Until the Spring

by Have-A-Laugh

Everyone has a magical connection to the Divine Tree called a Root. Mob was born with an extremely powerful Root that has gotten him tangled in the affairs of powers greater than him. He forms an unlikely alliance with one Bakugou Katsuki, as Mob becomes more entangled in a centuries old plot that could fundamentally change the balance of power in Aca.

2. Weary Travelers

-The 20th of Neir, 2nd month of year 3245-

Three weeks later.

The brothers sat in silence, crammed into spaces between the boxes and sacks unidentifiable merchandise. It was fragrant, but the heavy smells could be anything from oils to dried herbs, possibly both. It was nauseating how they mixed into a sticky, heavy, and unidentifiable scent. This was the eighth time the brothers been crammed into some random nook or cranny by stranger. Smuggling children across the countryside had very little concern for the comfort of the children being smuggled the brothers discovered.

Shou hadn't given Ritsu any details about the route to the safe house beyond directions to the first checkpoint. A location at which they were greeted by a young couple who walked them through miles of caverns to a horse and cart. When they arrived, the brothers were promptly shoved into a large trunk and their journey cross country began. After that they had to trust the men and women they met along the way that they not only knew what they were doing, but that the next person they were given to was trustworthy as well.

The last three weeks were spent with the brothers clinging close to each other as the precariousness of their escape and continued freedom dawned on them. For each day they got farther away, the greater their anxiety became. Neither brother knew when they would cross the point of no return. Was it a mile ago? Yesterday? Was it today? Or was it when they crossed the threshold of their room back at the Keep? Claw was looking for them. How they escaped the notice of an agency with such vast resources and army of mages baffled Ritsu. All the brothers had was one anti-scrying charm. The rest of the plan involved cowering in false bottomed barrels or under hay.

The last few days the brothers were not nearly as close. A row of boxes separated Ritsu's space from Shigeo's space in the back of a merchant man's wagon. They'd been trapped in the back for all but a few hours each night when they got to eat, drink, and use the bathroom. Then he would hustle them back into their hiding spots before anyone else in the caravan noticed the two boys. The man seemed as uncomfortable as the brothers did with him hiding them in the back like a dirty secret. A day ago, they split from the caravan, heading in a northward direction. Ritsu guessed as much based on how the sun traveled across the boards of the crates in front of him.

Without the stimulation from conversations, music and the sound of children from the caravan, Ritsu and Shigeo sat in painful silence while the rough road made their teeth chatter. Fear kept the brothers from talking above a whisper, and a whisper was swallowed hungrily in the din of rattling crates and jars. Maybe it was this reason that the brothers developed a sudden onset of separation anxiety. It was strong enough they forced apart two crates so they could sit with their fingertips hooked together.

The other day the boxes shifted slightly so they had line of sight. It was conditional however. The light had to filter through just the right hole in the canvas roof for the brothers could see each other, and it was only their eyes that were visible in the newly created gap. Shigeo and Ritsu shared the same tense fearful look, and Ritsu swore that Shigeo's irises looked redder again. It was brief and it could have been a trick of the light. That artifact must be still working because they haven't been found yet.

Ritsu looked over, the light flashed for a brief second for him to see Shigeo in a fitful rest. He had fallen asleep several hours ago and Ritsu, for as exhausted as he was, couldn't sleep. He felt each and every rock in the road as the wagon ran over them. The wagon dipped into a pot hole in the road and Ritsu bit the inside of his cheek to keep from yelling as he felt a jolt from his tailbone though to his neck.

The last few hours the road was quiet except for their lonely wagon wheels creaking in the background, but now new sounds had entered the mix. Ritsu could hear them passing other horses, wagons, and people. Conversations too muffled by the background noise of clattering jars of pickled foods and unknown substances in his ear, but they were once again surrounded by people.

Ritsu let got of Shigeo's hand and twisted around in his space to try and peer through the gaps to the outside. It was definitely a town they were passing through, he couldn't see anything distinct but he caught glimpses of clothes and skin. They passed a blacksmith and the sound of metal tools forging and the hiss of heated metal plunging into liquid. He could hear sellers, yelling about their wares and the clammer of people trying to buy them. He could hear a fist fight. Ritsu searched intently for the source of that sound but the cart kept moving.

When the cart pulled into a space between two buildings. A gate closed behind the wagon, the wood rattled against each other and the street noise was muffled slightly. Ritsu untwisted himself and settled back into his space. After a minute he started wiggling his hand back into the gap to hold his brother's when he heard the scrape of metal on wood.

