The Itch

[Harris]

"I won you Diamond Quest XXXIII."

"I won you Diamond Quest XXXVI."

"I won you Diamond Quest LXXIV."

"You need us."

Harris awoke with a start, a handful of hours removed from his loss in the finals of Diamond Quest LXXV. Through bleary eyes he stared at Seirichi, her silhouette half concealed beside him beneath a sea of wrinkled sheets in the darkness. They were pushing him again, like a nagging Mother, ridiculing him to make their importance known. Though their whispers were thought provoking. Every victory of his in the Diamond Quest had been with an Opal in tow. First ShadoWeaver, then MoonBeryl, and lastly PathFinder. Had they been instrumental in his success? Should he seek another one out for what would be the eleventh time so soon? Why was their pull so strong?

Those questions dominated his thoughts through the rest of a sleepless night.

[Harris]

He was lying again.

Was uprooting and moving to Adenna good for Michi? Absolutely. The concept had merit, without question. Was her well being his primary driving force though? No, it was the Opals. It was always the Opals. It was his attempt to push them as far away as he could manage, at least for a short while. So, maybe he wasn't lying. He simply wasn't being entirely truthful.

Adenna would be enough to keep him from scratching that itch and then it wouldn't matter. He was certain of that.