"Stephen! I thought you were deead!"

Several days had passed since his run-in with the insolent little girl who had patched him up. He couldn’t get their encounter out of his mind. The jeering giggles and sardonic expression she wore as she defined him was so clear inside of his head, and continued to haunt him even in her absence. He had stalked out her home for several days, arriving and departing at random times as he sought her out. What he would do with her once he found her… well, his mind ran wild with possibilities. But each time he tried to find her, it was like she had vanished into thin air.

This was why Sephiran had stayed in the redwood forest, despite how much he hated the cold. Because that’s how obsessed he already was. Aresenn hadn’t crossed his mind in a while, and nearly a week or longer had passed since their last encounter. And yet, he couldn’t help the sneer that tugged at his lips as the pirate boy made a sudden appearance. Ahh, there you are.” Sephiran pivoted to face him, revealing the lacerations that were still healing along his side. “Enjoying the afterlife?” He retorted, lips curling tighter as he flashed him a toothy smirk. The two of them had faced death so many times now, who could be certain that they were actually still alive?

"Speech"