“What!”, Kidd shouted and spun around, ready to face whatever was awaiting her.
However, darkness was all that greeted her. There were no sounds to be heard except of the dripping water and Harle’s hard breathing. She was sitting in the back corner again, with her hands over her eyes and her body shaking with fear.
Kidd walked forward cautiously and unsheathed her dagger. Listening closely, she tried to figure out the position of her opponent. But there was nothing to be heard. No footsteps, no breathing. Nothing.
By the time she reached the exit of the cave, she let out a deep sigh. Then she turned around and walked back to Harle.
“No one’s here, Harle. Let’s go, it’ll be difficult if we have to fight in here.”, she said, bending down to her.
However, Harle winced and shook her head. “Non, he iz here…we can’t ezcape.”
With a sigh, Kidd took Harle’s hand and pulled her upright. She knew how hard this must be for Harle, but they had to get to a safe place and think about what to do, and this cave certainly wasn’t a save place. It was too dark and narrow to fight and the dragon would probably just overrun them.
“He won’t find us if we leave now. C’mon.”, Kidd said and stroked Harle’s hand softly.
Harle wanted to pull away at first, but Kidd held her hand firmly.
“Listen, Harle. As long as ya hold my hand, nothin’ will happen ta ya, okay? I’ll protect ya, I promise.”
Harle just stared at her with teary eyes and nodded faintly. She wanted to trust Kidd’s words. She really wanted to believe that she was safe with Kidd, that Kidd would protect her no matter what happened. She really wanted to.
Kidd just smiled and together, they made their way towards the exit of the cave.
“Did you find them?”, Jack asked hopefully after meeting the three other sailors at their agreed meeting place, the bar in Guldove.
“Nope, not a single trace. I guess they aren’t here.”, Gregory, the biggest of the other sailors, answered and shrugged. He could care less if they found them or not, this job wasn’t really to his liking anyway. He was a pirate after all, and not some wannabe detective searching for lost kids.
It wasn’t that he disliked Kidd or Harle, though. He just thought that they could take care of themselves and didn’t need four men to waste time searching for them.
“No, you’re just not searching carefully enough! They must be here, so get moving and find them, we just have time until tomorrow.”, Jack ordered harshly, furious at the indifferent behaviour of his companions.
Gregory looked down on him sceptically, not really enjoying being ordered around by this youngster. However, he just grunted and left the bar, with the other two sailors following him.
“Useless bunch.”, Jack mumbled angrily, setting down his glass loudly. The barkeeper shot him a disapproving glare, but Jack just shrugged. He honestly didn’t care. Even if he was thrown out, what kind of difference would it make? His sole goal was to find Harle, and nothing else.
And even though he didn’t want to admit it, he was clueless about where to look. He had basically asked every person on this isle about Harle and Kidd, but no one seemed to know them. He tried to tell himself that he just wasn’t good at explaining, but that excuse wouldn’t last until the next day, when they still wouldn’t have found them.
With a sigh he got up from his stool, draining his glass before leaving the bar. The drink had made him slightly dizzy, but he could still walk.
Taking a few deep breaths of air outside of the bar, Jack continued his search. He intended to go to the Dragon Shrine, as most of the people in this village had advised him to. The woman there, Steena, supposedly knew about everything, especially concerning dragons. Harle was talking about dragons, and even though Jack didn’t know anything about it, this woman just might know the answers to his questions.
“Do ya wanna rest? Ya look bloody tired.”, Kidd asked, regarding Harle with worry.
Harle was sweating and breathing hard, and Kidd didn’t want to push her too much. With a glance ahead, Kidd saw that Arni Village wasn’t far anymore. About twenty minutes maybe.
“Moi iz…fine.”, Harle said with a weak smile, but failed to hide the truth. Her steps were slow and tired and her arms just hung limply to her sides.
“Aren’t we energetic today?”, Kidd asked and laughed, but stopped dead when Harle fell down on her knees.
“Harle!”, Kidd all but shouted and knelt down to look at her.
Sweat was trickling onto the ground beneath her and her arms and legs were shaking, struggling to make her stand up again. Kidd bit her lip and silently extended her hand to pull her up.
Harle didn’t notice it at first, trying to deal with the blur she was seeing. It made her dizzy and her head began to ache so much she wanted to scream. However, she didn’t dare to, afraid that they could hear her. As she listened closely, she could even hear them, their steps following them from a distance.
