As they left, the dew on the dark green grass sparkled under them, and the three that were left behind watched them.
''Don't let Ike get hurt Father!'' A young girl, with short brown hair and teal blue eyes, yelled from within the walls of the fort.
''D-don't d-do anything t-to dangerous.'' A young teen, with carrot orange hair, requested as he shiver, smiled, and waved at the group of people leaving.
''Rhys, '' The little girl said as she turned to him, ''You should head to bed.''
''W-what? W-why?''
''Because you're sick, again.'' She huffs, like it was obvious, looking at his pale face. ''You're shaking like you've just walked through a snow storm. Your face is as pale as a ghost, and I beat your hands are the same."
Rhys, taken off by how direct she was, looked shocked as his eyes fell to the brown gloves that he was wearing. They were made for winter time, and anyone else would have them soaked with sweat. But his ice cold hands couldn't get warm enough to break in sweat.
"Mist, I can't go to bed, I-I told Griel that I'd look over you two." He said, stuttering from the cold He frown as he looked at her realizing that he was missing the other child "W-where is Rolf?"
"Hm?" Mist asked looking around, "He was with me when we were on our way to see everyone off. Do you think he went with them?"
"I-I d-doubt it." The Cleric stuttered, "Greil would never let him go off to battle with them. H-he must be s-somewhere in the c-camp."
Mist took a deep breath in and sighed as she walked off to search for him, as did Rhys. After almost everywhere, in his room, where is bow was sticking out from in between his mattress and the bed frame but Mist tucked it in the rest of the way; in the training ground where the two kids would watch their brothers train and argue for hours. They even checked the heal bushes, to see if he was picking some of the herbs for Rhys. But he wasn't there. The meeting hall was empty, other than the weapons and pieces of armor laying on the floor.
"D-did you find him?" Rhys asked, as Mist walked up to him.
"No." She said as she shook her head.
"Well I checked the Meeting room and the heal bushes." He said rubbing his arms for some warmth.
"I checked his room, and around the training grounds." Mist said, her hands now trembling.
"T-that leaves t-the mess hall." Rhys said as he turned to the big grey stone building.
The two made their way into the the kitchen. Brown wooden benches reached from one side of the building to where a hole was cut in the stone so people could get their food. The room, usually lit and filled with laughter and fellowship, was now dark and shadows fell over where everyone would sit and eat.
"Rolf!" Mist called out, the name echoing off the grey walls. Though he didn't call back, the sound of sniffling could be heard coming from the kitchen area.
"R-Rolf!" Rhys said, running to the kitchen and to make sure the child was ok, "R-Rolf?"
Rhys looked around the kitchen. He saw the iron pots and pans that were used for cooking, the large fire pit that they used to cook the food, and the silverware they used to eat, but Rolf was nowhere in sight. But his sniffling could still be heard.
"Rolf?" He asked one more time hoping to get some sort of response.
"Go away." A high pitched voice said, "I-I wanna be alone."
Rhys sighed as he bent down and opened a cubert to find a little boy, with light green hair, curled into a ball in the corner of it. "We've been looking everywhere for you, Rolf!"
"I want to be alone!" The green haired boy snapped at the cleric.
"Why?" Rhys asked, sitting down and getting his white fluffy coat dirty.
"I just do ok!" He said as Mist walked in.
"Don't yell at him Rolf." She said as she sat beside him.
"I-I'm sorry." He said, wiping snot away from his nose and tears from his sparkling green eyes. "I'm just scared."
"Scared of what?" Rhys asked softly
"T-that Boyd and Oscar won't-! That they won't-!" He tried to say it, but everytime he came close a lump filled his throat and tears stung in his eyes.
"Are you afraid they won't come back?" Mist asked finishing his sentence, and he could only nod back as tears feel down his face.
"Mom left me." He said through tears, "Daddy died. Now my brothers are going off and they'll die!"
Rhys eyes flew open hearing that, "Rolf, they're not going to die. Greil will be able to protect them!"
"How do you know?" He asked.
"Because I have faith Rolf." He said with a supportive smile, he had stopped shivering completely as he talked to the little kid, "The goddess will bring them back."
"Do you have something that your brothers gave you?" Mist asked, which earned a confused look from her friends. "My dad gave me this to hold onto." She said, reaching into her yellow shirt and pulling out a blue medellin. It had lines going into the middle of it, and wing design in between the lines, "He said that this use to be my mom's."
"Oh?" He asked sniffling, reaching for it "Can I see it?"
"No!" She said jerking it away, "I'm sorry Rolf. But my dad said never EVER let anyone touch it. Not even him or Ike."
"Oh." He said disappointed.
"Until they get back so you can get something from them." Rhys started, holding both their hands, "How about a quick prayer for our friends." Rhys suggested, "Just to be sure they'll come back."
"Do you think it'll help?" The green haired boy asked.
"I do." He assured as he bent his head down, "Merciful Goddess Ashera…"