Book Four – Prologue – Part Two – Home Sweet Home

After returning from her memories, Momo noticed Servi’s whimpering had ceased. Softly inhaling and exhaling, the Human stared straight ahead with blank eyes.

“That’s good, Servy. Have you cried enough? If you need to continue, it’s a-okay with me.” Momo paused for ten seconds, waiting to see what action Servi took. If it was similar to the other time she cried, Servi wouldn't utter a single squeak. “Yeah, I figured you’d be quiet. That’s okay. Are you ready to go?” Momo lowered the hand around Servi’s back and stood up. Servi did the same, copying Momo’s motions exactly. Leaning down, Momo picked up her canteen, slotted it into her backpack, and slung that on her back. Doing so meant she had to let go of her best friend’s hand, but they were only unconnected for a quarter of a second at best. After sliding her arms through the straps, Momo physically reconnected with Servi while checking her black messenger bag and thin longsword.

Both items used to belong to Sumo, Momo’s grandfather. A powerful Warden adventurer in his own right, he had retired and looked after Momo when she was a little baby. He taught her what he could concerning stances and swordplay, but he was getting up there in age. His tired old body couldn’t move as well as he could in his prime, but the things he taught his granddaughter were life-long lessons. She’d be forever grateful for his teachings, and she exercised the knowledge whenever she could.

“Ah, Servy, I want you to hold on to this.” Momo searched her pockets with her free hand, pulling out a dupla. “You once told me you liked to flip coins,” Momo said while holding it out. Servi turned her head down and only stared at the object in her friend’s outstretched hand. “It’s just a regular coin, but it did belong to me. I want you to have it. Go on, take it.”

Servi did as she was told and grabbed it with a blank expression covering her face. Forming a fist around it, she had a tight grip around it.

“Good. Now, hold it close to your heart, okay? Can you keep it safe for me?” Momo asked. As the Singi expected, her friend didn’t reply to her question, but she did follow the instructions and tightly grasped it. “Okay! Now, we’re ready to head out! Let’s go, Servy!” Momo looked one last time at the Kobold farmers. With the awful sun beating down, she knew they had to be sweating hard. She mentally waved them goodbye and turned back around. Before she had even taken three steps, a mysterious force absorbed her backpack while leaving behind Momo’s black bag and sword. Instead of being alarmed or surprised, Momo only smiled, thanking the Goddess that watched them. “I appreciate that, Itarr. Thank you.”

More often than not, Itarr acted in such ways that eased Servi’s and Momo’s burdens. The Divine Being was responsible for quenching their thirst, cooking their food, and even storing unneeded items. It was the only way for her to make amends, somewhat, while Servi’s fractured mind was in the middle of repairing itself.

The hill the pair of friends had chosen to eat at was only a few short seconds away from the main road. Despite that, they had to snake around a tree or two, which functioned as natural cover. Momo didn’t think there was a reason to hide away from anyone, but she still valued privacy.

Servi closely followed behind the Singi leading her back to the road. Her red eyes had lost nearly all of the luster they once had. In a way, Servi was dead, and her face clearly reflected that during her bouts of calmness. Her nose never moved or twitched, and her mouth rarely ever opened except to scream and cry. But her heart was beating inside her chest. Momo explicitly felt that whenever she embraced Servi.

After about fifteen more minutes of walking, with nothing but bits of gravel and paved road under their feet, Momo excitedly spoke. “Hey, I can see the city walls in front of us. It’s still kinda far away, but we should get there in about an hour. Maybe two… I guess it depends on if there are a lot of people on the road. When everyone evacuated Arcton, I bet quite a lot came here. But then again, I don’t exactly see any camps or tents set up. Ah, we are far away, though, and I don’t have an Elf’s eyesight.” Momo’s pink tail bounced up and down as hers and Servi’s hand swung back and forth. Beads of sweat traveled down the Singi’s face, but a quick breeze took care of them, leaving her refreshed.