The hatch on the back of the wagon was being opened and the canvas drawn away. Ritsu pulled his hand free and positioned himself on a knee. If he had to defend himself he was going to be in the best position his space would allow.

Section by section the back was cleared out by the man who had transported them here. He didn't talk to or acknowledge Ritsu while he unloaded his wares at a steady, but upbeat pace. When the last box that comprised Ritsu's hiding space was removed, he balled his fists and looked around wildly for an ambush. The alley was fairly wide, enough so that a wagon could pull in comfortably. A wooden gate closed off the alley from the street, so it was fairly private.

He searched for a threat and landed his sights on saw grey hair. It was pulled back into a bun on the top head of the head of a very short, very elderly women. When he stood more to peer over the edge Ritsu was very surprised to see the women was no more than four feet tall, leaning on a wooden cane with a thick knotted head, and wearing a white veil that covered the lower half of her face. Something about her seemed familiar, but he couldn't quite place it. She was watching him as curiously as he was watching her but she also looked like she knew something he didn't.

"Well, you look awful." She said in a grandmotherly tone, her sly smile was mostly obscured through the veil.

All the fight was stunned right out of Ritsu. He looked down at himself, his clothes were ill fitting, dirty and borrowed. Their beautiful robes from the capital were destroyed as a precaution before they started the first leg of this odyssey. Ritsu was sore, tired, and he didn't eat like he used to. Their food was of poorer quality than their fine meals at the Keep and the stress made him and his brother's appetite elusive and fickle. Ritsu hadn't seen a proper mirror in a while which might be a blessing in disguise as he hadn't seen a proper bath in a while either.

"Don't just stand there, get out of the wagon. No ones going to do it for you." She prompted him, tapping her cane on the floor of the wagon.

Ritsu jumped and started to scramble out.

"Grab a box." She ordered like he should have known that's what she wanted, "And wake up your brother, so he can help you too."

"Yes, ma'am." Ritsu sputtered and the old woman looked him over with a careful gaze before nodding approvingly.

Ritsu started pulling boxes down and placing them at the open end of the cart. Slowly unburying his sleeping brother. Shigeo's face twitched between neutral and pained expressions. Another nightmare. Ritsu didn't feel bad about shaking him awake. Shigeo jolted and his eyes snapped open, they were still that dark, blackish red-brown. He looked around, his expression fearful and tense, but it faded in seconds as Shigeo registered he was back in the waking world.

"We are at the next stop." Ritsu said quietly, "I don't know where we are going next yet. The next caretaker is some old lady and she is kind of intense."

"You bet your little butt I am." She snapped from behind Ritsu.

She stumbled over the word "butt" like that was a hasty second choice. Ritsu stiffened, embarrassed and surprised she'd snuck up on them.

She tapped the cart impatiently, "Stop sitting around and bring these boxes into the backroom."

Shigeo eased himself into a standing position. He was stiff in the knees and hips judging by the wobbly straight legged walk he had. Shigeo stretched his limbs, the joints popped and cracked noisily. Feeling more limbered up, Shigeo bent over the nearest box. Ritsu watched his brother try to lift it and it didn't even shift. He gave up and tried to hide the pink on his cheeks from his brother as he attempted to lift a different crate. This went slightly better but all Shigeo could manage was to lift one corner. Shigeo's legs and arms still trembled with the effort.

Ritsu tried next. He was able to lift the crate, but it wasn't with much more grace than his brother. He felt a sheen of sweat on his forehead matching his brother's as he moved the crate the short four feet to the back of the wagon. The weight was suddenly lifted from his arms and Ritsu nearly fell forward. If it were not for Shigeo holding him up by the back of his shirt, Ritsu would be eating his teeth on the alley floor. The man shifted the weight of the crate onto one shoulder like it was nothing. He looked at the two boys over, the unflattering scrutiny of his gaze was uncomfortable and Ritsu swallowed his pride before it twisted his face into a scowl. Shigeo bowed his head, accepting.

"Just get them to the edge and I'll take it from there." He said, tired.

Neither brother knew if the worn out expression from the man was because of them, or because of the journey. The man reached down and hefted a large sack filled with some kind of produce with his other hand.

"He's strong." Shigeo said with a hit of admiration.

