Night seemed to last forever. She couldn’t sleep that night. Too much had happened today. Orax’s teaching, Green Phoenix left her. At least he had a good cause to leave; unlike Croun, who was a coward. Her hands tensed as she thought about it. Mila did so much damage out of meaningless anger. Arin tightened her grip on the steel balcony railing. This was too much to handle.

A bird spirit cawed above her, flying high overhead. Barely noticeable in the night sky, she shifted her gaze to the patrol below.

She kept her hands on the cold rail, watching the Crimsons make their way across the long garden. Then to Arin’s surprise someone came walking down the hall. She prepared her speech of how she couldn’t sleep.

Mila joined her on the balcony. “Can’t sleep?”

Surprised by his arrival, she lost her words for a moment. “Yeah. Too much on my mind,” Arin replied. Mila placed a hand on her shoulder. She pulled away uneasy.

He noticed her anxiety and stepped away. He sighed tilting his head to the sky, “like what?”

“Stuff.”

“I see. There is so much to think about. Even more for a young child of—I forgot your age.”

“I’m thirteen now, sir.” Didn’t I tell you like . . . three times only a few hours ago.

“Thirteen . . . right I knew that, and to think that I did all of those things to someone so young . . .”

“It’s okay. . .” Arin paused. Perhaps she could persuade him to reveal the truth. “I lost a friend today . . . any advice?”

“What happened to your friend?”

“He has family to take care of. He made it seem like he would be gone for a while, maybe forever.”

“Oh Arin. You don’t deserve this pain. The pain of loss and everything I did to you. I’m so sorry, I know my words mean nothing to you.” She sighed, remaining quiet. “My advice is this. Don’t ever think that it will be forever, have faith. Try to make sure that when your friend returns, everything is good and you greet one another with open arms. Don’t be bitter about their departure . . . or the cause of it.”

“Yeah . . .”

The two were silent for a while. Arin turned her attention from the sky, to the courtyard, avoiding Mila. Even though she knew his motive, it saddened her. She should ask now, get it over with. See if she could trust him.

“Mila, may I ask you something?”

“Go on.”

“Why . . . do you hate me?”

For a moment, he was quiet. “There are many reasons as to why. For starters, I lost my best friend to the prophecy. He was afraid of being forced to die since so many believed he was a Child of Destiny. That isn’t the main reason though . . .” his voice trailed off, he continued to inaudibly mumble to himself.

“Sir, you’re mumbling.”

Mila faced her, corner of his lip twitching. “I’m sorry . . . I don’t think you would like to hear what I said anyways.”

“Oh c’mon, Mila!” she snapped, “I just want to understand why you hate me! If we’re destined to work together you have to trust me.”

“I just—”

“Tell me. I can handle it.”

“Well. My hatred towards the prophecy started when the draft began. So many children forced to pick up swords and be taught the madness of war. I was drafted, and I was angry. I knew destiny did not choose me, yet I had to fight in the event I was one.

“Second, my friend left because of you. He told me to make sure to never trust the prophecy. He knew my anger, and understood. However, he was even more upset to the point of him becoming an outlaw. Third . . .”

“Go on . . .”

“This happened in my later years, after I began to rise through the ranks. After I saw war with my own eyes. I learned something.”

“Yes?”

“You are the embodiment of death.” She raised her eyebrows in confusion. “Well, erm, you see, I saw a lot of—bad things. The whole reason we rebelled against the Others’ control over us was that a group of saviors were coming. This whole thing could have been avoided if you never came along. So many could have survived . . . Sure their treatment towards us was cruel, but we still survived. Then when some anonymous figure announced word of your arrival, we began fighting. All because of you . . .”

“But why do you hate me because of that? I don’t understand . . .”

“How long would we have to fight, how many would have to die, Arin? How many until you save us? We were so close to having it end with our surrender. Then you rekindled everyone’s hope. Now more must die just in your name.”

Realization struck. She was responsible for this. Head hanging low, she sighed. Another burden. So many people suffering, just for her. Loid’s father, all of those spies trapped, the wounded, the deceased families. All because of her.

“But,” Mila continued, “I believe you can make this end well. Please relax, Arin.”

Arin shook her head, “I—you’re right. How though? How can I fix this? Mila, I’m so young, I can’t end an entire war.”

“I don’t know. I truly wish I did. Allow me to be with you the entire way?”

“I don’t know . . .” Arin rubbed at her wet eyes, yawning. Was she going to cry right in front of Mila? “I miss my old home . . . back at the Reality Dimension.” Tears began to fall, she held back a sob, hoping Mila wouldn’t notice. Arin tried to move her attention away from Green Phoenix but couldn’t. They were never going to see each other again. “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.”

Mila faced her, offering a hug. “Come here, little one. Please talk to me?” Arin pressed her face into his chest, sobbing. Her legs gave out, Mila caught her. They both sat down, leaning against the metal bars. “It’s going to be okay, I promise. Breathe, Arin.”

“I don’t want him to leave me. It isn’t fair!” Mila remained quiet, allowing Arin to scream and cry. “He was my friend . . .”

“Friends sometimes come and go. I’m sure he’ll be back. Does he have a name?”

Arin rubbed her itchy eyes. “Green Phoenix is his name.”

“Oh, I recognize that name! He was involved with the Plaque, right?”

“Yes, sir.”

He pressed her head against his chest, rubbing her back. “I’m so sorry. Such an important figure in your life . . . I’m sure he will be returning soon.” She doubted him, whimpering to herself. “Hey, I have an idea! I’m sure this will help you a lot.”

“W—what?”

“He probably has something to do with the prophecy, so why not train super hard and maybe try to find the next chosen one before he returns! That would make him super happy, wouldn’t it?”

“Yeah . . . who next though?”

“I don’t know. There is no precise order, but I’ll be sure to keep my eyes peeled for anyone.”

“Well, um—” Arin interjected, “don’t act like the Crimsons that chased Croun away. I learned that in order to gain true partnership, it relies on real trust. My duty blinded me of that, I don’t want anyone in the same mindset.”

He was surprised that she knew that his secret friend was Croun. “I’ll keep that in mind.” Mila looked at the dawning horizon. “You should go to bed; shall I walk you back to your dorm?”

“No. I think I can make it.”

He sighed, “if you say so. Take care, Arin. Maybe we could talk tomorrow, maybe meet at the throne room?”

She nodded, “sure. Goodnight, sir.”

“Sleep well, Arin.”

Arin left the balcony, shuffling down the hallway. Her room was just a few doors down, but the trip felt eternal. Eyes beady, keeping them open involved a lot of effort she had no interest in committing.

She reached her dorm, using the key in her pocket to enter. When Arin stepped inside, Scarlet greeted her with a yawn. Arin asked why her friend was awake, her answer was simply to “study” for their test tomorrow.

Arin helped Scarlet study for a few minutes until her friend was finally satisfied with her knowledge. Arin crawled into bed, toy close to her chest before falling asleep as well.