Section 7:

Clip clop clip, clop, clip, clop

     Our horses slowed to a casual walk as there were no longer any monsters chasing us. No longer were we in an open desert, but in a cozy spot between the plains, not too far from the village, and the dark oak forest next door. All of us were breathing deeply, both physically and mentally recovering from what had gone down just about an hour ago. In that time, Drake had attended to himself by drinking a healing potion, which sort of helped, but he would need help pulling out the arrow. I was mostly just a little shaken up. Hokeson, I could tell, was just glad we had all made it out in one piece; with our mission being a success.

     The human was now unconscious after the rhythm of the trotting horses and safe feeling had calmed his core. And, though we were supposedly safe, I couldn't help but feel gazes upon my back. I even turned to find nothing several times. One time Hokeson even asked if I was alright, making me question if I may just be going mad; or maybe it was an adrenaline thing.

     Well, that feeling turned out to be nothing, because we all arrived safely at the village before the moon even reached the center of the sky. What a relief!

     In the village, people of all ages and professions flocked over to us, praising us for finding and saving the human as we told a short version of the tale along the way to his house. Even Drake was praised here and there for his bravery, which, even though he made the acknowledgment seem like nothing, he secretly adored it.

     Upon arriving at the small house the human had lived in as his own, Hokeson urged that everyone disperse and come back later. He and Drake then lifted the sleeping human from his horse and set him down on his blue bed, which had been moved to the floor in the near center of the room for ease. I, snatching the opportunity of a lifetime, managed to rummage through the human's chests and find all I needed to finally make my own bed. I'm sure he wouldn't mind. I did help save his life, after all. Not having anywhere else to place the bed, I slid it up on the slabs the human's bed had once been on and climbed up some chests onto it so I would be out of the way. Once the human was finally, safely in his bed, Hokeson opted to stay and help him heal further. Drake, meanwhile, took that as the right time to leave.

     "-Oh.. Drake." The weapon smith spoke up, but softly since it was night and there were still others trying to sleep, to the green-robed villager on his way out. "You.. Um. You know more about potions than I do... Would you mind, um.. sharing a few more tips?" He asked. Drake turned back to the weaponsmith almost confused.

     "Uh, sure.. If the healing potion isn't doing much, then use regeneration instead. And make sure not to give him too much." Drake answered, still looking-on confused, as Hokeson's face no longer shown the typical annoyance of him.

     He was caught even further off guard when Hokeson replied with, "Thank you.." which was in the most sincere tone he had ever heard from him, and seemed to be thanking him for much more than the advise. The sincerity was then interrupted by Hokeson himself when he began chuckling a little bit. "Now-uh, go to the doctor you big nitwit! You still have an arrow lodged in your back if you haven't noticed!" He said in a joking manner, which broke up the tension the insult would usually bring. Drake quietly laughed, waving a little this time as he left through the double oak doors.

     The small house was finally quiet. It even began to rain a little as I laid flat on my back, making sure I took up as much of the bed space as possible. Hokeson sat himself in a chair beside the human's bed, making sure he would have plenty of food and water nearby when he woke up. Calm breathing filled the room with the occasional snores of the librarian. The gentle pitter-patter of rain on the roof set a calmness to the scene as well. After he was done, the weapon smith sat still for a short while, watching out the windows at the rain piercing the air it fell through. After taking a deep breath, fully setting into the idea that everything was okay, he stood to his feet. Silently, he walked to the door as well, opened one of the oak doors to allow the non muffled sound of rain in past him, and shut the door behind him just as quietly as he left. For the first time in a long while, there was a feeling of true peace settled over the village, and all those living within it.

Section 8:

     My ears woke to the wonderful sound of nothingness. Not even a single snore. The sound of animals and villagers alike at peace slowly seeped into the room, waking me further in a pleasant way. Was it really time to get up just yet, though? I mean, I could easily sleep in another hour or so.