“Hey,” Momo said, breaking off into a new conversation.  “Have you ever tried to sing without thinking? I have. It’s a little bit hard, but it can be fun. Oh, and it’s weird how often I’m singing. Hehe! I guess it’s because I just feel so comfortable with you. Once you get better, we need to sing together. I think it’ll be fun, right? Ah, but should we sing our song or something else? I don’t really really know anything else. I bet Claire and Dineria know a few songs. I can’t speak it, but I bet it’ll be fun to sing in elvish. That might be something we can look forward to, right? But until then, I want to try my hand at randomly singing without thinking ahead. Wish me luck by gently squeezing my hand, okay?”

Momo smiled, waiting for the sensation in her hand that arrived a moment later. That was all the strength she needed to keep going, and so, the Singi sang her heart out. Her comforting voice erupted out, subjugating the eerie silence threatening to swallow her courage. Her pink tail bellowed to live, bouncing in a rhythm like it was following along.

With a one and two, we’re dancing for the blue.

Tilting our heads and walking in stride.

Hey, it’s okay if we don’t have a clue.

Because we’ll be fine as long as you’re by my side.

Dancing around, with the wind against our hair.

It’ll be like we’re at the fair.

We’ll get snacks, drinks, and delights.

I’ll protect you so we won’t have any frights.

That doesn’t really make sense.

Umm… I guess I can rhyme with fence?

I’ve gone totally off track with this song.

Hey, let’s go! Would you say we belong…

Umm….

After a total of three verses, Momo was defeated by her mind. She took the loss well, even laughing about it.

“Pfpff! Hahaha!!! Sorry, Servy, I kinda couldn’t think of anything else. Man, that’s a lot harder than I thought.” After giggling, Momo turned her pretty blue eyes towards Servi. The Singi stared, and that was all she did for three minutes. “Hey,” she said while smiling. “Did you know you have 126 eyelashes? Ah, sorry, that was kinda weird to say, right? I guess I have been staring at you a lot more, so I’m sorry. But it’s because I miss you… I told you to take your time, and I really mean that, but if staring, looking, or even holding your hand is going to help, then I’m going to do it. So! I hope you don’t mind it.” Momo smiled a second time but leaned in, resting her head on Servi’s shoulder while they continued to walk. Momo’s hair, which had considerably grown in length, covered her friend, dousing her in warmth.

It also helps that you’re a cute girl, Servy. I feel like I could stare at you for a hundred years and not get bored… Hmm… You are taller than me, and holding this pose is a bit uncomfortable…

With a sigh, Momo leaned away. She brushed any strands of hair that may have fallen. “Well, maybe resting my head was too much… I’m sorry… Now that I'm thinking about it, holding hands like this is much more fun.”

The Singi and Human pair walked hand in hand for another twenty minutes before encountering a set of guards. Clasped head to toe in iron armor, the two defenders of Canary were standing side by side. The smaller one on the right held a map in her hands while her partner, a man, marked off locations with a thin piece of charcoal.

Even as Momo made eye contact when the guards looked up at the approaching footsteps, she never once thought about letting go of Servi’s hand. The Singi stared them down, and they stared back with a piercing gaze. It was like two blue eyes faced off against four brown eyes, almost as if Momo was declaring or making a statement.

“Excuse me, ma’am?” the one on the left asked in a cautious voice. His partner rolled up the map and placed it in a small bag hanging off her hip.

Momo and Servi stopped walking and turned to them. Her pink cat ears twitched wildly as a freak gust of wind blew by.

“This may be an odd question, but are you two from Arcton?” asked the female guard. The subtly accusing tone of voice she used wasn’t masked in her brown eyes.

