"I finished fixing your cloak." Adriel tosses Julias's cloak over his head, snickering when he sticks up his middle finger.

"When'd you learn how to sew?"

"We both learned how to sew." Adriel looks at Julias in disbelief. "At the same time. Eighth grade? Home Ec? Are any of these things ringing a bell for you?"

"Nah, not really."

"Okay. Uh. We were in a group together when we made mini pizzas and you burned mine on purpose."

"Oh yeah!" Julias snaps his fingers and grins. "I remember that. That was funny."

"I hadn't eaten in like two days, I really wanted that pizza."

Julias's grin falters. "Why hadn't you eaten in two days?"

"I didn't have any money in my account for lunch, we don't have any breakfast food, and I didn't get fed supper."

"Were you out doing something when your family ate?"

"Yeah, sure, let's go with that."

"Adriel?"

"What?"

"Where were you when your family was eating supper?"

"I was with one of my friends."

"You're lying to me."

"Maybe because I don't really want to talk about it?"

"This sounds like something serious though."

"Well it isn't."

"But it is."

"We're trying to figure out how to survive in a world filled with beings that could probably kill us with their fingernails and you want to talk about why I hadn't eaten for a short time?" Adriel shakes his head. "Your priorities are not straight."

"Yeah, well, neither am I so it works."

Adriel slaps a hand to his forehead, trying and failing to suppress his laughter. Julias grins in triumph, snickering when Adriel smacks his shoulder.

"Okay, so we need to figure out our next few moves." Julias pulls his cloak on, glancing at Adriel.

"Grab a map, get some sleep?"

"Sleep?" Julias gestures towards the vast forest surrounding them. "We don't know what's out there. We need to assume we're in danger no matter where we are."

"Alright." Adriel nods. "Grab a map, start towards the next town, stop soon and sleep."

"Okay," Julias sighs. "Who do you think will have a- where are you going you dumbass?"

"To the village?" Adriel points towards the town. "Do you think a map is just gonna spawn out of thin air?"

"No, but now? The sun'll rise soon."

"So?"

"So we could wait until everyone's asleep."

"If we were even right about that."

"Pretty sure I was."

"So you'd rather break into a house with people in it than an empty house?" Adriel looks at Julias in confusion. "What's wrong with you?"

"Terribly sorry, Mr. Law Breaker, I don't commit crimes."

"Whatever." Adriel rolls his eyes and walks toward the village. Julias quickly catches up.

"Which house is empty?" he whispers, crouching behind a bush. Adriel wordlessly points at the house nearest to them. The duo watches quietly as someone walks out of it and locks the door behind them.

"We need to walk around the outside a bit," Adriel murmurs. "Make sure all the lights are off and no one is home."

"And if they're not?"

"Then we pick a different house."

"Maybe we could just buy a map," Julias suggests. "Someone's gotta be selling some."

"Fine." Adriel stands and cracks his fingers. "Put your hood up and close your cloak. Maybe we can pass as winged people."

"I really don't think so."

"Why not?"

"Because their skin was as pale as a stereotypical vampire, that's why."

"Then maybe we can pass as the cat people, I don't know!" Adriel shoves Julias. He sprawls on the ground, frowning up at the other boy. "You're the one who doesn't want to take the easy way, so you figure out what we can pass as."

"Maybe a cross between the cats and the fairies?" Julias stands and dusts himself off. "Pushing me was highly unnecessary."

"A hybrid?"

"Yeah."

"We're breaking into someone's house and stealing a map, okay?"

"Why? I gave you a legal alternative!"

"Because we have no idea how they treat hybrids and I don't exactly want to get killed because of you of all people!"

"If we're going to get killed, it's because someone's gonna come home and find us in their house!"

"Look." Adriel pinches the bridge of his nose, squeezing his eyes shut. "If you're so worried about it, you can stay here with our stuff. I'll go grab a map."

"We're not splitting up." Julias grabs Adriel's shoulders, startling him. "Have you ever seen a horror movie? That's how someone gets killed!"

"Let go of me," Adriel hisses. "Now."

"Adriel, now's not-"

"I said let go!" Adriel shoves Julias back with all of his strength, dropping to his knees as Julias stumbles and falls.

"Adriel?" Julias calls quietly. Adriel leans forward, pressing his hands to his eyes.

"I'm alright," he finally says. "It's fine. I'm fine."

"Bullshit," Julias spits. "You don't act like that if you're fine."

"Okay, then I'm not fine." Adriel slowly gets to his feet. "But I'm not talking about it. Not with you."

"Have you talked about it with anyone?"

"That's none of your business."

"You're fucking terrified." Julias stands and grabs Adriel's wrist. "Stop pretending to be tough and just talk."

"I'm not-"

"Your entire fucking existence is just one big play!" Julias shouts. "Who knows what happened?"

"No one." Adriel rips his arm from Julias's grip. "Nothing important happened."

"Dude." Julias grabs the back of Adriel's cloak when he makes a move to walk away. Adriel stills, his hands clenched into fists, his fingernails digging into his palms. "Open your hands."

"Let go of me."

"Open your hands first."

Adriel lifts his hands and slowly uncurls them, keeping his palm facing away from Julias.

"Thank you." Julias lets go of Adriel's cloak. "Are you going to try and find a map in the house?"

"Yeah." Adriel nods and walks away without another word. Julias watches him walk without protesting.

Julias returns to their stuff, deciding to reorganize their bag and eat what looks like a cross between an apple and a carrot.

"A carple," he announces when he's nearly finished. "No, an approt. Approt sounds better. Approt it is."

"What're you mumbling about?" Adriel drops to the ground across from Julias, tossing a few pieces of parchment paper in front of him.

"Approt." Julias holds up the last few bites of his food, grinning when Adriel rolls his eyes.

"So that house didn't have maps," Adriel says, grabbing a map and rolling it out. "Had to go to wait looked like a small library."

"Mkay." Julias very quickly shoves the rest of his approt into his mouth and smacks his hands together. "Do you know where we are?"

"Good news, yes." Adriel points at a spot at the juncture of two different forests. "We're here."

"Vev- Vebch?" Julias looks at the map, frowning.

"Vebch," Adriel confirms. "Silent b. I know, it's very weird."

"What are these names?" Julias mumbles, glancing around at other places. "They're so weird."

"Fantasy world, remember?"

"Right. So where to next?"

"Well, there's a castle icon here." Adriel points at a black castle a few towns away from their current one. "I figure that means it's gotta have a big town around it that we can blend in to."

"Makes sense to me. Do you know what lives there?"

"Bad news, yes." Adriel pulls a book out from underneath the maps. "Better news: their books are in English. The city is called Beshure."

"Do you know what lives there?"

"Remember the people you couldn't figure out?" Adriel grins sheepishly. "That's where they live."

"We're not going. No arguments. Not going. Understand?"

"Fine." Adriel points at a different castle. "This is the one with the cat guys. Rehbrek."

"Let's go there," Julias decides.

"Alright." Adriel rolls up the maps and slides them into a side pocket of their bag. "Let's sleep."

"We can set up our cloaks to act as a small tent!" Julias exclaims, pulling his cloak off. The two set to work setting up their cloaks to cover at least two sides.

"Do not cuddle me or else," Adriel threatens, laying down beneath their cloaks. Julias rolls his eyes and lays down with his back towards Adriel.

"If I wake up and hear something I'm waking you up."

"I'm so glad you can handle these things by yourself."

We're doing questions of the chapter again because they were fun on All In!

Question of the Chapter: uhhhhHhHhHhHhHhHhHhHhHhHh thoughts so far? I know it's only chapter 6 but there's gotta be something