     Ruffling suddenly caught my attention, and a groan rose from the center of the room. I quickly sat up, eyes snapping down to the human's bed. It looked like he had just woken up and with tired eyes was checking the condition of his leg. The man then looked around the small, quaint house curiously, eyes taking their time in appreciating all the small details, from the divots and splinters sticking out of the un tended wood, to the way small cracks or imperfections in the windows bounced light around. Gentle yellow rays of sunshine testified that today, was a new day. A good day.

     I watched as the man's usually straight face broke with a slight smile. After about a minute, he was sitting up in bed thinking about standing I could bet. A question broke into my mind the moment he mentally jumped. Suddenly, he looked agitated. Suddenly, he looked like he had a new mission set in his stubborn mind. Was it the reason he had grabbed the gold? The human stood suddenly to his feet, before collapsing with pain spilling from his mouth in a small gasp. Despite the pain, he still stood yet again, and limped around the small space, desperately searching through his chests. I jumped down from my bed and ran out the door to go get Hokeson before the human had time to even spot me.

     "The human is up and he is standing and he is trying to walk but he is in pain and we need to stop him from leaving again!" My mouth erupted the moment Hokeson opened the door to his house. His eyes widened too. Immediately after, he was rushing right into the house I stayed at, and at the exact moment the human was about to exit.

     "No! You need to stay in your bed! You are still healing!" Hokeson tried to communicate, shoving on the human's shoulders in a desperate attempt to keep him inside. At most, the human looked confused, before forcing his way through the door as unconfrontational as he possibly could; and he limped his way down onto the village roads. Many eyes of green were set upon the determined limping man as he slowly made his way to his outside water-stained chest, swiping his arms through it in search for something, also checking his furnaces as well.

     "The gold! What if he wants that?!" I asked Hokeson, who set his hand to his chin in thought.

     "Hmm, I did take them away from him right before he passed out.. Would make sense. But then, what does he want with gold anyways?"

     "Well, let's find out, I guess!" I shrugged. "So where are they?" Hokeson left at once, entering his house. Only a few seconds later, he came running out with several clanking gold ingots, the sound of which caught the human's attention immediately. He was just about run for them when Hokeson stopped the man by lifting his arm in a means of saying "stop," which the human understood, with a tilted head.

     "Hey, Tim, get a sign for me." Hokeson suggest/ordered. I did as asked, running back into the house to rummage through the human's chests in search for one. When I came out empty handed the human was limping back to his crafting table with the gold in his arms, Hokeson attempting to support him.

     "I couldn't find any signs!" I called, "But I know where I can make some!" Following my own words, with racing legs I ran to the school-house, determination in my eyes. At least, I think so. I couldn't exactly see my own face.

     "Woah! Where's the zombies?!" My teacher joked as I burst in through the school doors, though there was genuine fear hiding in her eyes. It looked like school was up and running again. I was honestly surprised I wasn't getting in trouble for being late. Perhaps helping save the human had something to do with it.. Yeahh... Maybe I could this favoritism to get some good deals sometime in the future, before it wears off.

     "Sorry! The human is up! We need to talk to him! Need signs!" I filled everyone seated in. Several other kids' attentions were brought to me, and through the corner of my eye I even saw one stand. I was quick at the crafting table, planks and sticks whirling about it as I tried making signs as quickly as possible. Within seconds I was back out the door, about maybe five sighs trying to slip out of my hugging grasp.

     "W-wait! L- let me help!" Quancie chirped from behind. Gr, my rival. Oh well, it wasn't like we were really having that debate thing anymore, anyway. The girl panted behind me as I rushed for where the human was just finishing crafting. I quickly handed the signs over to Hokeson, who was staring curiously at the two golden items that had just been crafted. "Wh-what is he doing?" Quancie questioned, looking up at the weaponsmith. It appeared that she was driven more by curiosity than anything else, like the rest of us pretty much.

    "He just.." Hokeson looked as if even he didn't believe what he was reporting, "crafted, apples made of gold?" I stared down at the crafting table in astonishment. The human was already rummaging through his chest again. He pulled out an old warn book that had a few pages torn out, and was even a little singed at the corners. The human set such an item on the chest once it closed and in a hurry he flipped through the pages, eyes scanning over the foreign symbols that filled it. Finally he stopped to read one of the pages carefully. He then held the book open in his and and continued referring to the same page as he opened the chest gain to shuffle through. Out he pulled a handful of bright yellow and orange powder, a couple spider eyes, and a couple plain brown mushrooms.