Momo answered while not averting her gaze. Her actions only increased the strange atmosphere, which bordered on accusation and violence.  “We aren’t from there, but we’re returning to Canary. Servy and I had to head there to complete our Rank Up quest. We were—”

“AAAAAHHHHH!!!” Servi suddenly screamed, covering her eyes while shaking something fierce. As if searching for a way out of whatever may have triggered her, Servi immediately sunk to the ground like a bag of bricks. Momo went down with her, crouching and nearly jumping on top of her. On accident, the front of Servi’s blouse became torn, showing off her incredibly soft stomach. Momo held the crying girl against her shirt, muffling her terrified wails while looking up at the two voyeurs. The Singi didn’t like how they were staring at her and her friend.

“You can put your swords away,” Momo said, staring at the glint of sharpened steel. “She’s not dangerous.”

“Not dangerous?!” replied the female guard with an edge in her voice.  She kept her blade out and turned to her partner. “Jeri! What are you doing?!”

“Sea, you have to read the atmosphere. We need information, correct?” Jeri said, altering his tone to be one of friendliness. “Bearing your blade when faced with a girl that is clearly frightened is not the way to complete our goal. Didn’t you learn that from—"

“This isn’t the time for a damn lecture!” Sea replied. Her armored head turned from Momo to Jeri, who coarsely sighed.

“Sea, it is always the time to learn. Now put your weapon away. Keep in mind that I outrank you. Do you wish to be punished for insubordination?” Jeri threatened his junior colleague. Sea finally nodded, though her expression didn’t match up with her action.

Once Jeri heard the soft clink of a sheathing blade, he whispered to Momo as if talking to a child. “Look, you gotta tell me what happened?” He held out both hands and kneeled, reaching Momo’s eye level. Servi’s wails simmered, becoming little more than a mournful whisper.

Momo thought for a solid second and debated on how to proceed. She couldn’t tell the truth, but she couldn’t lie, either. Above all else, however, Servi had to be protected, so Momo went ahead with that in mind. “Servy and I are members of Warden. We were supposed to go to Arcton’s Warden office to turn in our promotional quest. But… It wasn’t that easy or simple. We got caught up in something. Something bad… It scared me. But Servy… It affected her badly. That’s why she screamed and collapsed down. And taking your swords out didn’t help the situation at all.”

“For that, I apologize. See it from our perspective, however. We see two strangers, and one breaks down when approached. I wish we could give you two the time the rest after what must’ve been a harrowing experience, but I cannot. A few days ago, Canary unexpectedly welcomed a mass influx of people looking for safety and refuge. A large portion of them, when asked about the reason they evacuated Arcton, could not give an understandable statement. Those that could... They spoke of wonton destruction, a giant hole in the earth, and an organization called Mafia. Do you two have any information about that? If you do, then I would like for you to speak with our captain, Fisher Jin.”

Fisher?! Momo’s tail stiffed up and pointed to the sky, then it curled like a question mark. I can’t believe I didn’t think of him. Servy said he knew of her secret, so I can trust him, right? But then again, can I? If what Sakdu said was the truth... Fisher killed Sakdu’s family. That’s the whole reason he formed the Mafia… But I don’t think he’s the same man. He was nice to Servy and me... He even paid Dineria to treat Servy after she tried to kill him. I think… I think I need to tell him everything.

Jeri noticed Momo took longer than a few seconds to reply to his question, so he grasped the sides of his iron helmet and removed it. Underneath it was the unsheltered face of a man past his prime. Numerous wrinkles lined his caved cheeks, spreading over the bridge of his nose. His brown eyes hinted he meant no harm or foul, yet there was something hidden behind his smile. A tuff of aged, silver hair lightly draped his head, covering more than half his skull.

“Sea, take off your helmet,” Jeri ordered. He stood up and turned to face his partner.

Sea scowled, throwing her arms down but eventually relented. Like a toddler yanking a broken toy, she lifted her helmet with one hand, thrusting it in front of her. Like her partner, Sea also had a head filled with silver hair. It was somewhat lengthy, covering her left eye in the front and reaching the middle of her back. She had faint scars traveling down her right cheek at an angle, stopping at Sea’s bottom lip. Such a mark of combat befitted the rowdy woman, who couldn’t have been older than 24 or 25.