They had to get away from here, and fast.
With a sudden jerk, Harle shot up again ran forward. They should waste time, they should get away…
However, her knees gave in soon and so she stumbled and fell to the ground after a few metres.
Kidd ran up to her, regarding her worriedly. She felt bad about having joked about her condition. She had just tried to make her laugh, but now it seemed as if the situation was far worse than she had expected.
“C’mon, lemme help ya.”, Kidd said gently and helped Harle to stand up. Kidd tried hard not to show the concern she was feeling.
“Put yer arms around my neck.”, she said, smiling sympathetically. Harle did as she said and Kidd lifted her up into her arms, using one arm to support her back and the other for the legs.
Despite the circumstances, Harle blushed faintly at the gesture and leaned her head onto Kidd’s chest.
“…sorry.”, she muttered apologetically. She hated to be such a burden to Kidd, but she couldn’t do anything. She wondered why she was feeling so tired and empty…
“Don’t worry about it. Actually, I’ve always wanted ta carry ya like this. Kinda romantic, don’t ya think?”, Kidd asked and laughed brightly, causing Harle to giggle.
“…je t’aime.”, Harle whispered, but when Kidd looked at her she was already unconscious.
A frown appeared on Kidd’s face as she thought about their current situation. She still wasn’t sure about this whole dragon thing. She wanted to believe Harle, but at the same time, she had to see it with her own eyes to be able to fully believe it.
But no matter if it was true or not, she would make Viper pay for what she did to Harle…to them.
Kidd hadn’t thought Viper would go that far. Get the maps back, if they were really that important to him, sure, but this was crazy.
However, this was one reason to find out what he was actually hiding in those places on the map. Maybe they were too slow and unprepared back there in Marbule, but they still had a chance for Porre and Guardia. The chances were good that Viper had his hands full with finding her and hadn’t send troops to Porre yet.
As for Harle, if she believed what Eve had told her, then they thought Harle was dead, which they could use to their advantage. But regardless of what they were about to do about Viper, Harle’s condition came first. If she didn’t recover until tomorrow, then she had to think of an other plan, possibly invading Viper Manor directly.
It took her half an hour to finally reach Arni. It was already late into the night, so the streets were mostly deserted. She saw light through the window of the bar, but that was the last place she wanted to be right now.
So she made her way to the inn where she had slept the previous night as well. Just as she was about to open the door, she heard a loud voice.
“Leena! Where are you going? What’s wrong?” Kidd instantly identified the voice as Serge’s and tried hard to suppress a laugh.
She couldn’t see much in the dark, but she heard Serge calling after Leena several times, obviously looking for her. Kidd shrugged and opened the door to the inn, trouble between Leena and Serge were thankfully not her concern.
“Hey Kidd!” Kidd shut the door again and turned around. It was Serge, catching for breath but smiling nonetheless.
“That her?”, he asked cautiously, stepping closer to get a better view of the unconscious person in Kidd’s arms.
“Yeah, just like ya said, she was at the Divine Dragon Falls. She was a little weak and fell unconscious, but I’m sure she’ll be fine until tomorrow. Thanks a lot, Serge. For helping me.”, Kidd said and bowed slightly. She was truly grateful to him, for without his help, she’d probably be walking through the Hydra Marshes right now.
“I didn’t really do anything. It was just an idea and I could’ve been totally wrong as well. But I’m glad you got her back. You seem much happier already.”, Serge said and smiled.
Kidd felt her cheeks redden considerably and was glad that it was dark. “Yeah, I really am. I don’t know what I’d do without her.”
Now it was Serge’s turn to blush and he scratched the back of his head sheepishly.
“Glad to hear everything turned out alright. If you ever need help with anything, just say it.”, Serge offered and smiled. “Anyway, I have to go and find Leena. She’s been pretty upset lately, just don’t ask me why.”
“Good luck, mate. I’m not too sure, but I think I saw her goin’ that way.”, Kidd said and pointed to her right. Actually, she was pretty sure about Leena’s whereabouts, she doubted anyone else would spy on them this late at night. Serge hadn’t noticed her, but Kidd knew she had been watching the from afar during their whole conversation. Whether she was just being overly curious or jealous, Kidd didn’t know. But she wasn’t terribly interested either.
