Shadow Slave

In the morning, Sunny was woken up by the gentle rustling of leaves. Opening his eyes, he saw rays of sunshine falling through the scarlet crown of the Soul Tree, painting the world in soft shades of pink. The sight was beautiful and tranquil. It felt as though none of the dangers and terrors of the Dream Realm could reach him here.

A soft breeze touched his skin, bringing with it coolness and the smell of fallen leaves.

For the first time in a long while, Sunny felt at peace.

'Is this what a vacation feels like?'

If so, their decision to have one was the best decision ever.

He sat up with a yawn and lazily looked around. Cassie and Nephis were already awake. Seeing them put a smile on Sunny's face.

'Why the hell am I grinning?'

Shaking his head, Sunny put on a serious expression and said:

"Good morning."

The girls greeted him. Then, Nephis slightly tilted her head and asked:

"Hey. Do you remember why we didn't leave anyone to keep watch last night?"

Sunny blinked. Indeed, why hadn't anyone guarded the camp?

"Uh. No. I guess we were too tired? Plus, it's so safe here. Why deprive ourselves of sleep?"

She frowned. Sunny expected Changing Star to berate them, but, unexpectedly, she just shrugged.

"...I guess."

'Huh. That's not like her. Am I not the only one in a great mood?'

To make Neph feel better, he pointed down and said:

"Don't worry. My shadow would have warned us if anything had happened ."

She seemed to have forgotten about her question already, returning to whatever she had been doing before. All three of them were easily distracted these days. Sunny sighed.

"So… what are you guys going to do today?"

Cassie turned to him with a smile and answered in a teasing tone:

remember? So we're just

plan. Speaking about

that moment, Cassie scowled and said with

allowed to plan, plot and

the back of

"Alright."

as though he was forgetting

But what?

Nephis, Sunny hesitated and

me, why did you climb the

glanced at him

I don't really remember. To get

the mention of the miraculous fruits and

'Yeah. That makes sense…'

***

Sunny, Nephis and Cassie spent

and minds needed time

sat around the fire, talking or simply soaking in the warmth. Sometimes,

weeks that he had spent side by side with other people, without even a minute to himself, were

the island was large enough for the three of them to stay apart if they didn't wish to be

that it

and staring at the gently swaying branches of the Soul Tree, caught in a blissful reverie. In moments

general, had become strangely hard to grasp. Sunny wasn't entirely sure how many days they had spent on the peaceful island. He was pretty sure that it was less than a

a common occurrence. All three of them were turning increasingly absentminded and forgetful. Sometimes, Sunny would catch himself straining to remember details of his previous life or notice the strangeness of their behavior. But a minute later, he would forget about these concerns,

it were how delicious and refreshing the magical fruits were, how pleasant it was to live under the

kept the monsters away and provided nourishment both for their bodies and for their soul cores. Sunny was becoming increasingly convinced that finding the majestic Soul Tree was

gifts behind and returning to the horror of

they were

at least two of them

carefree and tranquil as Sunny and Cassie in the beginning, as time went by, she grew strangely despondent and gloomy. It seemed as though she had reverted

western edge of the island alone, staring into the distance with bleak eyes. Sunny had no

her. Not even the frequent, insistent lapses of memory managed to overcome his concern about

to split from pain. For some reason, he kept forgetting the reason for this visit on the way here. It took all of his willpower to hold on

to check on

always, she was sitting at the ridge of the western edge, gazing into the distance. Sunny climbed onto the ridge and sat down,

"Hey, Neph."

glanced at him. Her indifferent expression was back, making any attempt to understand

was clear that

"Hey."