(Twelve Years Later)
"No, you are most certainly not getting a scythe for your birthday!" My mom was never too thrilled about my love for scythes, and she wasn't about to change her opinion. I was about to turn eighteen, so I didn't see the harm in asking anyway. We were in the living room, sitting next to each other on the couch. Mom was watching TV when I decided to ask.
"Why not?" I replied.
"We've been through this before, Moira."
"But I don't understand why I can't just have a scythe for my birthday!"
"I've already explained this to you before. You're not old enough."
"But I'm never old enough," I protested, "and it doesn't seem like I ever will be."
My dad, who was getting ready for another day at work in the other room and must've heard our bickering, came out into the living room with his necktie half-done. "What's going on?"
"She still won't let me have a scythe!"
Dad decided to give the same answer as mom, but in a sweet-but-still-slightly-annoyed tone. "Well, sweetie, you're not grown up yet."
"But I'm eighteen! (Well, almost.) Doesn't that count for anything?!"
"Key word, baby girl, teen. You're still a teen-ager. Therefore, you're still not of age to get a scythe of your own."
"So when will I be of age, dad? When I'm five thousand years old?!"
"Well, it's not like your experience with your bo-staff isn't going to help."
"Um…" When I turned sixteen, I got nothing but birthday money. I used it to get a simple wooden bo-staff from the town's weapons shop because that's all I could afford. It wasn't a scythe, but at least I could train with it until I could get a scythe. "You found out about that?"
Mom's mood got from bad to worse, "It just happened to be under your mattress while I was changing the sheets on your bed."
"I…" I started to talk, but my words failed me.
"If you'll just be patient, you'll eventually be old enough to have your own scythe." My dad tried to assure me. I felt three inches tall at that point. After a long period of stressing silence, I turned around toward the front door.
"Where are you going?" Mom asked angrily.
"I need to walk around for a while." I answered and left it at that.
I walked out of the house to get myself some fresh air. I went over to the chocobo rental stable on the far side of town. After I got my bo-staff, I would sneak over there in the middle of the night, rent a chocobo, and leave town through the back exit. The owner of the place, Will, had been raising, breeding, and renting out chocobos for longer than I can remember. He was an old guy, but he was cool. He seemed like he should've been retired a while back, but he never wanted to be away from chocobos. So he only partially retired. He had a huge ranch way out in the middle of nowhere, just a couple of dozen miles from a swamp where giant snakes lived. The chocobo ranch was famous for as long as I could remember.
After Will "retired," he passed the ranch down to his nephew, Bill, who also had a love for breeding and caring for chocobos. Will later moved to Kalm and started his own small and little-known chocobo stable just on the outer edge of town. He knew me pretty well, and we were close friends for a long while. That day I was going just to visit.
When I walked into the stable, he was feeding the chocobos their daily greens. I could tell he was surprised to see me.
"Good mornin', Moira! A little early in the day to be renting a chocobo, ain't it?"
"Hey, Will! I'm just here to visit today."
"It's gotta be big if you're visiting me in broad daylight."
I leaned on one of the stables, facing into it, watching the giant yellow bird as it eats its lunch.
"My parents found out about my bo-staff and my training."
"They're not stopping you, are they?"
"Well, no."
"Then don't worry about it."
"I would still like to have a scythe before I'm old and gray."
"There's nothin' wrong with bein' old and gray (and I should know), but if there's one thing I've learned in life, it's that a little patience goes a long way."
"But I don't want to have to wait until I can have my parents' consent. My mom keeps making it seem like it'll never happen."
"You're still young. You have enough life ahead of you to wait. Believe me, when the time is right, you will get what you've been waitin' for."
"I guess you're right."
He basically told me the exact same thing my parents were trying to tell me. Will seemed to always have a way of saying things that made it not sound so bad. The chocobo in front of me finished its food and lifted its head up to look at me. I scratched the top of its head, and it scooted closer so I could scratch the back of its neck.
"He sure is a wonderful one, ain't he?" Will asked when he looked at the chocobo I was petting. I looked down where there would be a nameplate for the resident chocobo, but I didn't find one. I looked up at Will.
"He's really nice. What's his name?"
"Haven't given 'im one yet. He's new. Just caught 'im earlier this mornin'."
The chocobo nudged his beak against my face. I found myself giggling at this and petted him some more.
"He likes you. Scratch him behind the ear. See how he likes it."
I reached over the side of his head. I had to guess where his ear was, so I scratched the back corner of his head. He made a loud and happy "wark" sound. I was startled, but then it made me laugh.
"He's awesome! Can I name him?"
"Be my guest."