Truth be told, Momo had no idea how this woman hid all that hair under the helmet.

The Singi blankly gazed at the guards’ uncovered faces, then spoke to Jeri. “Alright. We’ll talk to Fisher. Is he at the headquarters?” Momo asked while standing up. Servi held on tightly, burying her head in the Singi’s chest as she also stood up.

“No. the captain told us that he was going out to check the city’s entrances since he was waiting for someone. He didn’t want to miss them. I wonder if you’re the two he’s looking for,” Jeri replied. He had turned around once more, looking at Canary in the distance.

“Maybe? I don’t really know, but we’ll go with you. Servy, do you think you can walk? Squeeze my hand if you can.” Momo turned from Jeri to Servi, who wordlessly applied some pressure to Momo’s hand. She softly smiled. “You’re doing really good, Servy. We’re almost home, okay?”

Sea, who watched from a short distance away, audibly groaned and rolled her eyes. Momo lightly scoffed, ignoring the woman with an obvious problem. Jeri only sighed and returned his helmet to his head. He told Sea to do the same, and the group went off towards Canary.

Momo lightly hummed while staring ahead into Sea’s back. She walked in front with Jeri, whose feet stomped in sync with his partner. A sudden breeze blew by, pushing Servi’s sleeves outward and showing off her upper arms. As the tumbling pink hair swooshed across Momo’s blue eyes, she examined her current situation.

I wonder why he didn’t ask to see our IDs? Did he think Servy wouldn’t be able to summon it while distressed? If so, then he’s really thoughtful. He’s much better than that other girl, Sea. I don’t know what her issue is, but she better cool it! Argh, Momo! You don’t need to waste energy on her. Just focus on making Servy feel safe. That’s all you gotta do. But why do I feel odd… Something feels weird…

For the next twenty minutes, Momo’s hand never once unhooked itself from Servi’s fingers. Sea did glance back a few times, side-eying and giving Momo’s funny looks, but the Singi didn’t back down at all and kept doing what she did.

Momo wanted to believe it would work out well with nothing happening to disrupt the peace. All she needed was to meet up with Fisher, tell him the truth, go to Warden, and get Servi in a nice bed. It was goals in line with her way of thinking, and after they had been accomplished, Momo could then think of what to do next.

Unfortunately, she had forgotten about one little-bitty problem: the church and its draconian rules about Human and Demi-Human relations.

It all happened when Servi and Momo were no less than five minutes away from entering Canary. Sea and Jeri stopped walking and turned around, much to the ire of the people traveling behind them.  It was rude to come to a sudden halt, especially when at the entrance of a bustling city.

“What’s wrong?” Momo asked. She felt the fur on her tail stick up.

“It’s about…this,” Jeri replied, pointing to Servi’s and Momo’s connected hand. It was then lovable Singi realized she couldn’t trust the man in front of him.

“What about it?!” Momo snapped.  She pulled Servi closer to her after she had started to whimper.

“The Church of the Heavens Above forbids public display of affections like holding hands between those who aren’t from the same race,” Sea said, joining the conversation. “You two gotta take care of that. And by take care of it, I mean keep your hands to yourselves.”

Momo scoffed. “Can’t you see she’s in pain? Servy needs me. We’re best friends! We’re supposed to be there for each other,” she protested. Her blue eyes caught the sight of a wagon pulling past in her peripheral vision. The Singi driver raised an angry fist for having to go around them, but Momo ignored him and his cargo.

Jeri spoke after raising a hand to Sea’s mouth. “Sorry, but I can’t. I’m a devout follower, and I must follow the tenants. I only let you two do…that... because we were…far away? Yes, because we were far away. Now, go ahead and remove your hand. Don’t make me do it.” Jeri glared hard enough to crack glass.

