Mitsuki jolted awake, her heart pounding, breath shallow. The nightmare still clung to her mind—vivid and terrifying. She had seen Shavick villagers raiding their home, weapons drawn, their fury directed at Elcos. She watched helplessly in the dream as they tried to kill him, and the fear still lingered, curling tightly around her chest.
Gasping softly, she turned toward Elcos, who lay unconscious beside her. His face was peaceful, but pale. She reached out and placed a gentle hand on his forehead, checking for a fever. His temperature was normal, but when she glanced at his hand, a wave of anxiety returned. It had turned a faint shade of blue. Her fingers traced over the discoloration carefully, but his breathing remained steady.
Her hand moved down to the spot where the snake had bitten him—just above the ribs. It was cold to the touch, unnaturally so. Worried, she unbuttoned his shirt slightly to inspect the area again. The skin around the bite still held a bluish tinge, but it hadn't spread further. With a quiet sigh of relief, she buttoned the shirt back and rested her hand gently over his chest.
"I'm here," she whispered, voice trembling. "You're going to be fine."
Curling up beside him, she eventually drifted back to sleep, her hand still resting over his heart.
The next morning, Mitsuki woke to the sound of soft voices and morning light filtering through the window. Her hair was a tangled mess, strands falling over her face. She sat up groggily and rubbed her eyes before slipping out of the room.
In the living room, her father, Shank, was deep in conversation with Elcos's father. They both looked serious, but calm. Across the room, Elcos's mother turned to her and raised an eyebrow with a smile.
"Set your hair, girl. You look like you just fought a tornado," she said with a light chuckle.
Mitsuki gave a sheepish smile and tried to smooth her hair with her hands, tucking loose strands behind her ears.
Shank looked over and greeted her. "How was your night, Mitsuki?" he asked.
She hesitated before replying, "Restless. I kept checking on Elcos… I had a bad dream."
Elcos's father turned to Shank and nodded. "Now's a good time. You can check on him."
Shank gave a short nod and headed toward Elcos's room. Mitsuki followed quietly, staying near the doorway as her father examined him. He checked Elcos's pulse, lifted his eyelids gently, and examined the bite wound once more. After a few minutes, he stepped back.
"He'll regain consciousness in three days," Shank said, wiping his hands on a cloth. "The poison has stopped spreading. His body just needs time to recover."
Elcos's mother, standing behind them, frowned. "But how will he eat if he's unconscious for three days?"
Shank shook his head. "He can't eat right now. His system needs rest. We'll begin feeding him when he wakes."
The tension in the room eased slightly. Mitsuki exhaled, feeling a bit of the weight lift off her shoulders. She walked over to Elcos's side and looked down at him, brushing a strand of hair from his forehead.
Three days. Just three more days.
And she would be there for every one of them.
The first day passed slowly.
Mitsuki stayed by Elcos's side for most of it, rarely leaving the room except when coaxed out for a meal or to freshen up. She watched him sleep, hoping for even the slightest movement—an eyelid twitch, a change in breathing, anything. But he remained still.
She spent hours replaying the events leading up to the bite in her mind. The mission, the ambush, the snake—it had all happened so fast. She kept wondering if she could've stopped it, if she should've been faster, smarter, stronger.
That night, she sat beside him with a damp cloth, wiping the sweat from his brow despite his cool skin. She whispered to him often, hoping somehow her voice would reach him in the space between sleep and waking.
On the second day, Mitsuki tried to keep herself busy. She braided her hair neatly, helped Elcos's mother with small chores around the house, and even joined Shank for a walk around the village, though her eyes kept drifting back toward Elcos's window.
"Don't tire yourself out," Shank said gently. "You need rest too."
"I'll rest when he wakes up," she replied.
Later, while alone with Elcos, she read aloud from an old storybook they used to laugh about as kids. Her voice wavered at first, but she kept going, page after page, pausing occasionally to watch his face. Still no reaction.On the second day, Shank took Mitsuki with him to help with errands around the village, hoping to distract her from the weight of her worry. She followed quietly, doing as asked, but her mind was elsewhere—lost in thoughts of Elcos. No matter how hard she tried to focus, her heart kept pulling her back to his side.
But it wasn't just Elcos that haunted her thoughts. Dannie's memory surfaced too—unresolved, painful, and quietly lingering beneath the surface. Mitsuki didn't speak of it, but the shadow it cast was clear in her eyes.
That night, exhaustion finally claimed her. But instead of rest, another nightmare came.
In her dream, the snake returned—its fangs gleaming, striking Elcos once again. This time, it was inside his room, hidden in the shadows, waiting to finish what it started. Mitsuki stood frozen in the dream, unable to move, unable to scream. She could only watch.
She jolted awake, her breath short and skin damp with sweat. Sitting up in the darkness, she whispered to herself, voice trembling, "Please… I hope that dream doesn't come true. I need to see him tomorrow. I need to be there."
Sleep didn't return after that.Day Three
As the first light of dawn spilled over the horizon, Mitsuki found herself already walking toward Elcos's home. The nightmare from the night before still clung to her like a second skin, and she hadn't slept more than a few restless minutes. Her feet moved quickly, driven by a deep, gnawing fear.
When she reached the house, Elcos's mother opened the door, surprised to see her so early. "Mitsuki? Why are you here this early, dear?"
Mitsuki hesitated, her voice soft and shaky. "How is Dannie? Is he okay?"
Elcos's mother gave a small, reassuring smile. "He's fine, sweetheart. Why do you look so frightened?"
Taking a breath, Mitsuki looked down at her hands. "I had a nightmare… it felt so real. In it, the snake came back. It bit him again. But this time… it was El—"
Before she could finish, Elcos's father called from inside. "Darlin', could you get started on breakfast?"
His wife nodded and gave Mitsuki a gentle pat on the shoulder before disappearing into the kitchen.
Mitsuki made her way to Elcos's room. Her heart pounded as she pushed the door open and stepped inside. He lay where he had for the past two days—still and pale—but today, something was different. His hand twitched slightly, and the unnatural blue tint had faded almost completely, returning to a near-normal color.
A wave of relief washed over her.
She knelt beside him, brushing his hair back gently and whispering, "You're really coming back to me, aren't you?"
The rest of the day passed quietly. Mitsuki refused to leave his side. She cleaned his forehead with a damp cloth, adjusted the blankets when they slipped, and spoke to him softly—telling him about everything he'd missed, from small village gossip to memories they once shared.
As night fell, she curled up beside him once more. She told herself she'd sleep just a little—just enough to regain some strength.
But the nightmare returned.
Again, she found herself standing in Elcos's room in the dream. The same shadow slithered across the floor. The same snake with gleaming eyes and dripping fangs rose from the darkness. Again, it lunged—straight for Elcos's chest.
She screamed in the dream, but no sound came.
Jerking awake, she sat up in the dim room, heart racing and sweat beading on her forehead. Elcos was still beside her, unmoving but breathing steadily.
She reached out, touching his hand gently, her fingers trembling. "You're okay… it was just a dream. Just a dream," she whispered to herself, as if saying it enough would make it true.
But sleep didn't come again. The fear lingered too strongly.
For the rest of the night, Mitsuki remained awake, checking on Elcos every few minutes, making sure he was still breathing, still warm, still alive. Her eyes were heavy, her limbs sore, but she refused to let herself rest.
She didn't know what the dream meant, or why it kept returning. But something about it unsettled her deeply, like a warning she couldn't understand.
And so, as the night passed into the early hours of morning, she stayed by his side—watchful, silent, and unwilling to let go.