I looked at the chocobo for a while. I tried to think of a really great name to give him, but nothing really came out. So I figured I'd just go with whatever came out of my mouth first.
"Jamie."
"Jamie? Why Jamie?"
"I dunno. I guess he just looks like a Jamie."
"Well, then Jamie it is."
Will went over to the back corner of the stable where he had a lot of equipment. I guess one of them was the nameplate maker, because when he came back a few moments later, he was holding a small rectangular piece of wood in his hands. I moved aside and watched as he put in place the nameplate that showed the name of Jamie.
"It's officially official. His name is Jamie." Will announced as he showed off the nameplate as if it were a masterpiece painting. We stood there for a while, staring at the nameplate.
"Uncle Will!" a young boy's voice called from the stable entrance. I looked over to see a young boy, about twelve or so years old, riding a chocobo that had travel packs strapped onto it. Apparently the boy came a long way to visit his uncle.
"Billy!" Will called back and opened his arms wide, as if expecting a hug. Billy jumped off his chocobo and ran over to hug his uncle Will.
"What brings you all the way to Kalm?" Will asked his nephew.
"I came here to get some supplies for the Ranch." Billy told his uncle.
"Oh is that all?" Then he noticed that I was still there. "Oh, Moira, this is my nephew, Billy. He lives with his father, Bill (who is also my nephew), at Choco Bill's Chocobo Ranch."
"That's right," little Billy replied, "and someday, I'm gonna be a great Chocobo breeder, just like my dad!" Little Billy announced quite proudly.
"Good to meet you." I shook Billy's hand and turned to Will. "I guess I'll be on my way now."
"Alright. Catch ya later."
"Later, Will. Thanks for everything."
"No problem, Moira. Anything for my best customer."
I left the stable feeling better than I did a while ago. I decided to go back home and watch some TV for a while. When I got there, dad had already left for work. He worked at the Inn. He sits at the front desk issuing people rooms, giving them the keys, and making sure they pay for them. I always thought that line of work was boring. I never really liked desk jobs.
My mom was in the kitchen washing the dishes from the night before. I guess she needed something to keep herself busy while she cooled down. I turned on the TV and flipped through the channels for a little bit. There was nothing on, so I turned it off. I laid down onto the couch, facing the ceiling, and I let my mind wander around a bit.
******** ******** ********
The best time to leave the house for training was at one in the morning. Everyone in the town would be asleep, except for Will, of course. Every night I would go to the stable, and he would be there with a chocobo ready for the riding.
I grabbed my bo-staff and left the house as scheduled. I headed straight over to the stable, and sure enough, there was Will. But tonight there was someone else with him. It was dark, so I couldn't recognize the person with him. I wondered who would be crazy enough to be awake at this hour? I thought for a second that it might've been Billy, but I noticed that the other figure was around the same height as Will. I walked over to find that the other figure was my dad.
"Dad!"
"Hey Moira." Will greeted cheerfully. "Your dad and I were just talking about you."
My dad seemed calm. "Yes, when I left the Inn today, Will asked me to meet him here. I wondered why he would've wanted to meet with me at this hour of the night, but now I know."
"Uh…" I was at a loss for words.
"Don't worry, I won't tell your mother."
"You better get goin' before she finds out either of you are missing." Will shooed dad away and led me to the back door of the stable, where he had a chocobo waiting for me. When I got a good look at it, I realized that it was Jamie.
"Hey, Jamie!"
"I figured you'd be more comfortable with Jamie since you were the one who named him."
"Thanks, Will."
"Have fun."
I climbed onto Jamie's back and had no trouble getting acquainted with him (since I already did that morning). We left town and rode around the wasteland that surrounded the town for a while, in search of monsters for me to beat up with my bo-staff. The great thing about it is when I beat these monsters I somehow get money out of it. When a monster is defeated, it drops some money as it leaves. This is half of the reason why I left town every night, so I could save up enough money so I could eventually buy myself a scythe of my very own. The other half of the reason was to gain fighting experience.
"Wark!" Jamie stopped all of a sudden, sending me forward and hitting the back of his head.
"Ow!"
"Wark?" He turned his head to look at me and lowered it a little, showing his apology. "Wark."
I rubbed his head a little bit and gave him a green, saying, "It's ok."
After finishing his short snack, he whipped his head back around, looking in the direction he did when he stopped. He seemed alert and cautious.
"Is there something up ahead, Jamie?"
He ruffled his feathers a little, as if disturbed by something. I knew he wasn't going to move any further, even if I used greens as a lure in front of his face. So I got off of his back and began moving forward from where Jamie stopped. I paused for a second and looked back at Jamie, who stood there staring at me like I was walking into a dark forbidden cave. I guess he didn't know me well enough to know that I could take care of myself.
