Chapter 13

He couldn't be mad at them for accidentally trampling the runes that could have kept it from getting that close. They certainly had had something better to do than being careful as to where exactly they put their feet. Practically everything else that could be blamed for what had happened was something someone who was fighting for their lives and those of others would not think to pay attention to. This also meant that Sigrun had absolutely no excuse to have neglected to tell Mikkel about her arm disturbing her. For once, he and Mikkel could agree about something. Even he could tell that catching that bat beast before it bit Tuuri's face was a long shot, but Sigrun had been the only one with a somewhat realistic opportunity to keep it from happening. And the remote possibility that she could have maybe managed it if she hadn't let that infection build up was enough for Reynir to be mad at her.

One of the other reasons he was mad, he still couldn't quite understand himself. He'd told himself plenty of times that the crew was indeed better off with him alive than dead. But now, for some reason, he wished that he, and not Tuuri, had been the one that had been bitten by that bat. If he cared enough to not want to see her get in trouble for allegedly mistreating Lalli, he obviously cared enough to not want to see her die. However, the idea of seeing her die hurt much more than he felt it should, and the wish to have been bitten instead surpassed all the rational reasons he could come up with to not feel that way. Right now, all the immunes were outside, some of them scanning for surviving trolls and beasts. The least he could do was stay inside until they were done, especially since he wasn't sure he had anything to contribute other than the temptation to yell at them all. He had just enough of his wits left to realize that any yelling at them would only make things worse. Because of that, the second thing he could do was do what he could to calm down on his own, so he would be composed by the time someone talked with him again.

What was she going to do? Onni had asked her to bring him news via dreamspace as soon as she found out anything, and now Tuuri insisted upon telling him herself once he woke up. Hildur couldn't just not go there either, as here mere absence would be almost as bad as actually telling him that there was bad news concerning one of his family members. Especially that she felt partly responsible, having had the extremely vivid thought that she would give anything for the crew, and especially Reynir, to survive that night. Everyone had indeed survived that night. But Onni's own little sister may very well not survive the next month. How could she face him after that, whether in the dream world or the waking one? In the end, her thoughts were able to cohere into a sentence that ended up being her verbal answer to Tuuri:
-I am so sorry.
They didn't have to know about the thought she'd had last night, she decided. Fortunately, she had a more acceptable reason to be sorry as well. She explained the delicate position in which Tuuri's request put her, how complicated concealing the truth could get in the dreamspace, that she yet wanted to grant Tuuri's request without creating circumstances that would let Onni know that there was something going on earlier than intended. Tuuri stayed silent for a few moments before replying:
-Sigrun. Her arm is in bad shape. An infection built up on some of her wounds from two weeks ago. Mikkel says it will be treatable with medicine, but if it weren't for me, this would be the most serious thing that happened. If he notices you being worried or can guess you're not telling him something, tell him it's about that.
An infection building up on an old wound. It was still one of the more worrying things that could happen to non-immune people, and something that deserved attention on its own. Hildur realized that there was another truth she could tell Onni: everyone was alive and in no risk of dying anytime soon (if one took "soon" as meaning "only the next few days") and it was all thanks to him.

-Ghosts. Keep away. No fire.
That was it. The world was definitely telling him that he being much sadder about Tuuri than he was entitled to. The person on the crew who had every right to spend the day sulking about it in some corner if he chose to was handing him drawing materials and telling him to use them to do something useful. Okay, he got the message. No time like the present to get started. Reynir realized something only as he started drawing runes:
-Wait, how are we going to know if any of these work before tonight?
He had asked the question in Norwegian, hoping he would have a better chance to be understood.
-Ghosts. Hiding. House. Not far. I go. With drawings.
-Got it. Thanks.
Lalli just stood next to the tank's entrance, watching him work on the steps. Reynir was quite sure he saw Lalli pick up Kitty to hug her less than an hour ago. If hugging the cat could perform such a miracle on Lalli's mood despite him hating the animal very existence most of the time, Reynir wouldn't mind trying this himself. Unfortunately, just about everyone else needed the cat for something, so his own turn with her would have to wait.