Aris's Friends and the Village Festival

After finishing our meal, Claude and I started walking through the village streets.

It had been so long since I’d set foot here.

From the narrow alleys where I’d played as a child to the broad plaza flooded with sunlight, everything was just as I remembered.

And yet, somehow…

Just having Claude beside me, holding my hand tightly, made every scene look new.

“So this is… where you grew up.”

Claude ran a hand over a low stone wall,

gazed in wonder at the young Wolpis playing on the rooftops,

and looked all around with a bright smile.

I smiled as I watched him...