Ritsu didn't respond, but he gestured at the remaining crates to his brother. Together they lifted or pushed the boxes to the end of the cart, huffing and straining ungainly. The man would stop by and lift the boxes as if they were a fraction of the weight Ritsu and Shigeo were dealing with. Ritsu didn't care for the flat affect the man had and felt increasingly cagey as time went on.

With the last box unloaded the man said, "Head in and help her. You two are her problem now."

A little red faced still, Ritsu grabbed their travel bag, it was painfully light now, most of the books Ritsu attempted to smuggle out of the keep were confiscated by the first couple. The risk that they'd be tracked were too high. So, Ritsu carried a bag that had no more than some candles, and a blanket. It was useless, but it was theirs and he hopped off the back of the cart and followed the man inside. Shigeo was much shakier as he climbed down and followed after him.

The backroom was cramped and boxes were spaced out on the floor so you had to weave through or step over them. Along the walls were shelves lined with baskets and jars. The contents of the shelves consisted primarily of dried materials and plants. A few jars had plants or animal parts preserved in fluid. It was a curious room. Although, most of the labeled spaces were almost empty, and as Ritsu read each label he realized that he recognized all of them.

"These are all components for spells and potions." Ritsu said, he traced his hand along one of the labels. Shigeo hummed in agreement as he examined the contents of a different basket containing dried grasses.

At the end of the room a door was left ajar, and the brothers stepped out of the back room into a long rectangular room. This one was less of a storage space and more like a living area with a kitchen, dining, and sitting room crammed into the same narrow space. To their left was a paper screen sliding door and to their right was a single swinging door and a small shrine. A short hallway extended past the kitchen in front of them to where the brothers assumed were the bedrooms. The walls were dirty along the edges of the ceiling, and the place was in a minor state of disrepair. Everything in reach of the old woman's height was maintained but anything too low or too high wasn't faring as well.

In front of the sliding door, along the wall was one chair and bookshelf stacked high with thick academic looking textbooks and journals. Naturally, the brothers gravitated to it, it was the most familiar sight they'd seen in a while. They didn't get far before a door opened to their left and the brothers got a glimpse of a storefront or office as the old woman stepped through.

"Do you have it?" She asked as she walked up to the brothers. She was looking between them, waiting.

Ritsu squinted, then he understood and clumsily brought out the charm Shou had given him. She held out her hand and Ritsu reluctantly placed the rod and cord into her open palm.

"We have been using it to keep hidden so I'd like it-" Ritsu started to say when the old woman deactivated the rod with one hand. The brothers' stomachs dropped to their heels and they reached for the rod in a panic.

"That thing stopped working weeks ago, but it had a duel purpose." She said as she tossed something to Ritsu with her other hand.

Ritsu caught it and Shigeo looked over his shoulder at an identical rod- deactivated but exactly the same. Ritsu didn't hesitate a second to turn the rod on. Shigeo felt a buzz of magical energy across his skin he hadn't felt in a long time. With the rod activated, the old women stood a little taller and her expression was a little less guarded.

"Welcome to Lou Run Kageyama Brothers." She smiled at them, "You've come a long way from the Capital to make it to the Hagnaema Mountains."

"You know our names?" Ritsu asked the important question. No one in the journey had called them by their names. They were simply "the cargo".

"We're in the mountains?!" Shigeo asked the slightly less important question, loudly, and completely shocked.

She blinked a few times with a surprised look across her face, "You couldn't see much in the back of that wagon could you?"

Shigeo shook his head no.

"You didn't answer my question." Ritsu cut in.

"Yes, I know you who you two are." She said a little more annoyed.

Ritsu tensed and shifted slightly in front of his brother, "None of the other people knew our names."

"Yes, that's because I am the end of the line. Well, if you two know your geography well enough I can tell you that you're about 50 or 60 miles from the north west border. Nothing much past here unless you intend to continue into the barbarian lands." She set her cane in front of herself and leaned her weight onto it, "You can stay the night of course but we can take you no further. What's your plan from here?"

The brothers didn't answer. The old woman observed the stunned, wide eyed expression the boys wore. They looked like rabbits that had just caught unawares by a hunting dog.

"You did have a plan of where to go? You're meeting up with your parents soon right? What do they look like? I'll know any new faces around here." She asked cautiously, but the two boys shook their heads no, "Do you not have parents?"

Shigeo shook his head vigorously again, "We do, but they are sent somewhere else. We don't know where they are now."

Ritsu spoke up first with a shaky voice, "We-we were told this was the safe place. That this is where we were being sent to stay."

"Who told you that?"

