"Right," she nods slowly. "Fine. What's that mean? Not dead?"
"All that is gold does not glitter, Not all those who wander are lost; The old that is strong does not wither, Deep roots are not reached by the frost."
"That was the best way to say a lot without saying anything I've heard in a long time," she observes with a slight smile. "Ten out of ten."
"All that is gold does not glitter, Not all those who wander are lost; The old that is strong does not wither, Deep roots are not reached by the frost."
"I can tell, Mark," she says with a chuckle. "What kind of plan is going through that head of yours?"
"All that is gold does not glitter, Not all those who wander are lost; The old that is strong does not wither, Deep roots are not reached by the frost."
"..." James looked away, eyes falling on the dead embers of the fire as he hid the smallest of smiles. The smile faded however, when his previous thoughts returned to the forefront of his mind.
"I've been thinking about how to help all of you. And... I think the only option would be to find a dragon. They're the most powerful magical beings in this world. And as history likes to tell it, they've been known to be benevolent and kind, and it's only in this recent century that they've become reclusive and withdrawn from people-kind. I'm hoping that... it would be possible to find one and ask them for help. For all of you. So you can return home. To your land, your people, and your loved ones."
"Dragons?" said Tavis and Seung at the same time, though Seung's was more of a breathy whisper that ended with a cough.
"There's magic where I come from," Tavis raised his eyebrows, "but dragons were just myths. I suppose they're not, here." He felt a tingle in his fingers as he spoke, but slowly closed his hands into loose fists to suppress the feeling.
"No thing as magic where I'm from." Seung struggled to sit up, keeping the blankets tight around himself.
"And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." Philippians 4:7
"Well where I'm from a dragon is a force to be reckoned with and one you don't usually tempt fate with," Tasha says. "From where I'm sitting this sounds like insanity, Mark."
"All that is gold does not glitter, Not all those who wander are lost; The old that is strong does not wither, Deep roots are not reached by the frost."
"There's insanity and then there's goddamn dragons, Mike! Mark!"
"All that is gold does not glitter, Not all those who wander are lost; The old that is strong does not wither, Deep roots are not reached by the frost."
Tavis narrowed his eyes. Agrona's slip of the tongue didn't escape him. Perhaps it was a coincidence, but from his experience, a good number of people he'd met lied about their names.
Were "Mark" and "Agrona" conspiring together?
"And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." Philippians 4:7
James only slightly narrowed his eyes as Tasha's tongue slipped and she called him Mike instead of Mark. As he began to respond, he considered all of the thoughts that could be passing through Seung and Tavis's minds. If they were smart, and the least bit cynical, they would assume he had lied about his name, and possibly Tasha too. And if they were interested in self preservation, their trust in James and Tasha would've received a decently sized dent as well. And if they were stupid, they might be considering leaving him and trying to find a way home on their own - or seek someone else's help (which would likely, only quickly get them into trouble... in the Outlands, anyway).
The thought briefly crossed his subconscious that possibly - if trust was truly so important to them - that this would make them leave and go on their own. That they might be so mad, they would both leave him, and they wouldn't be his problem anymore. But the mere shadow of that possibility filled him with more insurmountable guilt piled on to what he already had.
All of this considered in but a few seconds, he met Tasha's eyes.
"The dragons of my world are fierce and terrifying indeed, and I do not leap at the opportunity to lead myself and all of you to the seemingly very likely possibility of death. But unless you all are willing to leave all of your past behind - everything you've known, everyone you've loved, everything you were - and start a life completely anew and make this your world and your reality, I thought I would at least try to offer up your best chance and your best option at going back to wherever it is you all come from, since clearly, it's not here."
"Son of a bitch," she sighs, cussing at herself inwardly for the slip of the tongue. Mike, Mark...why'd they have to sound so similar? She hadn't done something stupid like that in a long time.
Besides that, there's the immediate decision: stay here for an indeterminate amount of times, or try the craziest stunt she's ever attempted and hope she - as well as all those with her, namely James - lives through it.
But then there's that part. James. The thought of leaving him behind is not a good one, after everything they've been through in the past months. Year? Hard to know, now. Despite the lies, they've saved each other's lives, time and time again, and she's finding herself trusting him. More than that...she likes him. Damn. She didn't see that particular problem posing itself.
"All that is gold does not glitter, Not all those who wander are lost; The old that is strong does not wither, Deep roots are not reached by the frost."
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