     "Hu! That's blaze powder!" Quancie gasped over my shoulder. I had completely forgotten she was even there! Many villagers began crowding around as the human laid all the items down on the chest. So much so that Hokeson took it upon himself to make sure the human at least had a little space to work. The poor grass was getting trampled as a circle was formed around the outside crafting table, large chest, and stacked furnaces. The nice circle around the human was soon broken, however, when the human began limping again back to his house.

     "Quickly, Tim, the signs." The weaponsmith reached out for one and I stepped closer so he could actually grab it. With one arm, Hokeson pulled out the piece of paper that served as his translator and scanned over it for the right symbols to write. He then pinned the paper against himself with his elbow as he awkwardly began writing down the words he wanted to share. I couldn't exactly tell what he was writing by looking at the sign, but I could only guess it was a question. When he was finally finished, the villager with an eyepatch ran up to the human's right side and began waving the sign in front of him. Hokeson was completely ignored. The human just pushed past him, too focused on what he was doing to even really notice him. Maybe the fact that he was still extremely tired, with bags under his eyes and stuff, had something to do with it.

     I waited where the crowd wouldn't squash me, and I was glad I had too, for the human's trip had been quite short: he simply went inside to grab a couple empty bottles before struggling his way back on the leg wishing to drag behind him now. Hokeson continued trying to tell him in our usual language that he needed to stop and rest his leg, but as always, the human didn't understand him; and the signs were no help! Finally giving up communicating, Hokeson finally dropped his sign and shoved the translator back into his pocket, instead helping the human walk back to the chest covered in all sorts of random items. The one limping finally arrived back at his crafting table, immediately shoving items aside onto the chest, giving him space to work.

     "Woah, what is all the ruckus about?" Drake pushed through the crowd to me groggily, his upper half tightly bandaged under the robe sloppily put on over it. Everyone was nearly dead-silent, beside whispering, so Drake was quick to catch attentions.

     "The human is making something." I whispered over to the approaching villager.

     "What?"

     "I have no idea." I whispered back to my friend, eyes still on the human as he shoved the spider eye and moldy brown mushroom into a disgusting mush. "Hokeson hasn't been able to get his attention either. He seems in the zone."

     "Heh, ow, I can relate." Drake's shoulders hopped with the small chuckle, immediately making him regret it as a twinge of pain reminded him of his wound.

     "Fermented spider eye?" Quancie's voice asked above the rest, face cringing with disgust. "..Ew." She nearly barfed when the human set yet another red eye and old mushroom on the table to craft another. It certainly wasn't the funnest item to watch being crafted. Once the second glob of spider mush had been created, the human double checked the old book before walking off in a completely different direction: this time to his left for the nearby, Mr. Forx house. As Hokeson was there to help the human along, villagers all around began whispering questions of all kinds, as well as myself.

     "..What does he want with Mr. Forx' house?.." I followed along closely, Drake helping me keep my place in front of the crowd. My question was somewhat answered the moment the human opened Mr. Forx' front door. Sitting on the floor against the opposite wall of the small house, a brewer awaited its new job. Wait, was.. was the human making a potion? He was.

     Everyone crowded around Mr. Forx' front door, even peering in through his two small windows, watching the human as he set the two water bottles into the brewer, followed by the blaze powder as fuel and fermented spider eye as its only ingredient. All the villagers watched curiously as the bubbles in the bottle built up, slowly changing the color of the liquid inside the glass to a deep sea blue.

     "Anyone have any idea about what he just made?" Quancie asked from the other side of one of the two windows, only a little surer behind a couple who looked a lot more eager and curious than her. The human then grabbed the two bottles, slid them into his pocket carefully, and pushed himself up off the floor onto his one supporting foot. The other was merely there to make sure he didn't fall over at this point. He allowed Hokeson to guide him back out of the house, so long as he was in charge of his end destination. All eyes were on the hobbling one when he stopped only a moment at his chest to grab the two golden apples he had left behind, before picking up speed in his limping for a completely different direction this time. Brows began lifting when the human did not stop at the center of town, continuing for the outskirts of the village where the wall and water met. Drake, meanwhile, looked back through his memory for a potion that looked like the one he had seen the human just brew.

