The fresh aroma of coffee lingers throughout the house. In the kitchen, Axel and Ryo sit across from each other in silence, with plates of food in front of them. After a week, Ryo’s inconsistent fever finally broke and most of his injuries besides a few burns and bruises have healed. Bandages remain wrapped around both his arms, from the elbows to wrists. Ryo takes a bite from his scrambled eggs, noticing the intense stare from Axel.

“Do you remember anything yet?” Axel asks him.

“You asked me that every day for the past week.” He places his fork down, annoyed. “The answer is still no.”  Ryo leans back in his chair, arms crossed. “My turn. How long am I going to be confined to this house?”

Axel pours himself a second cup of coffee. “Doc’s orders were to keep rested until your fully healed.”

“I’m healed enough and each time I try to leave I get a lecture from you.”

“You had a bad fever for the past week! That’s far from being healed.” He scolds Ryo again. “Besides, I can’t take my eyes off you. I still don’t know if you are an enemy or even worst a pirate.” Axel’s eyes narrow at Ryo, his body tense.

Exasperated, Ryo rests his head against his right palm. “Enemy? Pirate? I don’t know which is worst, your guard dog-like personality or that poor display of swordsmanship.” He casually meets Axel’s stare.

Axel jolts up from his seat, slamming his palms on the table. “I never asked for your opinion about my- wait…you know about swordsmanship?”

Unfazed, Ryo straightens his posture. “hm? Yes, I do. Probably the most dominating used offensive skills in the world.”

“So, you remember all that but none of your memories? When were you going to tell me this?” Axel leans across the table.

“I can’t remember my past at all, but I still know about certain knowledge and basic functions.” Ryo moves the spoon up and down, taking another bite from his meal. He notices Axel’s face turn a slight red. His thoughts written clearly on his face. “Don’t tell me. You thought that I was a blank slate that couldn’t remember anything.” Ryo’s dumbfounded expression adds fuel to the fire.

“O-o-of course not! You were eating just fine! I was just saying that…you should…you should have told me that you remembered other things!” With each word Axel faulters on defending himself.

Stress builds up on Axel’s face. He balls his hand into fists, shaking. A few seconds of tension between them breaks with the floorboards creaking. He stands up straight and throws his coat on from over the chair. Ryo tilts his head to the side.

“And where are you going?”

“I’M not going anywhere.” Axel throws a second coat at Ryo. “WE are going into town.” Axel says between his grit teeth.

“Why?” Ryo’s unchanged expression adds to Axel’s irritation.

“Because if I stay another second in this house with you, I feel like I’m going to lose my mind.” Axel’s voice trembles. He spins around, exiting the kitchen.

Slight amusement fills Ryo’s chest. “That’s one way to get out of this house. He can be read like an open book” He puts on his own borrowed coat. Without letting the coffee go to waste, he downs the rest of his coffee and finishes Axel’s second cup. From his reflect in the hallway mirror, he fixes his shirt and adjusts the silver flame necklace around his neck. Presentable, he follows Axel out the front door.

A rough stone path leads into the distant thick wooded area. Off the coastline a light breeze from the ocean washes over the area, carrying the scent of salty water mixed with fresh pine. Nature calls of small birds and animals echo from the top of the wood’s balcony in lighthearted tunes. Occasionally a few shy animals like local deer and other herbivores make themselves known from a distance. An awkward silence builds between Axel and Ryo who remain silent, without one word spoken. From behind, Ryo takes in the sights around him and takes the initiative to start a conversation.  

“Is there a reason that you live this far outside of town?” Ryo asks.

“It is what it is. An isolated place where I can practice with a sword without interruptions.” Axel replies, but his stiff posture betrays his uncaring attitude.

Without pursuing the topic their conversation falls back into silence, becoming even heavier than before. Slight confusion becomes rooted in Ryo’s mind unable to understand where Axel’s change in attitude between their interactions and his isolation from the town. Their travel comes to a stop at the outer edge of the forest. A town stretches out aches in front of them. No tall buildings, mostly one- or two-story homes, nestled together as a tight community. The outer property consists of flowers and a wood perimeter fence. A large arch sign hangs across the town opening reading, “Remure” carved out in the center.

Both enter under the sign, greeted with the noise from dozens of people going about their daily business. However, that noise dies out when they come along to the first house on the pathway. Nearby residents stop what they’re doing and stare at them. An uneasy feeling claws its way into Ryo’s spine. While they stare dubiously at Ryo, it’s the cold, hostile stares at Axel he manages to catch glimpses of.

“Seems like a…unique place.” Ryo says.