Momo’s anger blew past its breaking point. “It’s always like that with you churchgoers! You think you can decide who can and can’t hold hands?! Well guess what? I’m not taking my hand away! And you can’t force me, either! Just what God or Goddess expressly prevents us from doing this?!” Momo wanted an answer, and she demanded it.

“If you care to actually go to church, Singi, you’d find out if you read the scripture. Since you don’t, I don’t have to answer anything. Now, remove your hands, or I will. And if I have to do it, you two will spend some time in prison.” Jeri menacingly stomped forward. Momo reflexively took a step back after pushing Servi behind her.

“If you care to actually think, Human, it wouldn’t make much sense for the Gods to purposely want us to treat each other like this. They made us in their image, right? If so, then why did they ‘declare’ certain rules that breed hostility between the races?!  Ugh! I thought you were nice! You understood that Servy was going through a tough time… I thought I could trust you, but you turned out to be one of those crazy religious people!” Momo held her ground, for the most part, choosing to utter words in a tone of voice she had never spoken in. Her desire to protect and defend Servi allowed her to tap into a source of strength that was previously hidden. Everything she had done in the past few minutes went against her stature as a meek Singi, who embodied the phrase ‘scaredy-cat.’

Sea stomped down and put a hand on her blade, but she backed off when Jeri raised a hand. He narrowed his eyes like a snake and spoke with venom. “First, you can trust me. You should trust me. I want nothing more than for the two of you to come back to the city, talk with the captain, and go about your regular lives. Now? I can’t do that after hearing you slander our religion. How would you even know what the Gods and Goddesses desire? Care to tell me that? We—myself and Sea—follow a bible containing the words of the Divine Beings that slumber in the Heavens Above. What do you follow? What do you have to guide you through the days and nights? From my point of view, you, her, and all the other godless heathens are the crazy ones.”

Momo started to vocally lash back, but she stopped when her ears picked up a weak whimper. She looked back and saw Servi had frozen in place, holding a closed fist to her heart. Momo knew it was the same hand she placed that coin in, and Servi was definitely holding onto it. “I don’t have the time for this. Come on, Servy, let’s go see Fisher.” Momo squeezed her hand and went to walk around Sea and Jeri. “We’ve wasted enough time here…”

“You aren’t going anywhere!” Sea shouted. She jumped in front of Momo and blocked her path, much to the ire of the other travelers. She mirrored Momo’s movements, preventing the Singi from gaining even a single centimeter.

“Just stop it!” Momo shouted. “Let us pass, and we’ll tell Fisher what we know!” Her tail trembled with anger, furiously lashing to the left and right like a bolt of lightning.

“I don’t know why you’re getting mad at Sea. If you had just let go of her hand, none of this would’ve happened,” Jeri replied.

Momo growled, but her rage dissipated once she felt wind circulate around the hand that was connected to her best friend. There was only one person who could have used Pixie Gust without chanting. “I know, Itarr,” she said. “I’ll protect Servy. I’ll always protect her. You can trust me, okay? Let’s just get to Canary, and we can talk to Fisher.”

“Eh?” Jeri looked around and saw nothing, but Itarr understood and canceled Pixie Gust.

“Talking to an imaginary friend isn’t going to save you,” Sea said. “Damnit, why is this so hard for you to understand? Just respect our church’s rules and let go of her hand! Why do you pathetic Demi-Humans find it so hard to listen to authority?” Sea continued, insulting Momo and every other Demi-Human that were walking by. They snarled and made off-handed comments, but Sea gave them the finger and threatened to arrest them if they did anything else.

Momo took a deep breath and nearly went off the deep end. She hated how the church and religion were the common explanation as to why things that should’ve been allowed were forbidden. Her unpleasantness had been building up, and it needed an outlet. “I’m going to say it... I’m just going to say it… Damn the church!!! Just... Just… Argh!!!, I wish it didn’t exist! It doesn’t preach about kindness or happiness! If it did, then you’d allow me to hold Servy’s hand because she’s in a delicate state of mind! And because she needs me!!! To me, that just screams you don’t really understand the Gods or Goddesses!”