     Alas, the single human and many followers arrived nearly outside the village entirely, along the abandoned and rarely trampled road. The two, lonely, abandoned houses. Each with a single zombified villager inside. The human pulled his pickaxe off of him and began breaking into the stones keeping the first of the two villagers indoors. Quancie began to panic as she ran up to the miner, desperately pulling him back by the back of his shirt.

     "No! Please! Don't let them out; they will burn up!" She begged. Oh yeah.. these two must be the ones I heard about a few days ago: Quancie's parents. By this point the human had already broken from Hokeson's support, so it was a challenge keeping himself balanced on one tired leg with a young villager pulling him back. But, he was determined. Good thing his mining only stopped with the top of the two cobblestone blocks blocking the first inside, or else there would have certainly been a break out.. There almost was.

     The human fell backwards, nearly on top of Quancie, when the rotten green arm of the zombified villager stretched out for his head. Quancie was barely able to jump away when the human landed. With a huff, the brewer pulled out one of the potions as he sat up. Everyone, including me, began backing up, ready to run at the sight of the zombies villager starting ro crawl its way through the recent hole to freedom, swiping outward at the crowd. I myself was not all too interested in facing off against more zombies again. Not having time to stand, the human hoped for the best, throwing the dark blue potion directly at the zombie's face, immediately stunning it. Hokeson then helped the human up, and the brewer stepped forward with a determined scowl-almost sort of look on his face. Before the ghoul could recover from the blow the human pulled out his golden apple and quickly stepped up the stairs so that he could shove it down its throat. He ended it by pushing the zombie villager back ant blocking the entrance off again. He then scurried over to the second one next door to repeat the process, minus the falling down part. Following that, the human stood on a single block of cobblestone between the two houses, where he could watch through both windows on either side the zombies through them. All breaths were held at the sight of something, unusual, happening. Many stood in horror as the two green forms negan twitching and jolting unnaturally, vibrating even. Quancie held her breath for so long her face nearly turned blue.

     Time crawled by after that. Absolutely NO sound was heard for a solid three minutes or so. The atmosphere was the eeriest it had ever been. No one had a clue what the human was doing. They only hoped this wasn't him using the zombies as experiments. Or at least that was the thought racing through my head!

     And then.

     Finally...

     Life.

     The green receded from the two forms, their flesh repairing itself in an instant, their groans fading out, replaced with sighs of confusion. No one could believe it. Even the human looked a little surprised past his tired exterior. What once had been two lifeless husks of villagers, were living, breathing, people again. Still, there was silence, but this time it was of a completely different kind. The kind overwhelmed with astonishment. After nearly a full minute later of just standing around like a bunch of lifeless idiots, Quancie broke our staring with the first cheer.

     "MOM!! DAD!!!" She screamed. Cheers, whoops, and hollars followed. Friends of those who had been zombified were the most enthusiastic of the bunch. Drake stood far in the back with his jaw dropping lower than his shoulders, he was so impressed. Hokeson pulled out a stone pic and began slamming it into the cobblestone in order to allow the first of the two free. Pure confusion, mixed with a reasonable amount of shock, was plastered on the faces of those trapped inside. Nobody thought it was possible.. Yet, the human did it.

     "DAD!!" Quancie ran right into the house of the newly freed villager, greeted by even more confusion.

     "My.. Quancie, have you grown." He took notice, pulling his little girl into a hug. She looked so happy.. having her father back.. The two stepped back outside, father holding daughter now, and were greeted by even more cheering. I was pushed further back into the crowd as my energy didn't match all those jumping -- high-fiveing one another. The joy in Quancie grew even more, I could barely see through the villagers, as Hokeson let out her mother as well... They, all, looked.. so happy.. together...

