The smell of smoke and sizzling fat filled Lira's nostrils and made her mouth water.
She was ready to take it off the fire but Daries didn't let her. He seemed laid-back but he was unusually fussy about dinner in particular.
Lira tore her gaze away from the roasting venison and stared at Daries crouched on the floor fiddling with what he called a tent.
It seemed to be a small house made of cloth and sticks.
"Did you make that?" Lira asked, pointing at the tent.
"Nope, I acquired it." Daries said without turning to look at her.
He got up, seemingly satisfied with what he had done,then he walked over to Lira and plopped down on the blanket beside her.
"Humans may be weak, but they sure are smart. Maybe that's why they're so smart."
"You got this from a human?" Lira jolted.
She had never seen one before. She was told that they look just like her except they can't shift. She would have to differentiate humans and werewolves by scent.
"Yeah, a traveller I ran into. But humans don't travel anymore. I haven't seen one in ages."
"It's probably because of the zombie wolves" Lira remarked.
"Yes, but don't think that they can't hunt them on their own."
"Hunt? Really? Them?" Lira gaped.
"Yeah, they're not as weak as you think. They've hunted werewolves, some of them can hunt zombie wolves just fine."
Lira was silent for a moment then she suddenly asked, "What do you think of the prophecy?"
"The prophecy?" Daries frowned.
"Do you think it'll happen?" Lira asked carefully. She was fiddling with the loose thread on her sleeve and she looked over at Daries.
"Well, it depends on the Moonborne." Daries shrugged.
"Don't you mean Selene?" Lira frowned, clearly confused.
"No, I mean the Moonborne. The prophecy is about her isn't it?" Daries replied. "If she… well not just her, if everyone mentioned in the prophecy wants it to happen then it will."
"But it's a prophecy." Lira insisted. "They don't have a choice."
"Trust me, everyone always has a choice." Daries said grimly.
Lira exhaled then stayed silent for a moment. "Do you really think that's true?"
"You chose to follow me, didn't you?"
"That's different. No prophecy was written about that."
"Even if there was, it wouldn't affect your choice." Daries countered. "You decided that we should travel together, the same way I chose the very same thing. It's because it's what we wanted, not because anyone told us to."
"You really think everyone has a choice?" Lira whispered.
"Not always, but most of the time." Daries replied. "I don't mean to shit on your religion. You can believe that the prophecy will be fulfilled without question and that's fine. But I can't."
"Why not?" Lira questioned.
"Look around." Daries spread his hands out. "It has been over a decade since the Moonstone broke. I've seen more people I know become zombie wolves or turn feral. I won't deny the existence of the prophecy, but I will deny the notion that the Moonborne has no choice. I'm sure she chose to run away; that's why this hasn't been fixed yet."
He got up and picked a piece of meat from above the fire. "It's ready. Whoa, you look pale. Are you okay?"
"Yeah I'm just really hungry." Lira murmured.
"I'm sorry." Daries apologised. "I didn't want us to eat undercooked meat."
They ate in silence and Lira entered the tent first once she was done. Daries felt uncomfortable. He knew that he had upset her with his words. He thought of apologizing but he decided not to.
It might just make things worse. They were strangers after all, strangers using each other.
Daries sighed heavily then put out the fire. He got into the tent and found Lira lying like a log. She wasn't sleeping, he could tell. But he didn't say anything or try to talk to her. He simply laid beside her and closed his eyes.
The next morning, Lira woke up alone in the tent. Her limbs were spread-eagled and her aurbun hair was splayed out in different directions.
Daries wasn't in the tent. She got up slowly and rubbed her eyes. The sun was already up. She got out and looked around.
Daries was nowhere to be found. But his backpack was right where he left it last night. It was open and something was peeking out.
'A book?' Lira thought as she frowned.
"Why would a rogue travel with a book of all things?" She wondered out loud.
She considered removing it but then decided against it. It would be wrong to invade his privacy and go through his things.
The blanket from the previous night was still on the ground. She sat on it and wondered if he ran away. She shook her head immediately.
He couldn't leave, not without going to Maindelandt. She didn't know what he was going to do there, but he said it with so much conviction.
She heard rustling and saw Daries at the treeline by her left.
"So the princess is finally awake." He smirked as he walked towards her. "I thought you'd spend the whole morning waiting for breakfast in bed."
Lira rolled her eyes then said, "Where did you go?"
"I was surveying the area." He sauntered in her direction with a carefree smile on his face. "There's a stream nearby. Let's pack up and go so we can freshen up."
They gathered all of their essentials and walked east. Lira heard the sound of rushing water before she saw it. Daries stopped walking and Lira turned to him in surprise.
"I'm going to get breakfast and give you some privacy. See you in a bit, Red."
He dropped everything and turned to leave.
Lira stripped down to her underwear but she didn't get in the water. Instead she stared at her reflection.
She had dark circles under eyes which seemed unusually dim.
She remembered what Daries said the previous night and exhaled heavily. Did she really choose to not do anything? Was every death her fault?
She thought of Kyren and her heart ached.
If Daries was right, maybe she could run from the prophecy and save Kyren.