“Quiet! You think you know them? A godless heathen like you who dare to break the rules?! Why would one reveal themselves to a non-believer?!” Sea shouted. Her anger boiled so hotly she removed her helmet and tossed it down. It bounced off a pointy rock, rolling about two meters off to the right.

“I do know one of them! Her name’s Itarr!” Momo yelled, revealing something that probably should’ve been hidden, though it wasn’t like anyone would ever believe that she knew a Goddess. Hot blood coursed through her veins, warming her face as her cheeks slightly flushed red. Her angry pink tail whipped like a firecracker, visually displaying its unhappiness. Momo internally cringed when Servi kept squeezing and releasing her hand as a way to cope with the rising stress. “Out of all of the Gods and Goddesses, she’s the only one I have faith in! She doesn’t have any stupid rules like preventing a Demi-Human from helping her Human best friend. If a Demi-Human and a Human wanted to get married, even if they were both guys, she’d allow it!!! She only cares about our happiness!!! She doesn’t want to make us sad by preventing us from doing things we like!!! And guess what?! I like helping my friends! If I listened to your big, dumb, stupid scam of a church, then I never would’ve been friends with my best frieeeeeeeenddddd!!!!”

Sweat poured down her face, and Momo’s lungs were gasping for oxygen, but she couldn’t stop to breathe. The two guards in front of her scrunched their faces like someone had killed their parents. Sea bared her pearly whites, actually chipping two of her lower teeth from the rage coursing through her veins. Jeri was much of the same, but he shook something fierce. His helmet clanged against the side of his face, and when he took it off, his once-gentle face had twisted into one of a stranger.

Momo had thought he was a man she could trust. After all, Jeri was the one who spoke calmly to her and Servi as if they were frightened children. He understood that a little bit of kindness was all it took to close a gap created from fear. Since he was like that, how could his mind be so twisted that he’d purposely force a Human away from her emotional-support Singi?

Perhaps if Momo had been the old her—the one who scurried away when faced with something so far out of her imagination—she would have repeated the same mistake. But she wasn’t the old her. She had a week of mental torture to break down her inner-essence like a sculptor would a block of ice. Upon reuniting with Servi, however, any and all holes in her consciousness had been replaced—forged stronger by unbreakable faith and friendship to the girl who risked it all to save her.

Out of the corner of her eyes, she saw a pair of Elves rush to the city. The strikingly identifiable silver dog-tags tied around their necks clacked against each other. Were they going to get help? It did almost seem like a fight could break out at any point. But if a brawl did break out, there wasn’t a single thing to worry about.

“Jeri! Now, do you think it was the right-fucking-idea to go with the goddamn atmosphere?! This little cat doesn’t deserve any of our kindness!!!” Sea placed a hand on her sword and went to step forward. Momo continued to stand in front of Servi and slowly backed up, using her body to shield her.

“I don’t deserve your kindness?! What kindness?! I don’t see any!! Servy and I are the victims! Just let us talk to Fisher! We have to see him! And stop blocking my way when I’m trying to go around you!” Momo’s tail wrapped around her waist. Her ears angrily twitched.

“Bullshit!” Jeri shouted, drawing his sword. His brown eyes once emitted kindness, but that was a front for the darkness within his soul. “If you truly had info and wanted to help us, you would’ve let go of her goddamn hand! You wouldn’t have fucking disrespected our religion when we were only trying to help you!!”