     Finally, I had had enough. My brow sank over my eyes, and I turned from the rejoicing, pushing myself out of the crowd and away from it all. Never before had I felt so bad when everyone else was feeling so good. So happy. So hopeful. Meanwhile I had none of that! With nowhere to really go, I began sprinting for the house- no, the grave stone I usually sat on. My puny legs trying to hold up the body that felt as if it were about to explode like a creeper ran back in that direction, eyes filling with tears. Ahead of me, I could see the blurry form of the human, slowly making his way back in the same direction. Why..? Oh, why would he do such a thing? As I ran past the human, I kicked the leg he was dragging behind. Why would he put so much effort into saving Quancie's parents, but not mine?! The human was quick to cry out in pain as I past him swift as an ocelot. The only thing I heard from him after was the sound of him landing hard on the grass. I was only even more angered when such an action didn't give me the satisfaction I wanted. My eyes began to fill with water again. I had to get there fast. I had to make it, before my eyes gave up holding it in.

Section 9:

     My back pressed against the cobble grave of that old mob, the large iron gentle giant slumped beside me, trying to be there for comfort, I was embarrassed to even admit to myself that I was sad, as blatantly obvious as it was. I didn't even really know why I was so sad. Well, I did, but I also didn't, which made the whole thing even more frustrating.

     My hands stay stuck to my face, refusing to drop, allowing my red, tear soaken eyes to be visible. As much as the iron golem tried, it just wasn't what I needed, or wanted right then. 'No, I don't need another flower; why would you assume such a thing?!' What only made it worse was when I heard shuffling added with heavy breathing approaching my quiet place between a couple houses and the wall.

     "Tim!" It was Drake, except, he sounded stern, a little angry even. "Yo, I know you might not like how you feel so left out and such, but that is no excuse to go up and kick the human's already broken leg! How would you feel if he?!-" The green robed villager was caught off guard when he circled around the stone, finding me trying to hide the fact that I had just been crying from him. "..Timbo?.." I refused ro make eye contact with the elder, instead turning my back to him while forcing my breathing to even out. "Tim, are you.. crying?" He asked as if he had never seen me cry before. I continued blocking his presence out from my mind, ignoring him as he sat against the stone beside me. He then sat quietly, as I had done before with him.

     "What do you WANT?!" I snapped at him without any kind of warning, which made him jump. My eyes burnt into his as he turned back to view my deep scowl.

     "I- I- Nothing! I just thought you-"

     "Well I don't! I don't need to talk about it; I don't need the attention; I don't need anyone!! Now just leave me alone!!" I fought him off with my words, not caring at the time for his hurt expression. After a short stare-down, Drake began to listen. He slowly began to scoot away and stand to his feet. Finally, I could be somewhat alone again... But then, he didn't leave. In fact, he sat down right where he had been before. As much as I felt like shouting at me again, the other part of me preferred staying in my tight little ball with my chin resting on my knees.

     "...You know what?. No. You didn't leave me when I needed it." Drake chose to smile back at me instead, as he sat by my side, simply waiting for me to respond. No. I couldn't. I just couldn't cry in front of anyone else. It was against whatever unspoken code I had set for myself. "...So.. What is it?" Drake interrupted my blank staring at the ground.

     "Nothing." I growled.

     "Oh, come on. I know it isn't nothing.. Does it have to do with the human?"

     "No."

     "The zombies turning into villagers?"

     "No."

     "That girl?"

     "Oh my gosh! Would you please, stop talking and just GO already?!.. It's nothing." I stated, though I knew he knew better. Still, I didn't feel like talking. At my core, I didn't really want to know why I was so sad. I preferred the idea of leaving myself in the dark.

     "Oh.. I see... Your parents... You still wish they hadn't died.." My brow furrowed at his talking.

     "Noo! I don't care about any of that! I am just angry! Why can't I be angry for no reason, hu?!"

     "...Listen, I.. I am really sorry for not thinking about it sooner.. about how you have your own things, you.. feel sad about.. For the longest time I figured you were too young when they died to even care, and that the only one here with something.. was me. I, am sorry for the ignorance."

