Chapter 32: Silver
The deeper Dune and Nely walked into the forest, the more the colors around them shifted, deep green leaves gave way to streaks of gold and orange, as if autumn had begun touching this part of the woods. Birds flitted between branches, their chirping growing louder, and small creatures scurried through the underbrush, unbothered by the two travelers passing through.
As they moved along the narrow, winding path, Nely cast a sidelong glance at Dune. Her gaze lingered on the thin scar running along the side of his neck, barely visible in the dappled sunlight filtering through the leaves.
"So..." she said, nudging him lightly. "Are you gonna tell me why you aren't healing those scars?"
Dune's fingers instinctively brushed against the mark. "I don't know," he admitted. "I mean, I don't know why Neba didn't heal it."
His words lingered in the air, and for a moment, his mind drifted inward. Why didn't Neba heal this? he thought. It's the same with my eye. Back then, when Ned injured me, Neba didn't heal that scar either...
A small frown tugged at Nely's lips as she studied him. "You good?" she asked, suspicion laced in her tone. Dune snapped out of his thoughts and forced a small grin. "Yeah, yeah, I'm good." She didn't look convinced, but she let it slide.
"How old are you again?" Nely asked casually.
Dune opened his mouth to answer, sixteen, he almost said. But then he hesitated. A memory surfaced, hazy but certain. 25th December... His birthday had been... days ago? Maybe a week? He hadn't even realized. He'd been too busy trying to survive.
"...Seventeen," he corrected himself.
Nely stopped mid-step, blinking at him. "Wait. What?"
Dune rubbed the back of his neck, glancing away. "Yeah, I, uh... kinda forgot."