The Fateful Heart

James looked back up at Evaline but didn't meet her eyes. He observed her, trying to understand what prompted her prodding, besides not wanting to talk about herself.

He wondered if she had similar worries for herself. If she wondered what she'd do... or what she was going to, keeping it all in. But that was all conjecture.

"You seem disappointed," he commented.

Evaline continued to stare up at the sky, eyes narrowing on the brightest star.

"Astute observation," she dryly said back.

James watched Evaline for a moment in silence as she stared up at the sky. The fire crackled faintly between them, and the heat it provided was like a thin blanket, just enough to shield them from the cold desert night.

He wished he knew what she was thinking, and all the things she wouldn't say. But at the same time, he wasn't sure how much those things might hurt if she were to say them out loud.

Were he more courageous, he might welcome her to criticize him more. But as it stood, he felt defeated. She didn't like this part of him, and he didn't know how to change it. And he didn't know if he wanted to change.

"Well... I guess we should head to sleep, then," he said softly. "I can take the first watch unless you want to."

"I'll take the first watch," Evaline offered, getting up on her feet to head towards the saddlebag. She brought out the two blankets as well as her book and journal, tucked under her other arm.

"Here," she said as she tossed a blanket to him, then planted herself in front of the fire again. She placed the book and journal in front of her and laid on her stomach before glancing over to James. "It's about time I go through the things I bought."

Her shift seemed to go by really quickly, and she understood how James could fill his time up with these things. She had only finished the first chapter of the book when he woke up and turned the shift over, and Evaline had to repress a pout because she didn't want to stop. But she knew they'll have plenty more nights like this. She had to make the book last.

She put her things away and then laid by the fire with the blanket around her, feeling quite warm and comfortable, even with the really tense day. Exhaustion caught up to her, and she forced her mind to relax so she could have a restful night.

James woke her up in the morning, and they had their usual routine. He braided her hair like usual, offering to do a fishtail braid since she started reading a book relating to sailors' adventures. She could smell hints of the spearmint and rosemary on him, even when she was facing the other way. She wondered if the strong was too smell, and if he even actually liked it.

They go about their hike, and Evaline was glad to see things returning to a new level of normal. After hours of reflecting, she realized it was her fault that things felt tense between them yesterday. Today, she'd try to be better.

She walked by his side again, and conversation lulled to a stop. But that was okay. Silence was nice, sometimes.

They walked side-by-side on foot, with Elliot following behind them. It seemed like, for the moment, they were in the clear. If Butch was following them, he was too far behind to catch up to them if they kept up the pace, and that, at least, was a small comfort. Though they couldn't afford to slow down, at least they could continue to travel with some peace of mind. But, as they drew closer to the Outlands, James couldn't help but consider all of the other dangers they would run into.

They'd managed to avoid many natural ones, by some miracle. Goblins, at least, seemed to be leaving them alone, as long as they did the same (aside from Marsha, but that was an exception). He found himself more concerned with whatever people they might run into.

The skies were clear, and as the forest continued to thin out James tried to brace himself.

They may not have to defend themselves against another Butch. But there were plenty of other things that could--

James paused in his steps, turning to the faint rustle of something. It almost sounded like the faint flapping of a cloak. Some kind of curtain.

His eyebrows furrowed and he looked to their right, into the expanse of skinny trees and scruffy dry grass and rocks. He didn't see anything, but something felt wrong.

As a precaution, he reached for his boot, where he kept his knife. But his hand didn't make it that far.

The earth gave way between both his and Evaline's feet and he sunk into the ground up to his waist. He reached out one arm to grab Evaline, but then it was as if the earth jumped out from the ground and pulled his arm down into it.

One second, Evaline and James were walking, and in the next second, they fell into a pit on the ground.

At least, that was what it felt like at first. Somehow they both were only consumed up to their chest, and it didn't feel like they were going to sink any lower.

Panic electrocuted Evaline's body as she tried to move her legs, arms, something to flail and leave the ground, but it was no use. She was stuck.

In the very brief moment that she realized that, a million thoughts raced through her mind, but only one thought screamed the loudest and drowned out the others: they fell into a trap.

She looked at James, trying not to show fear, but it still flashed in her eyes.

James felt the panic hit him, but outwardly, it didn't show. He did what he'd always done, as if on command, and his composure became calm and collected, perhaps even more so than it always was.

This wasn't something he'd expected - earth mages (it had to be) attacking them, but if it was mages, maybe they could be reasoned with. He had no reason to believe all mages were inherently good or inherently bad.

That said, the people who trapped them had yet to reveal themselves.

"It's a little tight," he said, looking over to Evaline. She looked scared. "How about you? Are you comfortable?"

He watched as her expression softened.