“Thanks, and good night.”, Serge said and ran into the direction Kidd had indicated.
“Night.”, Kidd mumbled and went inside the inn. After a short conversation with the owner of the inn, she went upstairs, laying Harle gently down on the bed.
Harle still had pearls of sweat on her forehead, and Kidd started to worry that she might have a fever. However, as she touched Harle’s forehead, it was rather cold instead of hot.
Sitting down on the edge of the bed, she gently took Harle’s hand into hers, hoping to diminish whatever nightmares planned to attack her.
She wasn’t terribly sleepy herself, having rested more than enough the previous night, so she decided to watch over Harle instead. Her poor Harle, she must have gone through so much…if only she knew how to make her fears go away…
“Kidd…”, Harle whispered, shaking Kidd out of her thoughts. Kidd looked at her, surprised to see her awake so soon.
“How are ya feelin’?”, she asked softly, regarding the other girl with loving eyes.
“Much better…merci beaucoup.”, Harle answered weakly. It wasn’t a lie, but it wasn’t the truth either. She felt better because the headache and dizziness was wearing off, but she still felt too weak to do much.
“That’s good ta hear. I bet you’ll be in top shape in the morning.”, Kidd said and smiled, stroking Harle’s hand.
“What…what about toi? Aren’t you trés tired?”, Harle asked, wondering how Kidd could still seem so full of energy when she had obviously carried her all the way to Arni.
“No, I slept so much last night. Well, actually I was unconscious, it’s a pretty long story, I’ll tell ya some other time. Anyway, I’m not tired, but you should get plenty of rest now.”
“Won’t you come here, anyway? S’il te plaît?”, Harle asked hopefully.
“If ya don’t mind…it’s kinda small for two people.”, Kidd said and pointed on the bed Harle was lying in.
“Moi doezn’t mind…”, she replied and managed a weak grin.
“Me neither.” Kidd chuckled and took her boots off. Lying down on the bed, she rolled to the side and embraced Harle from behind, snaking her arms around the other girl’s body.
A few minutes passed without either of the speaking. The silence was reassuring to both of them and for the first time in what felt like an eternity, Harle felt safe again. In these arms, which she had missed for far too long.
“Ya know…I missed ya a lot.”, Kidd whispered, breaking the silence. Harle didn’t say anything, but took Kidd’s hands into hers, pressing them softly.
“When they told me ya died…I totally freaked out. I couldn’t believe it, didn’t want to…”, she paused, suppressing the sobs that came with frightening ease, “I was so worried…I almost thought I’d lost ya forever. It was terrible…”
Harle could hear Kidd sniffling and she felt her slim form tremble against her back. However, as she opened her mouth to speak, no appropriate words came to mind. She felt bad, hearing Kidd so weak, but she was also glad. Glad to know that Kidd felt the same.
“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to…”, Kidd said hastily and wiped away her tears, “I shouldn’t break down like that, not when you’re like this…” Kidd took a deep sigh to calm herself, but the tears just kept on pouring from her eyes.
“It’s no good…”, she sobbed, her voice cracking. She hated herself like that. She usually didn’t cry, much less in front of Harle, but this moment…it felt so much like a dream she had yearned for so long, almost had given up hope upon…
“It’z okay for you to cry.”, Harle finally whispered, turning around to meet Kidd’s eyes. Her cheeks were still wet and Harle leaned in, kissing the tears away, one by one.
“Je t’aime.”, she whispered faintly, barely audible.
“Love you too.”, Kidd said and met Harle’s lips in a gentle kiss.
Harle closed her eyes, savouring the sensation. After these last days, where she had gone through hell, this kiss meant so much more to her than ever before. It made her feel safe, loved…wanted. It made her feel glad to be alive.
When their lips parted again, Kidd smiled at her gratefully and hugged her tightly.
“Thank you.”, Kidd said as she drew Harle even closer, “Thank you.”
“Come in.”, a rough voice called from inside the room right after she had knocked.
Eve hesitated a moment, collecting her thoughts. She was aware that this conversation might end with her permanent dismissal or worse, but she was determined to get to know the truth.
She opened the door tentatively, spotting Viper behind his desk, as usual.
“Soldier Eve, reporting in.”, she said loud and clearly while bowing and saluting to the man in front of her.