“Yeah?! Well, maybe if your religion wasn’t terrible, most Demi-Humans wouldn’t have a problem with it!” Momo kept attacking a clear weak point with her piercing words. Maybe she was too effective at riling them up? To be fair for the Singi, it wasn’t like she didn’t speak her true feelings. She certainly had a problem with the church and how they acted. “You’re putting your own faith in front of trying to help people who need it all because a stupid book or scripture thingy told you to! And look! You’re making a whole scene! Even if you bring us in, you can’t make this many people lie! Your stupid false charges against us won’t ever stick because we haven’t done anything wrong!!!” Momo’s voice wasn’t quite at a yell, but it was certainly loud enough to spook the horses and oxen that pulled the passing wagons.

“Sea, kill her! Kill that fucking cat. I got that black-haired brat!  AND EVERYONE AROUND, DON’T MOVE A FUCKING MUSCLE!!! DON’T INTERFERE WITH OFFICIAL BUSINESS!!!!” Jeri commanded. He pointed his sword at the pair of best friends and started to approach them. He started chanting, flame appearing in his free hand, and in the slight instant Momo momentarily glanced at the ball of fire, he went for the kill with a speedy thrust aimed at her heart.

That was all Itarr had to see before she acted with divine intervention, stopping his fatal attack mere nanoseconds later.

“Thanks, Itarr…” Momo whispered, very well aware of what was happening. She stared into the startled eyes of a man that was about to kill her, only he was forcibly held in place by a few thousand stacks of Telekinesis. It was the same with his partner, who was in the midst of calling upon a skill. With their faces as still as concrete, it was impossible to know if fear replaced the ferocious anger flowing through their veins. With a bit more pressure, even their beating hearts could come to a forceful stop.

“I know that getting into a shouting match with them was dumb. And if you weren’t here, I’d be dead right now... Really, the smartest thing was to just walk away right when they started to get angry. Itarr, I hope you’ll forgive me for putting Servy in danger. I mean, I know she isn’t in harm's way because you’re watching over us, but still... And Servy, I’m sorry. That must’ve been scary, but you don’t have to worry about that... Here, let’s go,” said Momo. Her voice was barely above a mouse’s squeak. She walked around the paralyzed soldiers, intending on leaving them behind, but someone had a different idea.

A Goddess was playing puppeteer, thinking about what to do with her two enemies. They did try to kill Momo, so maybe Itarr had the right to end their prejudiced lives. It would, technically, be in self-defense. The two things that stopped her were thinking about what Servi would have done and how Momo would react to their deaths. Or maybe handing them off to Fisher was the best idea. Perhaps he could talk to these two. If that didn’t work, mayhaps he would throw them in prison? Regardless, she was trying to become that better person, one that Servi would have been proud to love.

And that meant murder couldn't be the prevalent answer to all of their problems. Not anymore, it couldn't.

Then again, if the positions had been switched, it was likely Servi would have cleaved the two in bloody half the moment they made a threatening motion towards Momo.

It did look odd, though. It made no sense why a pair of guards would trail behind the two people they were shouting at and later attempted to kill. And nearly everyone else who witnessed this irrational act of attempted murder just stared with nosey eyes, though a few continued to mind their own business since it didn’t concern them.

Momo was disappointed in herself for letting it all spiral out of control. With the threat of tears surrounding her eyes, she started talking as they approached the city gates. “Your safety is my top priority… Does it even matter if people don’t like that we’re holding hands? When it comes to that, the only ones that matter are you, me, and Itarr... I guess I was mad that they were trashing our friendship, and I know I should’ve ignored it. If I had just let go of your hand... even if it was only going to be until we saw Fisher, then we probably would’ve been back at Warden right now.

“But Servy, I had a vow... I vowed to protect you, to hold your hand while you recover... but… What good are vows and promises if I break them so soon after they’re made? They’re more useless than bricks made out of air…and that’s not the girl I want to be. If you were in my position, you wouldn’t let go of my hand for anything. Even if there were like a hundred dragons telling you to just let go of me... You wouldn’t even dream of it... Servy, I need to have that resolve... I will have that resolve...”