《Your POV》

After a very long, exhausting trip, you and Scaramouche finally arrive at the first location. It was in a small village north of the inn you had stayed at prior to that, and you had to say, it was quite beautiful.

You were always jealous of small town life. You lived in a small farm town once with your family, the current situation made you miss home even more.

Scaramouche sighs, stretching for a moment. His sickness had gotten a lot better thanks to the medicine, but he still wasn't fully healed, so you made sure he took it easy.

He looks around, "Small place, huh?"

You agree, "Yeah, I find it cozy!"

"Would you live somewhere like this if given the chance?" Scaramouche asked, sounding genuine. His behavior seemed a bit different after you gave him that whole pep talk about how he was a good person. Maybe you stepped a line?

"Absolutely," you replied, taking in the fresh air.

A woman noticed the two outsiders, and quickly walked up to the two of you, "Oh my! What a cute couple~ we don't usually get many visitors!"

"Couple..?" You look at her in confusion, then to Scaramouche who seemed the same as always.

Scaramouche smiled at her, as if ignoring what she said, "Hello. We're actually just here to gather information on the recent meteorite strike. If I'm correct, one fell in this location, yes?"

He presented himself so well despite being put in that awkward situation. Yet another thing you admired about him. Man, did this guy have any flaws?

"Yes indeed," the woman answered. She had dark circles under her eyes, which meant she was sleep deprived. You felt a bit bad. Perhaps she had a loved one who was currently in the deep sleep the meteorites seemed to be causing.

You walked up to her, taking her hands, "I'm really sorry. You seem to be having a hard time.."

The woman gazed at you, a sad look in her eye, "Yes.. I'm surprised you could tell." she looked towards a tent that was nearby, "My son is one of the people asleep. He just won't wake up.."

She began to cry as you embraced her into a warm hug, "I'm truly sorry. My friend and I are going to try our best to get to the bottom of this, okay?"

"Thank you dear.. you're too kind," she pulled herself together then looked over at Scaramouche, "You better take care of this one. People as nice as them don't come around often." She smiles.

You look over to Scaramouche who seems confused on what to say to that. Which was understandable. After all, you weren't an actual couple, just travel partners.

The woman then explains the situation and directs you two towards the tent and the meteorite.

Scaramouche broke his silence, "You investigate the sleeping people, see if any of them wake up. I'll go look at the meteorite."

You happily agree, after all, you seemed way better with people than he was. It made you wonder how many friends he actually had? His personality was a little strange, with his constant changes in mood and all.

《Scaramouche's POV》

As Scaramouche made his way over to the meteorite, he thought about what the woman said.

"How dare she," he thought. But did they really appear like a couple? It could be bad for his reputation if any of his own saw them together. He had an appearance to uphold, he couldn't have some random adventurer ruining that for him. He had to be more careful.

Scaramouche knelt down next to the rock, carefully examining it. It was beautiful, just like the first one. He wanted to touch it but he knew the dangers of doing so.

Suddenly, a soft voice was yelling to him. He turned around to see Y/N calling to him.

"One of them woke up!" They yelled, "Let's ask him some questions!"

Scaramouche made his way back to the camp where Y/N was sitting next to a man on the floor.

"So this dream..." Y/N started.

The man struggled to sit up, "It was cold.. high.. I couldn't stop climbing.."

"Climbing?" Scaramouche cut in, "Perhaps it was a mountain."

Y/N stood up, looking over at Scaramouche, "Do you think he means Dragonspine?"

Scaramouche shrugged, "It's a possibility. I don't know of any other snowy mountains near here. But we can't be for sure."

"What else can you tell us?" They turned back to the man, who was now eating something.

"That's all, I'm afraid.." the man responded, "sorry.."

Y/N sighed, accepting his apology and wishing him well as the two walked off.

Scaramouche walked behind Y/N. Ever since the inn, he was in a constant existential crisis. Perhaps acting so nice all the time was effecting his brain. He didn't want to consider the thought that he might've had a.. soft spot for Y/N. I mean, he'd only just met them.

He had to admit though, he for some reason was able to tolerate Y/N more than other people. He hadn't lashed out at them yet, which was a huge improvement from his normal behavior.

It's possible he just didn't want to admit that he could care about someone other than himself.

Y/N turned to him, "Hey are you listening??"

"Huh?" Scaramouche said, snapping back to reality.

Y/N snickered, "You've been acting strange for a while now. Are you still sick?"

Scaramouche nodded his head, "Most likely." Of course, he felt fine, but he didn't want to tell them that.

"We should rest for a bit then. I heard this village makes some good food!"

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