“Remure, a small town that keeps to itself and relies on trading with outside sources. Imports and exports are important. However, we are also able to live off the land if we need too.” Axel explains, ignoring most of the dagger piercing stares.

A quick glimmer catches the corner of Ryo’s eyes, diverting his attention to a nearby merchant stall. Many small trinkets hang from tree branch-like displays. Across the counter area, bracelets and charms made from color stones lay next to each other in a neat row. A woman behind the counter smiles at him.

“Welcome sir, are you interested in one? Some of these are samples made by my son.” She declares proudly. Her eyes wander to see Ryo’s flame necklace around his neck. “Oh my, it seems that you already have a fine piece of craftmanship already.” She motions to his necklace.

Between the woman’s happy demeanor and the stares around him, Ryo steps back a bit. Picking up on his hesitation, the woman holds out an emerald bracelet for him to take. “I know, how about this sample. It’s light and let’s call it a good luck charm.”

A twinkle in her eyes makes it hard for Ryo to refuse. He takes it and hangs in around his left wrist. Her smile widens. Axel interjects himself between them, and bows to the woman.

“I’m sorry about that Theresa. I hope that he wasn’t bothering you.”  He speaks.

Theresa giggles. “It’s alright, he didn’t do anything wrong. Besides…” He holds out a similar bracelet to Axel. “I had a spare and its to thank you for helping my son collect supplies.” Axel accepts it and places it around his right wrist. Then Thersea smile disappears replaced with a sympathetic nod.

“Don’t mind them Axel, you know they don’t mean any harm. It’s just the rumors circling the town.” Theresa nods to him.

“So that’s why their stares are worst today.” Ryo glances over the other products on display but catches a hint of worry from Axel’s response.  

He shakes off his focus on the rumors and looks at Ryo. “It’s already close to noon. I guess I can show you the tavern close to the center of town.”

They both continue down the pathway, and Thersea waves to goodbye to them. Even with the small population, each resident within Remure did their best to support each other. It became clear to Ryo from watching both adults and children go about their daily lives. Yet, something keeps nagging at him. It was almost too perfect. Like a glass dome was placed over the town to cut it off from the outside world. This unsettling feeling only grew when he saw how certain individuals reacted to Axel, someone who didn’t reside in town. His thoughts get interrupted when Axel steps in front of him.

“Here is the small tavern. Over there…” He points to a large fountain, with two levels of waterfalls. A few kids laugh splashing each other, and an adult sits by themselves reading a book. “…is the centerpiece of town. Supposedly built by Finn himself when he discovered this town.” Afterwards, Axel enters the building.

Inside patrons gather for the lunch rush hour. When Axel enters a lot of the talking quiets down with all eyes staring at him. He ignores them, taking his spot at the bar. Ryo glances at them but they won’t meet his eyes. With both men at their seats, the residents go back to the previous conversations. The bartender approaches putting menus down in front of them. He strikes up a conversation with Axel, but Ryo’s attention is drawn to another at a separate table.

“Did James recover from that last incident?” A man speaks up.

“Yes, he is helping now to build a new home. Though many of us don’t think he should be up and about  yet." The second man responds.

“This is all that child’s fault.” From the corner of his eyes, he can see both men staring daggers at Axel’s back. “If he didn’t interfere with the collection and just kept his head down, they wouldn’t have attacked the workers like that.”

“On a side note, do you recognize that guy with him? I’ve never seen him in town before.” The first man changes topics.  

“I don’t know but we don’t get any strangers wandering into town. Don’t tell me that kid has brought in more trouble. It’s almost like he wants to see this town destroyed.” The second responds.

“Ryo? Ryo!” Axel’s voice snaps him back to the present. “Aren’t you going to order anything?” Both Axel and the bartender stare at him.

“I’m fine with just sone water.” Ryo says.

The bartender bows to them and collects the menus. Leaving both men alone, Axel speaks up. “It’s best to ignore their words. It’s not like they can do anything about it.”

A troubled expression fills Axel’s face. Like part of what the men said is picking away at a sense of guilt that Axel may have. Their orders arrive minutes later, and Axel throws some of his fries in front of Ryo. “You didn’t order anything, and you can’t survive on just water.” Thrown off by the kind gesture, Ryo looks at Axel, but his face turns the opposite way.

“Okay, so its about time we talk about-“

Ryo’s words are cut off when the tavern door bangs open. A man out of breath stumbles into the room. He tries to take in a few deep breaths and clutches his knees. “We need help. One of the house’s foundations didn’t hold. It’s about to collapse! The family is in trouble!”

Axel spins in his seat and just beside him Ryo’s seat is empty. “Oh no.”

He bolts out of the tavern.