrong time. Hand over your purses and nobody gets hurt" Said a woman with a sword on her back.

[ Just my freaking luck ]

Scars covering their faces, mismatched clothes that had obviously been stolen and creases on their faces from hard nights of sleeping out in the wilderness.

" Hey boss, what do we do? They don't seem to be moving. Think they are scared?" one of the woman's lackeys said.

" You! Speak, why are you not listening!? Want to be left for dead? " Said the woman as she pointed her blade at Sora.

" Sorry lady, even if I wanted to hand over my goods, I have nothing to give you" Sora replied as he emptied the lint from his pocket.

" What about you boy?" She said pointing the blade at me.

" Sorry mam, no can do. I only have clothes and some stuff for travel." I played it cool and followed Sora's lead.

Fortunately, Kibbles had run off with my coin purse after he saw the bandits approaching us. Otherwise, this could have been really bad.

" You think I am dumb? Two people walking up to the border without some much as a cent on them… really unbelievable" The bandit replied as she spat on the ground.

" Really we don't have anything you can search my bag if you must" I replied as I looked over the group.

Rain started to fall from the sky as I took off my bag slowly and threw it down.

The head bandit pointed to my stuff before the gang of thieves tore through my travel gear like a mob of hyenas on a deer corpse.

Clothes, straps of leather and a pot where just some of the things that came pouring out as I watched.

" Ooh what a pretty charm! " said one of the male bandits who pretended to be royalty while he carried it around.

The head bandit raised her eyebrow slightly as she looked what the man was carried.

[ My mother's charm?! ]

" Give it back! you can have all of it... Just not that!" I shouted.

" Ooh what a feisty boy!" The ringleader said as she snatched the charm from her colleague.

She opened up the little red bag that had my initials sewn into the side and checked the inside content.

" Blonde hair? Are you some kind of pervert young man?" The bandit leader said as she pulled out a few strands.

" You can't have that, it came from my mother," I said coolly.

" Can't have? Do we look like a group of people you can order around? Hey, you hear that gang? We have a new leader!" The woman said sarcastically.

All of her lackey's belly laughed before they glared at Sora and I.

The bandit leader threw my bothers charm on the ground before she took a second look at us. The ground had become wet and the bandit's throw had covered my mother's charm in the mud.

" Beat them till they can't stand." The bandit leader said.

I looked at the charm that was getting increasingly wet and my face began to feel hot.

" Hey Yuta, wanna help me beat these jokers up?" I heard Sora say.

I looked over to see he had hit one of the charging bandits with a fist.

I nodded before I joined in the fray.

[ My mother's charm. You dare?! ]

I looked at the arrogant woman behind her guards angrily for a moment before I focused on the two guys ahead of me.

" These two are mine," I said as I looked at the weapons in their hand.

"This arrogant runt!" one of the bandits said ahead of me.

" That's the spirit!" Sora replied.

[ Kibbles you hid the bag yet? I need you back here. ]

" Comming!" Kibbles said inside my mind.