     "Pfff! Well you're dead wrong. I am perfectly fine. In fact, I am done here. I'll just get up and go apologize to the human or whatever." I said, after uttering, "Since that's the only thing anyone here ever cares about." I whispered sourly, beginning to walk away after I had stood. I yelped suddenly when I wound up going in the wrong direction: pulled into a tight hug by Drake himself, who had crouched down so we were at the same eye level, or almost at least.

     "Now listen." He began before I could tell him to let me go. "Even though I don't know anything about this kind of helping people out emotionally thing, I want you to know that I care. I care enough at least to not just let you walk away from me -- from whatever emotions I know you are fighting right now.. So, I just ask that you admit it. You don't have to be scared of your feelings. Just face them head-on, like any other fear. Just remember how brave you were when you rode your horse into the mob of enemies instead of away. You helped us escape. We wouldn't have made it out without your bravery."

     "But.." My voice began to weaken. It wasn't exactly fun to talk either with my chin over my friend's shoulder, arms feeling awkward stuck at my sides instead of hugging back like I they usually did. "But, I.. But I wasn't brave... I- I was still so scared.." I admitted.

     "But that is just the thing. You wouldn't be able to call yourself brave if you weren't even scared at first. That just isn't how it works. It is about admitting them, and allowing yourself to grow from it.. and whatever stuff I think I heard you tell me one time." He chuckled at last. I could feel water swell in my eyes for some reason. Was I really afraid of something so simple; something that was supposed to be basic villager nature, nearly as much as I was afraid of monsters.. if not even more? That question alone was quite painful to think on. Furthermore... Would I let such a fear consume me? No. I didn't want to be afraid anymore. I had more important things to do than be afraid, like getting out of this hug.

     "Alright, alright. Fine. I.. I do have emotions which I don't like to share, I guess." I spoke, bluntly.
     "Mind sharing then?" I could hear Drake smile.

     "Pff! Nice try, doofus!" I couldn't help but laugh a little, gaining in that moment the room needed to push from my friend, though at least this time I had a small smile on my face too. "You are nice, and thanks.. but don't think trapping me in a hug will help anything." I chuckled, both punching Drake's shoulders as well as the tears that had been building. "..I guess," I began thinking. "I guess kicking the human's already broken leg was pretty rude."

     "Oh, extremely rude."

     "..Right.." Immediate regret. "Just, I guess I was a little angry.. since, uh. He was able to bring back Quancie's parents, but not mine."

     "...I see.." Drake placed his hand on my shoulder. "While I may not be the best at talking, as you already know, just.. know that I am always willing to talk." I nodded, little smile returning.

     "Thanks."

Section 10:

     There was a moment of nice harmony, at least before Drake's face changed to that of an older brother getting onto his little sibling, and he stared me down with a sterner face. "Now.. I say it is time you tell the human sorry. Who knows, he might not be able to walk even longer because of that little stunt you pulled." He really wasn't like this often, so it was quite scary when he actually was. I hopped up, though I was already on my feet, and ran back to where I figured the human might be. Not too far from where I had kicked him, I was Hokeson finally helping up the human, who's injured leg was now throughly bandaged. I couldn't tell if the human was worried or angry when his blue eyes set on me again. Now, I notided, all his weight had to be put on his one good leg, and it looked as if even moving it would send small jolts of pain through him. Hokeson, meanwhile, looked away from the cast he had just finished wrapping just in time to scowl down at me too. I stood there meekly, not sure what kind of excuse I could come up with. Thankfully Drake, not far behind me, filled the void of silence for me. "He didn't really mean to hurt him. He was, just, angry." He informed, looking down at me as if telling me I could say more if I wanted to. But, I didn't really feel like it. Besides, one long look into Hokeson's eye and I could see the understanding appear in his face.

     "Ah.. Well, you need to let the human know you are sorry." Hokeson.

     "How?" Asked I.

     "I don't know. Uh, maybe give him something, or something." Hokeson sort of ordered, not even wanting to hint at the idea of actually writing to him or anything, since that idea had sort of flopped. I nodded, dug deep into my pockets, and pulled out an apple I had managed to grab a while back. It was a plain, ordinary apple, but there was honestly nothing else I could think of.