Viper scrutinized her, frowning. After a few moments, his face relaxed obviously.
“You’re that missing soldier from the Longinus One, I take it?”, he asked calmly.
“Yes, sir. I’m terribly sorry for this incident. I tried to follow…the target after she leapt off the ship.”, Eve explained while bowing apologetically.
Viper nodded briefly. This was about the same as the other soldiers had told him about this case. “Inform me on what happened afterward.”
“I…followed her until we reached a small island, which I don’t know the name of. I tried to recapture her, but she turned out to be stronger than me and disarmed me. However, I managed to escape and came here directly.” Small drops of sweat formed on Eve’s forehead as she tried to explain the story without involving Kidd too much.
“You said she disarmed you, yet you have this impressive sword with you.”, Viper stated, obviously requesting an explanation.
“I had to buy a new one to make sure I arrived here quickly and securely.”, Eve answered, trying her best to keep her cool, all the while thinking about a way to take the conversation into the direction she wanted.
“I have to wonder what kind of thief the target is, leaving you with enough money to buy such an expensive weapon.”, Viper said with an evil smile.
“I don’t think the target is this kind of thief. As far as I’m informed, she didn’t steal money or gold from the Treasure Vault while she was here. So I concluded that she just wanted to make sure I couldn’t harm her. I don’t think she is interested in mere money.” Eve’s voice trembled slightly as she said this. She knew Viper wanted to corner her with his questions, knew that he didn’t believe everything she said.
“Do you think so? It almost sounds as if you know her pretty well.”, Viper said and looked at her intently, awaiting her reaction.
“I don’t, sir, and I am sorry if it sounded like that. However, concerning this incident, I’d like to mention the disregard of my situation by the whole crew on board. It would have been easy to follow us, yet they didn’t show up to help me.”
Actually, Eve was glad they hadn’t shown up, otherwise she wouldn’t have had the chance to get to know Kidd like this, but the fact remained that they didn’t care about one of their own. And also, it served as the perfect distraction. Eve didn’t know how long she would have been able to think of answers to Viper’s questions.
“I fear I’m the one at fault for this. I did take note of your situation, the crew had informed me right away. However, I’m sorry to say that there had been more pressing matters at hand, for which I required immediate support of the Longinus One. But I’m glad to see that you are independent and strong enough to deal with these kinds of matters alone.”, Viper said with a content smile.
Lies. Eve knew that he had to be lying. He was so intent on capturing Kidd and this other girl at all costs, and yet he said there had been more important things than helping her in doing exactly that? It almost made her laugh.
“Nevertheless, you seem quite exhausted, I suggest you rest in your quarter. I won’t assign any missions to you for the next few days, so be sure to recuperate well. Good work.”
Eve immediately knew that he didn’t want her in this mission anymore. He obviously didn’t want her to discover the truth, so he would keep her away under the pretence that she needed to rest. Eve didn’t want that to happen no matter what. However, she recognized the clear dismissal in Viper’s voice and knew better than to argue with him now. She would have to find an other way to get the information.
“Wake up, sleepy head.”, Kidd whispered softly as she leaned in to kiss the girl next to her gently.
Harle didn’t move at first, but as Kidd continued to kiss her down her neck, a small smile appeared on her lips.
“So ya were awake after all.”, Kidd said playfully and kissed her on the nose.
“Bon matin.”, Harle said sleepily, her smile widening as she laid her arms around Kidd’s neck. “Why, moi doezn’t want to know what you do when moi iz really asleep.”
Kidd giggled and brought her face closer to hers. “So you’re sayin’ ya don’t appreciate my style of wakin’ ya up? Maybe I should get a little more…drastic next time?”
“Drastic? How…”, Harle paused, thinking for a moment. Then her face darkened and she looked at Kidd dangerously. “You wouldn’t dare.”
“Oi, I wouldn’t? You’re sayin’…I wouldn’t dare ta wake ya like…this?”, she said seductively as she slowly trailed her fingers all the way down Harle’s stomach.
Harle’s eyes widened as Kidd’s hands reached the hem of her pants, slowly crawling underneath it.
“You’re sayin’ I wouldn’t use the most drastic of means ta wake ya from yer beauty sleep?” A huge smirk appeared on her lips as she saw the scandalized look on Harle’s face.
