Okay, so maybe I didn't think this through.
Being a tiny, scrawny 5'3 teenage girl wandering through the woods at random in hopes of stumbling upon a magical shack, unarmed but for a butterknife and a 12 year old container of pepper spray, I couldn't say that I was exactly safe.
But how could I be rational at a time like this?
It was the look in his eyes...
The deadened gleam, the dulled light as he looked at me... So desperately...
I couldn't take it.
The thought alone was enough to get me this far in the first place.
Yuto... I'm sorry...
I trusted Haruka to hold down the fort while I was away. I knew that the second Yuto realized where I was he'd come after me, but I also knew that the bubbly blonde had a way of getting what she wanted.
Haruka could be pretty convincing when she needed to be.
Biting my lip, I trudged on, thinking of Sora all the way.
It must've been a few hours at least before I started to notice something. I stopped where I stood and looked around. What was that...? I laid a hand over my chest. The farther this direction I headed, the tighter my chest seemed to feel...
I looked out down the path I was headed.
"....."
Not quite understanding, but nevertheless trusting my instinct, I headed straight, keeping my hand over my chest.

•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•

"Haruka! He's plenty warm, stop messing wit him!"

"What?? He shivered!"

"He's sick!"

"Oh yeah."

Yuto's head was spinning. He could hardly keep up with all the continuous antics that Haruka threw at him. And he thought he had a lot of energy... Though Sora's condition had worn him thin...
But he had to admit... Having her around did keep things lighthearted. He had needed to calm himself down... He'd never been this high strung.
Nevertheless, there was still that nagging thought in the back of his mind that Ayano was out there right now in danger. And he could do nothing about it.
The thought made his chest tighten.
Haruka had seemed to pick up on Yuto's unease, as she paused from her carrying the water basin towards the sink to fill it up. As she noticed him, she set the water down and stood by him.
"Hey... You okay?"
His tone was a quiet murmur. "....yeah.."
Haruka's voice was uncharacteristically soft and gentle. "She'll be okay. She's strong."

"...I know she is."

Yuto's eyes looked like he was about to cry. "But I can't help worrying about her."
The expression tugged on Haruka's heartstrings. He really cared about her...
Unsure of what else she could do for him, Haruka raised a hand and gently rested it on the top of his head, stroking down his hair gingerly. She continued the motion sweetly, patient, lacing her fingers through his soft, dirty blond hair until his body stopped shaking with the need to cry. He felt his muscles relax and his eyes fell closed.
Even though it was just a little reassurance, the gesture was just what he'd needed.
Haruka tried not to grin too big.
What's this? How adorable.
Despite feeling a little triumphant at having such a positive effect on him, she continued solely to help ease his nerves.
After a long while, Yuto opened his eyes again and Haruka took that as her cue to let him go. As she lowered her arm, Yuto reached both of his out and pulled her into a warm hug.
"....thank you....." He murmured.
Haruka actually found herself blushing.
When they parted and their eyes met, Haruka opened her mouth to say something and was cut off as Sora began to stir.
Both of them snapped their attention to him, going to his bedside.
"Sora??" Yuto called tentatively.
Sora didn't answer, but contorted his face with a soft, pained grunt as he squirmed before his eyes cracked open.
His dull eyes scanned the two for a moment before he croaked. "...where's...a...ayano...?"
Haruka and Yuto both tensed at the question they'd heard him ask at least four times over. A question they couldn't answer.
"...ayano," he grunted again. "...where is she...?"
He let out a cough as the two members of the guilty party exchanged glances.
They still hadn't planned on telling him anything, and they wouldn't have, had Sora not done what Yuto was afraid of.
He looked directly into Yuto's eyes and his voice was as hard as he could make it.

"... Yuto. Tell me where she is."

To top it all off, he said the word which sealed the order. "Now."