     "Oh! And, give him this." Drake handed me over my shoulder, nearly whispering as if trying to keep it a secret. Studying the large item he had suddenly given me, I was about to ask him why he would give the enchanted iron sword to me, instead of give it to the human himself. "..I don't exactly like trading directly with the human. I always just create things and trade them to others, so they can later give them to him.. Sort of like a secret business or something." I agreed, knowing that that was indeed what he usually liked to do in the past, and handed both the sword and apple over to the human, who accepted both, one at a time, stopping to stare a moment at the iron sword, admiring its enchantments. Then, he was off, back for his house. We all followed silently, except for Hokeson, who had stuck by the human's side pretty much the entire morning. Speaking of time, even though it was the middle of the day, I felt exhausted. All of us did. All the background chatter stuck around the two recently unzombified, still trying to understand exactly what had just happened. Though I still felt a little sour towards Quancie, I knew it was pointless being angry at them, since technically, they did absolutely nothing wrong. Almost the opposite, actually. Anyway, the entire walk back to the house certainly was uneventful. Drake even ended up leaving for his own bed, so it was just me and Hokeson. One would have thought it simply would have ended there, but then, we came up to the sign that Hokeson had dropped. Both me and the weaponsmith got a little tripped up when suddenly, the man froze, staring at the ground, which he had already been keeping careful watch of for any bumps or divots. When Hokeson realized what the human was so interested in, his face lit up.

     "Tim! H- hand me that sign!" He ordered with a growing smile, slowly sliding the human's arm off from over his shoulder. I did as told and grabbed the sign while Hokeson in a hurry rummaged through his pockets again. I could visibly see the excitement inside him rise. I handed Hokeson the sign and in return he handed me the folded piece of paper. "Now, hold this so I can see it." He instructed, pulling out something to write with again. My eyes snapped over to the human, who had one eyebrow raised in confusion, as he began piecing things together in his mind. I held out the piece of paper as Hokeson wrote before the human, anticipation the driving factor for all of us. When Hokeson had finished, he flipped the sign around, eager to see his reaction.

     "What did you write?" I asked.

     " 'Can you understand this?' " He answered. Hm, smart.

     Watching the human, he appeared to be frozen, beside the wavering he did on only one leg. But then, slowly, I watched as a small smile, quietly crept up onto the man's face.

     He nodded.

     Exhilarated, Hokeson began writing in a whirl once again. " 'Really?!' " Hokeson continued. The human nodded again, this time slower as he took the concept in. I watched the whole thing unfold in astonishment. Was this really happening? Sure it wasn't all just a dream? We were, actually, talking to the human? The human seemed to be processing the same, unbelievable idea at the same idea, for it surprised me when, from such a simple act, the human.. shed a single tear, eyes getting all soggy. Was he.. was he crying?

     " 'What is your name?' " Hokeson decided was the next most reasonable question to ask, this time handing the sign to him as well, with the question still on it. I did my part by turning so thst the paper I was holding was now facing the human instead of Hokeson. The human held the sign with so much disbelief and wonder on his face. His hands began to shake with such an item in them, and his eyes began running with tears he couldn't try to keep down. Almost ready to laugh at this guy for nearly crying over such a simple question, I hot a glance at Hokeson with a funny smile. Only, it dropped when I saw that Hokeson too was allowing small tears to leak from his eye. Suddenly I was the odd one out!. And I was alright with that. After the human managed to get his trembling hands under control -- my guess would be excitement or something -- he began carefully writing out each symbol in our language this time, squinting often at the little piece of paper I was holding before him. After carefully writing down five presice, recognizable letters onto the wood, he turned it our way for us to see, the warm smile on his face so big I honestly wondered how I ever hated such a guy.

     The sign read,

     "Steve"

.
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WHOOO! 6333 words! I ain't editin' this thing in a while!.. Especially since it is about 4AM again now, and I would like to sleep tonight. ^-^

Anywah, that concludes "Where?"! :D
See yall later in, "What?"

👋 Stay epic, n' stuff!