At times the marshes were a strange place to be, surrounded by the same picture. He searched too far out, losing his team mates in the process. Looking around the dull span, it was lonesome. Nobody was around. Berwick was just…alone.
Too lonesome.
And Berwick didn’t know what happened.
It was pitch black, and the sundial struck midnight. Berwick didn’t know where he was. The anxiety bloomed, Berwick was lost without his comrades. He could only feel the cool airstream brush against his skin, which was the only company right now. The only source of light was the full moon, and even then it wasn’t much light, Berwick was trapped in darkness.
He didn’t know where to go.
He was lost.
Miles away from their sanctuary, it was only a camp for tonight due to the journeying. Something really bad happened when fighting against some monster god, and Berwick felt all the more embarrassed. He felt too embarrassed that he didn’t want to talk about it; it wasn’t like he could talk about it anyway. Nobody was with him.
Sitting by the lake, Berwick looked at his reflection in the water. He was practically homeless, lost, and all alone.
Closing his eyes, Berwick fell back into the bare ground and fell asleep. There wasn’t much he could do at this point, it was late at night and Berwick was tired.
Two hours in…
…Berwick was found by someone.
Finally found.
Still asleep, Berwick was being carried through the dry marsh. The marshes were clear, quiet, with no more enemies in sight. Berwick was held by muscular arms, and his body was pressing against a strong chest. This man looked down at Berwick, he cackled some when he heard Berwick mumbling in his sleep.
Berwick couldn’t help but feel guilty…
He let everyone down.
What did Vox think of Berwick? Knowing it was just Berwick, Duke, and Vox fighting…the others went back to the sanctuary while the three warriors kept fighting.
“Berwick,” whispered this man. “Berwick?”
“I-I…um…huh?” Berwick stuttered. “Duke? Where did you come from?” Berwick did feel clueless, but he gave a bitter smile. Immediately, he thought about the captain. “Is Vox okay?” Berwick asked. Glancing here and there, Berwick noticed he was in a tent now. “I-I’m not lost anymore? Did you bring me here, Duke?”
“Shh,” he placed his hands on the younger male’s shoulders. He looked into Berwick’s scarlet eyes and saw the amount of fear within them. He knew Berwick was scared, and he still felt the same amount of anxiety as he did before he fell asleep on the grass. “You’re here now. I found you sleeping by the lake. I hope you’re okay, little guy.”
“D-Duke?” Berwick stuttered. His cheeks dusted a reddish hue, as he realised that it was Duke who brought him here. “W-What time is it?”
“Around four in the morning,” he answered with a warm smile. “You’re okay though, yeah?”
“Sort of,” he admitted. “Vox didn’t need to save me from that monster, though. I could have fought that thing,” he let out a huff as he folded his arms over his chest.
“Well, you’re here now. It’s better if you get more rest, Berwick. I’ll let you sleep now, okay? I’ll go back to my tent,” stated Duke.
“No,” he gripped onto Duke’s wrist. Berwick shook his head. Even though this sounded desperate, Berwick didn’t want to feel alone anymore. “Stay with me, please?”
“Why would I do that, Berwick? You don’t need me to stay here with you.”
“Yes, I do,” he admitted with a darker blush on his face now. Berwick tightened the grip on Duke’s wrist.
“…Fine. Just for tonight, okay?”
Berwick nodded.
“Thanks for helping me, Duke.”
Giving Berwick a bitter smile, Duke sat at the very edge of his sleeping bag. “Yeah, well, I was looking everywhere for you.”
Crawling over to Duke, the crimson mage sat next to him on the bedroll. He never cared about what time it was – even if it was four o’clock in the morning. Berwick gave Duke a big hug; he appreciated Duke carrying him back to safety.
This made Duke laugh. He let the younger male cuddle him. Duke didn’t really hug back, particularly due to the vivid purple flush that stained his features now. He just looked away from Berwick, not really sure what to do.
“It didn’t know you were so kind, Duke…you’re usually so quiet…a-and you tease me sometimes,” Berwick mentioned. The dark-haired male glanced up at Duke and gave the bigger man a smirk. “Hmm,” he thought for a moment.
“Vox was too tired after that battle, you know? So, I went out searching for you. I found you so easily because I could hear all this snoring,” stated Duke. “I was wondering what happened to you when I saw you laying by the lake.”
“Thanks for the honesty, Duke.” >:I