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:

We're on vacation, remember? So we're just going to rest and

a plan. Speaking about

Cassie scowled and said with

are not allowed to plan, plot and scheme. Just

the back of

"Alright."

though he

But what?

Nephis, Sunny hesitated

you climb the Soul Tree

at him

don't really remember. To get the

of the miraculous fruits

'Yeah. That makes sense…'

***

Cassie spent them idling

minds needed

talking or simply soaking in the warmth.

keep to themselves, enjoying the almost forgotten feeling of privacy. Sunny had been a loner for most of his life, so these past few weeks that he had

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

that it happened

the gently swaying branches of the Soul Tree, caught in a blissful reverie. In moments like these, he would lose track of time, often realizing that entire hours

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

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

only clear things in it were how delicious and refreshing the magical fruits were, how pleasant it was to live under the

and generous. It protected them from the cursed blight of the crimson labyrinth, kept the monsters away and provided nourishment both for

thought of leaving its gifts behind and returning to the

leave when they were perfectly

least two of them

and Cassie in the beginning, as time went by, she grew strangely

relaxing with them, Changing Star ended up spending most of her time sitting on the western edge of the island alone, staring

Not even the frequent, insistent lapses of

For some reason, he kept forgetting the reason for this

wanted to check on

like always, she was sitting at the ridge of the western edge, gazing into the distance. Sunny

"Hey, Neph."

indifferent expression was back, making

clear that

"Hey."