"Shou did." Ritsu replied without a lick of confidence in his voice.

The woman sighed heavy and deep, "He might be smart but he doesn't understand how this process works yet. We've smuggled people out of the capital before but we don't run a safe house, we just provide a safe route. You can't stay here anyway, it's too dangerous. Two young boys with no family will draw a lot of attention. Especially with military rolling through almost everyday like they have been for the last week and a half. You do know Claw mages are part of the military right?"

Shigeo felt sick to his stomach and vaguely faint. He grabbed his brother's sleeve to support himself and Ritsu looked down at him but Ritsu was as pale as Shigeo was.

Shigeo asked, his words growing faster and more frantic, "W-we didn't know. We don't have a plan... what do we do? Where can we go?"

"We've never lived anywhere outside of the Academy." Ritsu added, "We don't even know how to buy food or cook or… or…"

She looked at the two boys, gripped in panic. She didn't know much about them beyond their names and that they were the highest profile cargo the line had ever moved. Yet, it was obvious now that they had lived very sheltered lives prior to this. Why Shou would send them to the frontier without a plan, or their parents, was beyond her. Her eyes became a little distant as she receded into her thoughts and considered her options for a bit.

Shigeo and Ritsu held each other's hand trying to bring themselves some comfort. They had been so sure this was the end of their journey. Shigeo knew things were going to be tough but actually living through it was an endless trudge of anxiety, uncomfortable positions, and close calls. The bead in his pocket started to pulse dully, numbing the skin and making him feel even more faint than before. He sat down in a chair nearby and put his head between his knees.

"Alright!" The woman stamped her cane onto the floor in frustration, "You can stay here for a few days but you will be working to pay your keep."

They looked up with hopeful twinkle in their eyes. They didn't quite dare to smile just yet as the old woman was still stern looking but they had time to figure out what to do next.

"You can't go to the front, or the back courtyard, but you can stay here in this living space and the back room. You will not compromise my stop along the line, understand?" She started to walk toward the storage room door, her cane tapping along the ground, "Come on, you can start by helping me put the shipments away."

Ritsu helped Shigeo to his feet. There was more color to his face than a moment ago and he walked straight and steady once he was moving. Along the way out the side door the brothers watched the old women pause and place her hand on a little stone statue of a veiled woman that was wrapped in white silk. The old woman gave an exasperated sigh and dipped her head twice, then she seemed to have a new resolve as she entered the storage room. Ritsu followed her in but Shigeo paused at the statue.

It's stiff expression was at odds with the gentle way the arms were outstretched to the sides, welcoming the weary. There was nothing special about the stone, or the silk the old woman had wrapped the statue with, except that it made the woman appear like she was enveloped in mist.

"Oh." Shigeo gasped as it clicked, he entered the next room and announced, "You are a Disciple."

Ritsu and the old woman turned around with curious expressions and Shigeo blushed. Maybe it was just that obvious.

Then Ritsu had the same epiphany a second later and said, "That's why you look familiar! You are a follower of the Lady of the Mist."

The old woman looked at each of them like they were stupid.

Ritsu quickly explained, "The academy has their own doctors who specialize in healing magic, they haven't used Disciples in decades. This is the first time we have actually talked to one."

Shigeo nodded to support his brother's explanation.

"Yes. I forgot the Capital isn't fond of Disciples." She says distantly, "I haven't been there in a very long time."

"You used to live in the Capital?" Ritsu and Shigeo looked at her with great interest.

"I did, but that's not important. We have a lot of work to do. Wait here while I pay the merchant." She said in a tone that cut off the opportunity for either brother to ask more questions.

Their last caretaker was watching from the doorway with that same stoic expression. His face lit up as the old woman approached. They chatted quietly. Neither brother could hear a word but the conversation was a happy one. She gave him the money and the charm, her face shifted into a more stern expression as she appeared to give him instructions. The man nodded solemnly and left.

"You said that the bar had a duel purpose." Ritsu inquired after the door to the alley closed.

Shigeo perked up. He'd forgotten about that and listened intently.

"Yes, its duplicating your aura Ritsu."

Ritsu's slightly angry expression was enough of an answer for the old woman.

"He didn't tell you." She said, adding another item to the list of surprises Shou had given her today, she intended to have a conversation with the kid the next time he contacted her.

"He didn't tell me a lot of things it seems." Ritsu grumbled to himself.

She tried to sympathize with the brothers, "He is pretty young but I expected better from him."