Harle opened her mouth to say something but stopped dead when she felt Kidd’s hands clutching to her waist suddenly.
By the time she realized, it was already too late. Within seconds Harle was laughing brightly, squirming underneath Kidd, trying her best to escape her tickling.
“Non, non!”, she shouted, laughing uncontrollably. It was almost too much for her. Between her laughs and giggles, she desperately gasped for air, only to laugh even more.
“Stop, s’il te plaît!”, she finally begged, struggling to get free. She tried to pry Kidd hands away from her waist, but to no avail.
Eventually, Kidd released her and dropped on the bed beside Harle.
“I guess I should stick ta the other method after all. This one’s too loud, we’d wake the whole ship.”, Kidd said and chuckled.
Harle just glared at her, trying to catch her breath. “Meanie.”
Kidd just laughed in response and smiled at her. “C’mon, ya loved it.”
Harle smiled in return, cupping Kidd’s cheek with her right hand. “Oui.”
Indeed, Harle hadn’t felt this good in a long time. After the previous night, laughing helped her a lot.
Before they had finally gone to sleep last night, they had told each other what had happened to them the previous days.
Harle had told Kidd about all her fears she had these last few days, Kidd’s assumed death, the almost permanent presence of dragons, her attempted suicide…it had been too much for her. She hadn’t been able to think clearly anymore as she wandered around without much of a goal, and as she looked back now, it seemed like a nightmare. But now, knowing that Kidd was here with her, she almost felt as if she could do it. Face the dragons again. Kill them. She would be able to do it. Maybe.
However, Kidd hadn’t felt much better these previous days either. This time when she had almost lost her mind, the time she tried to kill Eve. Kidd knew that if she would have had to endure any more days without knowing if Harle was well, she surely would’ve lost her mind completely. She had felt bad ever since then, always wanted to apologize to Eve, to say more that she had said in the end. But after telling Harle everything, she had felt like a huge burden had been lifted off her shoulders.
Admittedly, it was odd. The way she had been over the last days, it almost scared Kidd. She had been so…unstable. Weird. Violent. Depressed.
But ever since having Harle by her side again, it started to get better fast. She almost felt like her old self again. Sure, there were still scars on her soul, and they wouldn’t heal quickly, but she was sure, that someday, she would be able to forget about this ugly side of herself that showed itself because of the loss of Harle.
“Ya wanna eat breakfast? I’m starvin’.”, Kidd asked, sitting up. Indeed, she hadn’t eaten anything the whole last day, and not much the day before that, either.
“Moi aussi.”, Harle answered and chuckled, getting up as well. With a disapproving look, she regarded her clothes, which she had slept in because she had been too tired to take them off. They were crumpled all over, just like Kidd’s were as well.
As Kidd noticed the look on Harle’s face, she began to laugh.
“Guess we’ll have ta get back ta the ship soon, we look like beggars or somethin’.”
“How…how do we get back to ze bateau? Do you know where it iz?”, Harle asked as they went downstairs to the small restaurant which served breakfast as well.
“Ya mean ya don’t know where it’s at? Haven’t ya seen ‘em since Marbule?”, she asked after she had ordered breakfast for the two of them.
“Moi did meet zem, mais…it’z trés difficile…”, Harle stuttered, thinking about the best way to say this. “…moi left zem…it was so hard wit’out toi, Kidd…”
Kidd was surprised to see Harle so worried about this, but didn’t want to press the matter. “It’s okay, we’ll find ‘em in no time. I might even know where they are…”
They both took their plates and settled at a table near the window.
“Hey, where have you been all this time? Viper wouldn’t tell us anything! I was worried.” Clair, with whom Eve shared her quarter, asked sternly after stepping inside their room. Eve was lying on her bed, staring at the ceiling, apparently lost in thought.
Clair sighed and sat down on her bed. “Hello? Anybody home?”
Eve stirred, then her eyes moved to see who was in front of her. “Oh, hi Clair. Don’t you have duty today?”
“Well yes, but I switched with Timothy when I heard you were back. So tell me, where were you? I almost thought you’d never come back and Viper wouldn’t let us send a search squad for you.” Clair explained exasperatedly.
“Well, as you see, it wasn’t necessary anyway.”, Eve said calmly, but she glumly took note that Viper didn’t want to help her. “You see, we had captured the target, but in the middle of the ocean she managed to escape.”
