Young Writers Society

She gave him a grin. "I'm so glad to have met you, Erimor," she said, making sure to avoid using his real name. It was hard - she had almost used it, but she caught herself before she could betray the extent of her knowledge with the first syllable. "It's always so hard talking about books with other people when they don't see the problem with that. Heck, even fiction has propaganda in it! I know it's pretty much impossible to separate an author's beliefs from the stories that they write, but I just wish they'd at least try to."

"It's a shame that most of Nye's human literature post-calamity is incredibly biased, but I also understand why it is that way. Blackfield put a lot of effort in putting out anti-magic propaganda and rewriting history books so there would be unquestionable support for the mage-hunters' guilds and the empire they were building off of them. It was all about money and winning the favor of the general public, and making their cause seem justified. But since it's only been a generation of that message being everywhere in education and the public discourse, there are still people who remember when times were different. Granted, they've been silenced, mostly out of fear, but they exist."

James paused, looking away from Runi with his eyebrows drawn together. Somehow, he'd let his words run away from him.

"All that to say... yes," he added stiffly. "I agree."

She couldn't help it - she started smiling as he finished speaking. She was impressed by how much thought he had put into that response, and it felt good to be talking to someone who viewed the world in a similar way to her own. "And since those people are still around, and interacting with younger generations," Runi added, "you do have to wonder if there's ever going to be a shift back. Maybe, someday, having magic will be acceptable again. I don't think it'll be for a very long time, but maybe the generations that come after ours will be able to be out and open with who they are."

James looked down at his feet, stepping over a rotting fallen log. He nodded slightly, at her idealistic hopes for the future.

"The truth tends to come out eventually. It can only be suppressed for so long," he said. "I'm sure if it's not the children of our current generation, it'll be the one after."

"Well," Runi decided after a moment of thought, "if I don't live long enough to see that, at least I can feel good about knowing that future mages will!"

She cast a glance over at James, trying to figure out the best way to continue the conversation. She opened her mouth and almost started to call him by his real name, but luckily caught herself before she could get the first syllable out. "So, uh, Erimor, you've met other mages before, right? What were they like?"

James kept his eyes on the forest ahead. The lack of eye contact was intentional, as the memories and faces popped up in his mind, but it wasn't any different from when he kept his eyes on where he was stepping in response to other questions. He sighed.

"Kind. All of them were very kind."

It hadn't really been the kind of answer she had been looking for, but she was beginning to suspect that James wasn't much of a talker--especially when it involved talking about his personal life. He must have had something horrible happen to those mages; otherwise he wouldn't be replying like this. He would have outright avoided the subject if he thought he'd be putting their lives in jeopardy, just like he did when she brought up his family.

"Well, that's neat," she said. "I've never been lucky enough to meet another mage. Or maybe I have, and neither one of us realized that the other was the same."

"That's entirely possible. Many mages hide in plain sight."

She sighed. "I just wish there was some way for me to know that they were like me," she said, staring off at the forest ahead of them. "Or, even better! I wish there was a place where I could hang out with other mages, and now it would be safe. A...A safe space, maybe?"

James slowed in his step as the face of Mickey came back to his mind. Mickey was a dragon. If anyone knew about a mage safe-haven, it was him, but there was no way to know how to contact him. He hadn't seen him in... eight years? Nine?

He looked back at Runi, hesitant to share what he knew at the prospect of giving her false hope that might only disappoint.

"I... I did know a mage... for a brief period of time. He - well, I haven't seen him in years, but he might... I feel like he'd know of a safe space for people like you."

She immediately perked up at his comment.

She knew that it was foolish to put all of her hope into a slim possibility, but it was more of a possibility than she had been given in a very long time. "Do you think we'd be able to find him?" she asked, looking James over with a light to her eyes. "Or is there some way we could contact him?"

"I... I don't think so," James said, looking to the forest floor. "I wouldn't even know where to start. When we met, he was the one who found me. And when we parted, I never knew where he went after."

"...Oh," she softly said. Her gaze also dropped to the forest floor; it was even more disheartening to know that there was a safe place she could never find instead of believing that there wasn't any at all.

But she didn't want to linger on that feeling. It seemed hopeless, but there was hope - there was a place somewhere where she could be safe, even if she didn't know where that place was.

She raised her head up.

"Maybe we just need to retrace your footsteps," she said, a confident grin on her face. "Even if we just know the general area, we can ask around and go from there!"

James tried to keep some kind of positivity on his face, but for some reason, he couldn't be bothered to try anymore. He did want Runi to find a safe place, and yes he did care that she didn't have to hide who she was, but he was still thinking about Butch and their still very recent escape. Going on another adventure was a needed distraction, but he feared that he would only drag Runi into more trouble than help.

He knew she didn't have any other options. Or even, really, any friends. And it was beginning to hit him that if he didn't break it off soon, she might end up following him... for a long time. Until they both got caught. Because it was inevitable. He knew it was.

He was just burning time, helplessly hoping for something else to happen...

James faltered in his steps when he realized how much silence has trespassed since her suggestion.

"...Let's just focus on making more distance from the bounty hunters now."

She faltered as well, noticing both the pause and the tone. Her gaze returned to the ground. It really was stupid to get so excited, when she thought about it. She had been looking for a place to call home for her entire life. Even talking with James was just an attempt to fill that void - she was forcing him to be her home. He had agreed to the idea of them traveling together, but he had to be having his doubts.

....And now she was having hers.

Her vision started to blur. Furiously blinking away the beginnings of tears, she hurried on in front of James and took up her earlier pose: eyes looking up, arms behind her head and a casual walk as she made sure to stay in front of him

"That sounds like a good plan," she agreed.

She couldn't let James see her cry - that would only make him feel guilty. And she didn't want the reason they stuck together to be guilt; if it was, she might be the one who sneaked off in the middle of the night.

She began to softly whistle a cheerful melody as she continued to walk.