My good humor has begun to fade now as exhaustion creeps in. I open my knapsack and take out the last peach that I plucked from the tree in my garden the day before I left.
“I need protein,” I mumble, wiping sweat from my forehead despite the cool morning. “Real meat.” I glance around the forest, listening for signs of small game, but my ears are ringing slightly from the fever. “Should’ve brought my crossbow.”
While I’m good with knives, I’m better with a crossbow. The pack never gave me food rations, so I had to hunt my own meat. In my current state, though, I doubt I could catch an injured deer. Luna tilts her head, studying me with those knowing eyes.
“Yeah, well, I couldn’t exactly carry it when we were escaping,” I tell her, my voice slightly hoarse.
I start walking again, each s