"...Yeah, I'm -- okay," she answered. "Is this normal? What's happening?"

"It's probably--"

He cut himself short as the earth rumbled a few feet in front of them, and they could feel the reverberations through the earth. Like badgers, three heads poked out of the ground, creating mounds of earth where their heads broke through, and then their shoulders, until their feet were flat on the earth, and the disturbed ground dispersed as if it had never been disturbed in the first place.

In front of them stood a short, stocky man dressed like a traveler. He had a short cloak with a hood over his shoulders, pants rolled up to his knees, and bare feet caked in dirt. He glared at them with piercing green eyes framed by bright hed hair that went down to his chin.

Behind him was a lanky teenage girl in light leather armor, with a dagger strapped to her thigh, and another cloak, but more ragged. She had dark brown skin and her coily black hair was pulled back into a bun.

On his other side stood a woman a few inches taller than the man and the teen, and she wore a harsh expression riddled with suspicion. She had light brown skin and dark black hair pulled back under her hood and cloak. As she made eye contact with James, she drew water out of a canteen that rested on her hip, and made it hover over her palm with dancing fingers, like she was waiting to form it into a weapon.

James flashed them a smile.

"Good day to you all," he greeted.

The woman with the water in her palm glared at him.

"Who are you?" she demanded.

"Would 'someone who is not going to hurt you' suffice as an answer?" James answered. "Really, we just want to be on our way, unless you're in need of our help for --"

The man stomped his foot, and James sunk further into the earth suddenly, so that the only thing sticking out was his nose and his eyes.

So they'd heard enough from him. That was rude.

"Who are you?" the man questioned again, looking at Evaline.

Evaline watched with wide eyes as James sank into the ground, nearly disappearing. She wanted to panic badly, but as the stocky man turned to her to ask the same question, survival instinct kicked in, and she swallowed any screaming emotions that were surfacing.

She had to pretend. But this wasn't anything new.

"My name is Evaline," she said gently, with absolutely no time to wonder if she should have said a fake name. "We're only passing through. We're not going to hurt you."

She looked down at James, then back at the man. "Don't worry about my friend here. He's really bad with words sometimes."

The red-haired man shot a glare to James, but James was more preoccupied with Evaline's last comment and was shooting her a look of his own. Not that she could see it.

The man didn't look satisfied with Evaline's answer.

"Who's he, then?" the man asked.

Well luckily, she had had one too many discussions about James's fake personas.

"His name is Roan," Evaline said, still with the gentle tone. "We're both traveling north. We mean no harm."

"You keep saying that," the woman with the water spinning in her palm drawled. "But most people traveling north don't go out of their way to stay off the paths. Where it's safe."

"So what really brings you out this far?" the man pressed, squinting down at Evaline.

Evaline let her gaze fall between the three of them as her mind quickly raced to think of an answer. Normally she'd spend some time weighing her options, but she didn't exactly have that luxury right now. She grabbed the first thought that appeared and hoped it wasn't a mistake.

She let out a convincing defeated sigh. "We're on the beaten path traveling north because..." She looked down and let out a wistful smile. "Well. I'm a mage too. Roan is kind enough to escort me somewhere I could be safe."

She looked up at the woman, eyes pleading with her. "I can understand why you'd think we were threats, but believe me when I say we won't hurt you."

"Escort," the woman repeated with suspicion from under her hood.

But the man's expression seemed to soften, just a tad.

"If you're a mage," he said carefully. "Then you'll have to prove it."

He shifted his stance, and stomed his other foot, and Evaline was pushed up through the earth, so that her arms were freed, and only her waist-down was submerged.

"Try anything funny," the critical woman warned, "And you'll wish you hadn't lied to us."

The man held up a hand, as if to tell the woman to keep her threats to herself, for a moment.

"Just show us what you can do," the man said.

"Of course, it's only fair," Evaline said softly as she loosely shook her freed arms. She paused as, once again, her mind raced with lighting speed of what she was going to say or do. Would this even work? She had to push the anxiety away.

"Slight problem," she said with an apologetic smile. "I don't have... traditional magic. My magic is more rare, and it's not anything I control with my hands." She paused, trying to reframe her thoughts.

"See, I have memory magic," she said, internally pleading to the gods of Nye that such a thing existed. "I can show you, if you want. But I have to come closer."

The man and the woman with the water looked at each other, exchanging a questioning glance.

"Memory magic?" the man said. "I've never heard of--"

"I'll do it," the teenaged girl spoke up, already stepping forward. The man reached out an arm to keep her from coming too close to Evaline, but the girl pushed him away, and he didn't seem to fight it.

The girl kneeled down in front of Evaline, meeting her eyes with narrowed eyes, challenging her.

"How does your magic work?" the girl asked.