Taking one last look at the corner of the note she’d hidden just inside the top of his bag, she couldn’t help but hope that he’d love it just as much as she’d loved the notes he’d written to her. Determined to wait for his return, she pulled out a few of the letters she’d brought with her, fingers tracing the sweet words he’d written to her. 

As she was reading, there was a noise at the entrance to the tent. Placing the letters in her lap, her attention focuses on the flap that served as the front door. As Nori’s head peeked through, she visibly relaxed as she smiled up at him. 

“Dinner’s ready. Do you want to eat with everyone else or would you rather stay in the tent?” Nori asked. 

Stretching her arms above her head, Kora blinked the tiredness from her eyes as she made her way to Nori. “I’d better go eat dinner out there, or else I might just fall asleep.” As soon as she’d left the tent, she stretched once again and the cool breeze carrying the smell of a delicious meal was enough to give her a small spurt of energy. 

Joining the others around the fire, Nori immediately fit in. Laughing and joking with each member of the team seemed to come naturally to him as he socialized with everyone there. 

Unfortunately Kora couldn’t say the same. She’d been so focused on eating her food that she hadn’t paid attention to the conversations that surrounded her and now she had no idea what everyone was talking about. The voices speaking in various tones coupled with her ever growing exhaustion led her to finally succumb to sleep. Eyes drifting closed, she found herself leaning into Nori as her eyes drifted shut. 

Nori

He knew that she’d been tired, but he hadn’t expected her to fall asleep that quickly after dinner. Wrapping an arm around her, he pulled her closer as he continued chatting with the others. Although he would’ve normally carried her directly to bed, everyone was discussing plans for entering the enemy’s territory and it was imperative that he participated in these discussions. After all he has more knowledge of the enemies they are to face than most of their group. 

“What’s wrong with storming the front gates, then?!” A frustrated voice rang out over the cacophony of voices. 

Tightening his grip on Kora, Nori takes a breath before responding to the soldier. “In case you aren’t aware, the creatures are all being commanded by the owner of the castle. Storming directly through the front gates will allow him to target us all at once and will only lead to a bad outcome for us.”

Looking around at the faces illuminated only by the flickering firelight, Nori takes in the determined gazes and fear-filled eyes that meet him. “I recognize that many of you are afraid of the fight we are to face, but we have been training for this. I suggest that we try a more stealthy approach. Splitting up and fighting from the inside will give us the upper hand. It is unlikely that he can send the creatures to attack us if we are within his own castle. It would put his own people at risk as well.”

Above the hushed voices, the same voice from earlier shouts, “That’s great for some of you, but what happens to the rest of us. We can’t all infiltrate the castle at the same time without arousing suspicion.”

Taking a closer look at the soldier, Nori recognized the man as Bari. Making eye contact, he spoke, “Don’t worry. The rest of you are to supervise from outside the walls. If you are able to safely provide any backup to those of us inside, then you are to prioritize your own safety. Any more questions, Bari?”

With the attention of the entire group directed towards him, Bari immeidately closes his mouth. His face souring, he doesn’t speak a word as everyone accepts Nori’s plan. 

Noting the incident with Bari, Nori announces that he is going to be retiring early as he scoops Kora up. Carrying her to their tent, she didn’t stir even as he tucked her into her sleeping bag. 

Just before he blew the lantern out, he noticed the corner of paper sticking out of the top of his bag. Pulling it out, being careful not to make too much noise, he read the short note that Kora had written for him earlier. Grabbing a pen and a fresh sheet of paper, he begins to write another note in response to hers. 

Placing it in the top of her bag, he laid back in his sleeping bag as well. Putting out the lantern next to him, he allows his eyes to acclimate to the darkness as his eyes roamed over the planes of her face next to his. Reflecting on their time together, he realized that he is the happiest he’s been in a long time. Unfortunately it’s also the most stressed he’s been in years. He shared the worries and fears that most of the group harbored. It was hard not to. After all, they’d all suffered from the torment of this villain for far too long. 

With thoughts of revenge, Nori finally felt his eyes drift closed.