Clair’s jaw dropped open. “You mean, she jumped off the ship in the middle of the ocean? What kind of girl is that?”
Eve let out a small laugh. “You’d be surprised. Anyway, I followed her, if only to save her from drowning if she wouldn’t make it to the nearest shore. But she was much more endurable than me, and she dealt with me pretty quickly once we reached the shore of a nearby island. I was rather surprised.”
“What? She overpowered you of all people? I can’t believe it, she must be one heck of a girl. But how come you’re still here?”, Clair was intrigued, to say the least. From the way Eve looked, there was much more to the story than she could imagine, and she was eager to find it out.
“Well, she was just as much as stuck on this island as I was, so we worked together to build a raft and with that, we reached Arni Village.”, Eve explained.
Clair just looked at her dumbfounded. “Wait a minute, why do I feel like you left something out? Why did you work together? I mean, I’m sorry to say this, but…wouldn’t someone like that normally kill you?”
“She’s not that kind of person. We talked a lot while being together, and…I don’t think she’s evil. She surely had her reasons to steal something from Viper and if I’m honest, I don’t know if I’m standing on the right side anymore.”
“What are you talking about?”, Clair almost shouted. She really liked Eve, but she couldn’t understand what had gotten into her to be saying such things.
“I’m telling you this because I trust you, so please hear me out first.” Eve watched Clair intently and was relieved to see her nod. “I know it sounds odd, but something’s wrong here. Do you know how Viper didn’t tell us anything about what had been stolen? And also, didn’t you think that the means he took to capture the targets were too drastic? I heard the other one died because of suicide after the soldiers with the dragon tried to catch her.”
Clair frowned, she had heard this too. Eve smiled, hoping that Clair would understand her. She was the only one Eve could entrust with this.
“And also, Viper didn’t allow you or the Longinus One to come rescue me. The target had been that important to him at first, so why? It doesn’t make sense.”, Eve said, trying to think of a reason, but her efforts were in vain.
“Well, I’m not sure if it’s true, but I heard that after the news of the first target came in, Viper was already about to call the Longinus One back. And after he finally did, the ship has been packed with enough food for at least three weeks with a full crew. And also, I heard they have been transporting all kinds of weapons onto the ship up until today, and will be heading out for Porre by tomorrow.” Clair almost whispered by now, afraid that they might be overheard by someone. Even though the door was closed, the walls were pretty thin.
“Porre? What would they be doing there? And why the Longinus One? It’s not the worst ship, but we certainly have better ones to…fight with.” Eve grumbled, not liking the idea that Viper was out to fight.
“I’m sorry, I don’t know any more than that. I can see now why you’re so suspicious of Viper, though. Maybe we really should try to find out something about this whole thing.”, Clair mumbled thoughtfully.
“Thanks, really.”, Eve said and smiled at her gratefully.
“So that’s the plan. Got it?”, Kidd whispered while looking around the corner.
“Oui.” Harle nodded, also looking around the corner. She saw an old man sitting on the gangplank. He held a fishing pole, but appeared to have fallen asleep.
Kidd nodded and made her way past the old man, trying to tread quietly. After she reached the end of the gangplank and stood beside the small sailing boat, she motioned for Harle to follow her. While Harle did as she was told, walking without a single sound, Kidd carefully entered the sailing boat, quietly preparing the sails.
However, just as she was about to open it, a sudden gust of wind blew against the half-ready sail, causing it to snap open.
“Hey, what are you doing there?”, the old man, who’d awakened by the noise, shouted at Kidd.
Kidd stared at him in surprise, but saw that Harle was standing directly behind him.
“Quickly!”, she shouted. Harle nodded and with a firm shove with her foot, she sent the old man into the water with a splash. Having no time to waste, she ran for the sailing boat which already began to distance itself from the gangplank.
Harle jumped after it, and with Kidd’s helping hand, managed to get on board.
“Stop right there!”, the man shouted, struggling in the water.
“Sorry, we’re just borrowing it!”, Kidd called and laughed brightly. Soon, they got out of sight and Harle let out a relieved sigh.
“Boy, he bloody scared me when he shouted so suddenly.”, Kidd said and chuckled.
“Moi aussi.” Harle smiled at Kidd warmly. “Now on to Guldove?”
“Yep.”