A Week Later
Lenny scribbled in her journal now running out of pages. The last couple of days Iago and Nau have been fighting like cats and dogs. Both seem to try and get me to pick one of them, I can't understand why Iago won't try and get along with him for now. Nau keeps telling me about his culture, it's fascinating. Iago keeps telling me about the spirit. I think Iago's got a crush again; this one is definitely the dumbest. I just hope he doesn't chase it like he did with Cass. To be completely honest I blame Iago for his death, if Iago wouldn't have gone chasing his crush on Cass he never would have gotten sick. But if Iago chases this one I got a feeling he's gonna be the one dead.
Lenny snaps her journal shut and shoves it back in the bag. She stomped over to Nau and Iago who were arguing again.
¨Boys! How about we go on a little stroll?¨
¨No, I feel terrible. The blueblood must have poisoned me!¨
¨I did no such thing, get your panties out of a twist and stop blaming me for everything that goes wrong!¨
Groaning Lenny put in.
¨Nau, there's basically no way Iago poisoned you, he's blind so how would he find the posion also he makes such a racket going anywhere with his crutches and him falling over and crashing into things all the time. But I can tell you both need a change a scenery!¨
"I could, and I'm not that loud! I just wouldn't waste my time with something like that!" Iago snapped, she fought past the lump in her throat and tried to chuckle.
Iago fell behind them leaning heavily on his crutches, meanwhile Lenny and Nau stayed up front, Nau striking up the conversation.
"Don't worry about him, wait I never asked, you his mane?"
"Mane? Oh you asking if we're dating?"
"Yeah he's your lover?" Nau asked, looking down at Lenny.
"Ew, no he's like my brother. Also Im Twelve."
"Then what's with the gitup? I thought only adults had to wear that?" Nau asked, taking a step away from Lenny.
Lenny proceeded to tell Nau about the religion practiced in CrossWoods, Nau nodded along usually looking confused. She also explained her veil and how she wished she didn't have to wear it but she understood why most of the others liked the veils.
They continued talking about the veils for quite some time, Lenny never looking behind her for Iago. Nau said less and less, usually just nodding along to what Lenny was saying and slowing his pace.
Once they were walking at such a slow pace Lenny started to hear Iago again, he was talking to himself...but she was quickly distracted from Iago's conversation with himself when Nau clutched his hand to his mouth and fell to his knees.
"Nau!" Lenny called out to Nau; he didn't respond. Nau looked up, his eyes were clouding over, he held a hand over his mouth with such desperation his claws dug into his face, blood pooling around the tips of his claws.
Lenny bent down on the ground next to Nau and pulled his hand from his face, gasping. The glowing mushrooms were growing out his mouth, their roots twisting from his fangs and climbing his face. Nau desperately tried to tear them out to no avail. Tears rained down Lenny's cheeks as she watched Nau's body fall limp and the life drain from his clouded amber eyes.
"Iago! Please help!" Lenny sobbed, shaking Nau desperate for him to wake up.
"Don't touch him, it could spread. The runed stones were probably the only thing keeping that from happening." Iago replied without a drop of sorrow in his voice. Lenny pulled her hands away as she watched the fungus grow over Nau.
"If this stuff is so, so...how can you eat it?"
"I take it that it's only poisonous to his kind, but to keep you from having gut aches I've been carving runes into the mushrooms."
"You did this, didn't you? You killed him!"
"I thought I was just a blind klutz? You've been saying that the whole time we were with Nau..." Iago said, stepping toward Lenny. She stammered.
"How did you even know they would do...that?"
"He knows quite a lot about this area, he knows what will make it so I can keep you safe and get you home."
"Now the only thing we're gonna do is starve!" Lenny screeched at Iago before storming off