"Keep on walking and do not look behind," said Blanc to Kael and Lune, who, with each step, took a look behind as if they could run back home.
"But Blanc…" said Kael.
"Kael, stop," Blanc replied as they kept on walking towards the Golden Forest. "You heard Father. We go into the woods and wait for their victory. When they achieve it, they will come for us. Until then, we wait."
"Okay…" Kael muttered.
"How are you?" asked Celine. "How is your shoulder holding?"
"Better, I think. A few more days and I will be as good as new." Blanc answered.
"That's good. And I'm sorry for agreeing so fast with your father's idea," Celine added.
"I can understand why you did. Do not worry. It makes sense. It hurts, but it makes sense," Blanc replied.
"What do you mean it hurts?" Lune asked, trying to get her mind off the exhaustion and the mansion that got smaller and smaller as they walked and left it behind.
"It hurts because I did not wish to leave, Little Flower, but that does not mean it is not the right choice. They want to take their mind off us. To know that we are safe." Blanc answered.
"We were getting in their way?" Kael wondered.
"Nonsense, Kael," began Celine, but she did not get to finish her words as Blanc answered for her.
"Stop, Celine, my dear. You cannot fool them," Blanc said to her, before addressing Kael and Lune, "and to answer your question, Kael, yes. Yes, we were getting in their way. Like it or not, that is the truth. You two are too small to fight. I am wounded, and Celine is not only my fiancée, but also the Daughter of Blood Maroux. She is to be kept safe."
"But I do not need safety," replied Celine.
"I know you don't, you are stronger than me, in both mind and body," Blanc replied coldly. "But that's only half the truth. You're more valuable alive than dead in the Plains of Duldera."
He paused, but as the silence deepened between the four of them, panic crept into his voice.
"But do not misunderstand me, my love. That's only part of it. The other part is this: we are together now, and I don't want to lose you. I won't have you fighting my battles when I can't even stand beside you."
He glanced away briefly, then added, more softly, "And the Mothers were right… You might be pregnant. We won't know for sure for a few more weeks, but we can't take that kind of risk. Not with your health. Not with our future. My heart breaks every time I think about what we have all just left behind. But the truth is, we are safer this way. And the rest of the Blood will be able to properly fight without worrying about our well-being."
The silence among them eased slightly as Blanc spoke. His explanation, though imperfect, seemed to satisfy the others.
Still, none of them spoke for a while longer as they moved quietly beneath the night sky towards the forest, shrouded in darkness.
The entrance to the Golden Forest, which was now in front of them, now cloaked in night, had lost the enchanting beauty it wore during the day.
Some of that was due to the aftermath of the earlier battle, for Blanc and Celine, the weight of blood and fire still lingered in the air.
But for Kael and Lune, much of it was simply the darkness itself. Without a torch to guide their way, even their hands vanished into the darkness.
Yet Blanc walked forward with confidence. He knew these woods. And, in a strange way, he welcomed the night. It spared the twins from the full sight of what lay in this part of the forest. Scorched earth, blood-smeared grass, and the scattered remnants of the battle. Armor fragments, broken weapons, and things best left unrecognized.
But the wounds of battle did not linger. Their path led them away from it all, deeper into the forest. Toward the place where Blanc had once fought and killed the lynx.
That, he believed, was the direction towards the Omu Mountain. The hidden sanctuary spoken of by his father. Or so he hoped.
A part of him regretted not asking Elion for clearer directions. The thought of turning back flickered in his mind for a moment, but it vanished just as quickly.
They had made it into the forest unseen. To retrace their steps now would be madness.
"Well then, we take a break here for a few moments," began Blanc, putting a knot through the rope at his waist, before giving it to Celine, "this is a rope, dear, loop it around your waist as we walk, then give it to Kael and Lune. You two know how to knot it correctly, right? Or should I help you?
"I know how," confirmed Kael.
"I do not," muttered Lune, "Could you help me?"
"Sure thing," replied Celine.
"Not you. Blanc," said Lune the next moment.
"What's wrong, Lune?" Blanc asked. "Why would you not allow Celine to do it for you? You called her sister a few days ago, and now you act like this towards her? What happened?"
"Nothing…" Lune muttered.
Blanc sighed, "Then?"
"Fine, fine. Could you help me, Celine?" asked Lune, giving up.
"Gladly," giggled Celine, not bothered by Lune's rude reactions.
"While you do that, make sure to drink water now. We will not take another break for an hour or so. We need to make enough distance in the dark before making some light. The sun is far from guiding us, so we walk in the dark," Blanc explained, "and listen closely to our surroundings. Talk only if necessary. Understood?"
"Yes!" They all replied in their different ways.
Once they were done, and the rope was tightly tied between them all, making sure they would not lose their way from one another, they began walking as Blanc led.
They did not know towards what, or where, but they all trusted him.
The feelings of guilt, abandonment, or grief were all too present between them, each with their own sorrows and thoughts, but they kept on walking.
Their family was now behind, and their survival, forward into the darkness.