"That's not true." An automatic response at this point, repeated over and over in the hopes that maybe one day Martin would not shrug it off. But it brought Bariyan down, made him sad; sad to think that one boy already thought the weight of the world was entirely his to bear. The weight of several worlds, even. And try as he might, Bariyan could not convince Martin to relieve himself of any of his burdens.

Bariyan sighed, tilting his head away to look back at the sky. Too tired, too angry at himself to say anything more on the matter. There was not enough strength in him to start the back-and-forth that he expected, should he try to dissuade Martin from his guilts again.

But something Martin had said hooked a claw into Bariyan's thoughts, and would not leave him alone. So he spoke. "But your sister is still alive."