"What's going to happen to the old charm now?"

"He is probably going stash it on a caravan or one of the military horses leaving town today to throw Claw of your trail. That is if they are still looking for you." She said walking through and counting the boxes, "They are all here. Everything is labeled so unpack and put away what you can. If you don't know where something goes just leave it and I'll get to it."

She took the end of her cane and rammed it under the lip of one of the crate lids and wrenched it open enough for Ritsu and Shigeo to get their fingers under and remove the lid fully. They took stock of the contents and found their corresponding shelves. It was monotonous work but the brothers were happy to simply be out and walking around instead of curled in some hideaway. There was an undeniable sense of security in this home of the Disciple.

"Is it true that only doctors can be Disciples?" Shigeo asked out of the blue, they had been working in silence for the last fifteen minutes.

"Hm?" the old woman took a second to finish setting some jars of pickled beets on a shelf before saying, "Partially true, anyone who works in medicine can be a Disciple. Nurses, medicinal potion and medicine makers, and of course physicians are all Disciples."

"But no one else?" Shigeo clarified.

"No one else."

"Why?" Shigeo asked, looking up from some dried bundles of herbs he was counting.

"The Lady of the Mist is a Goddess of Healing and her worship requires you to practice the act of healing." She answered, but the edge of her voice would suggest to most people that it was common knowledge Shigeo should have known. Most people would have picked up on that and been embarrassed but Shigeo wasn't most people.

Shigeo was genuinely facianted, he turned away from the crate he was working in to asked her directly, "Okay, so is it also true that Disciples give up their names and don't have them anymore?"

"No. We still have our names." She moved onto the next box, "but we keep it secret and take on a pseudonym instead."

"What's your name?" Shigeo naturally asked.

"People call me Recovery Girl here in town." Recovery Girl answered.

"Ah.." Shigeo nodded in understanding and followed up with, "Why do you wear the veil?"

"I- keep working if you are going to ask questions." She waited for Shigeo to scramble back to work, gathering up the bundles of dried flowers and taking them to their appropriate shelf, "Did you make sure to check the label first?"

"Oh, I know what willder-fawn looks like." Shigeo said, pausing only for a step to explain.

"We studied components for almost five years at the academy." Ritsu grabbed a pouch of medicine only taking a cursory glance at it before placing on the shelf, "Shigeo knows plants better than he knows arithmetic. You can identify nearly a hundred different plants and almost as many components but you can't divide or multiply to save your life."

Shigeo's shoulder bunched up to his ears to hide his embarrassed blush, he then deflected by saying, "Ritsu makes it sound impressive, but I know only half as much as he does, and he knows how to brew potions and create component salves."

Recovery Girl walked over to the medicine Ritsu had just finished putting away. Ritsu had already moved onto the next crate while Recovery Girl checked his work. He was correct. In fact, both of the brothers were very accurate and were making quick work of the crates. Ritsu was clearly the better versed and he corrected his brother several times, but Shigeo wasn't hopeless. His gentle mannerisms were much more approachable than Ritsu prickly personality. This task would have taken Recovery Girl several hours finish alone, and it was looking to be completed in about forty-five minutes.

This got her thinking. If they truly had an aptitude for this… She shook her head and tried to dislodge that train of thought. They studied components for magic, not medicine. Granted most of the components and their usages were an easy transition from magic to medicine. Magical healing was a part of modern medicine. Not that Recovery Girl used magic for healing, it was a very rare skill and more conservative measures were often enough. Still, if they excelled in the academy like she was told, they already know how to study and retain complex information.

She didn't want students but, they didn't have anywhere to go and they no plan going forward. They also had skill sets that positioned them for success in Recovery Girl's field.

"Shou you red haired little demon." Recovery Girl cursed him quietly under her breath as she doubled check the brothers work but found she didn't need to fix any of it.

"Did you say something?" Ritsu paused and Recovery Girl was met with the concerned gaze of both brothers.

She felt a warm flutter in her chest as the two boys watched her, standing within arms reach at all times if possible. They were hardly different from the other children she'd see pass through the line. Slightly gaunt appearance after hard weeks of travel, a slight and constant tremble from living with unending anxiety, but with eyes bright and full of life.

They were so young… and they were alone, but they were also at the perfect age to enter an apprenticeship, Recovery Girl realized. Shou understood perfectly how this smuggling line worked, and he didn't lie to the boys, I'll ask them tomorrow if they don't come up with anything themselves.