"Don't worry about me. I'll be right back."
"Wark."
I walked for about ten minutes, and I was beginning to wonder whether or not I was going to find anything. I was also starting to wonder if Jamie was just being paranoid. That's when I got the chill down my spine that told me something was following me.
I turned around only to find two holes in the ground. I went over and poked my bo-staff into one of the holes to see if anything was in it. When I took the staff back out, a small furry creature came out of it. It stood in the hole with most of its body sticking out of it. It looked like a squirrel to me, but since when did squirrels go around burrowing like moles and stalking humans? That's when I knew that this was a monster, a Mu to be precise, and it wanted to fight. Another Mu came out of the other hole. I stepped back so I could see the both of them. They sat there for a while, wiggling their tails in little circles. They were staring at me like they had a score to settle with me, which wouldn't have surprised me because, by then, I'd beaten more monsters than I could count.
I waited for them to make the first move. The one on the right ducked into his hole for a split second. When he came back out he catapulted a ball of weeds, dirt and dust (which was twice his size) at me using his tail. It hit me in the face, blinding me for a few seconds. It was just enough time for the other Mu to burrow under my feet and hit me with water magic. I ran over to the one on the right and smacked it upside the head with my bo-staff, defeating the rodent that threw the tumbleweed at me.
I stepped back again to see the other Mu. We stared at each other for a while, waiting to see who'd make the first move. After two minutes of staring, the Mu decided to burrow back into his hole. Thinking that the Mu had run away, I started walking back toward Jamie. When I looked down I found that I was at the end of a long black fuse leading into the Mu's hole. At the very end of the fuse, the Mu sat in his hole, grinning at me as he pulled a match out of nowhere and lit the fuse. In a matter of seconds, the fuse ran out. I braced myself for the outcome.
BOOM! An explosion!
Smoke drifted up and away. It did nothing to me. I looked up to see a very surprised little Mu. I ran up to him, smacked him upside the head, and declared my victory. I didn't get a lot of money because these monsters were pretty weak, so I kept going to see what else I could find.
******** ******** ********
After a long night of battling, the only thing left to do was to sneak back into the house undetected and slip into bed without waking my mom. I never liked this part of the routine because I was always worried that one night my mom would decide to check up on me and find me missing. I had a feeling that tonight would be especially difficult.
The light of the living room window was on when I got to the house. I snuck over to the window, being careful not to be seen by anyone who might be inside, especially if it was my mom. I looked inside the window because I was curious as to why the light was on. I found both of my parents standing in front of the couch in the living room. My mom had an angry look on her face, while my dad had a look on his face that said, "Well, if you'd let me explain!" My mom was yelling at dad about something. I had a feeling that it was about me, but at the moment I could only think of trying to get into my room. Since I couldn't use the front door due to the fact that the front door led right into the living room, I had to think of a different way to sneak in.
I didn't have a back door, so the next best thing was my bedroom window. I snuck around the back of the house to the window that belonged to my bedroom. I set my bo-staff against the wall for a moment so I could open the window. I had to open it carefully so it wouldn't make a sound. That way, maybe I wouldn't gain mom's attention. It took me at least three minutes to open it, but when I finally had it opened the whole way I carefully climbed through it and into the room. I reached out the window, grabbed my bo-staff, and slowly pulled it inside.
As soon as I had my staff completely through the window, I heard footsteps heading toward my bedroom. I knew for certain that it was my mom, so I quickly shut the window, hid the bo-staff, and rushed into bed. The door suddenly slammed open, revealing my mom at the door and my dad behind her. And neither of their faces was a happy one.
"Where were you?!" Mom yelled as soon as she saw me.
"Huh?" I replied, as tired as I actually was.
"Oh, don't give me that, young lady! You weren't in here ten minutes ago when I came to check on you, and when I told your father about it he acted as if he already knew!"
"Uh…" I started, but she started up again.
"And when I asked him what he was doing at Will's he wouldn't answer!"
"Can't we discuss this in the morning?" My dad intervened. "She's too tired to-"
"We will discuss this NOW!" Mom snapped back. "I want to know what's been going on around here!"
She suddenly looked down at my bed. I guess my bo-staff was sticking out because she immediately yanked it out.
"Is THIS the reason you weren't here tonight?"
"For your information, Mom, I've been out every night for the past two years."
"Because of THIS?!"
"No, actually. I went because I wanted to. THAT just happened to be part of the trip."
She stared at me for a while, then she turned around and pointed my bo-staff at my dad. "You KNEW about this, didn't you?" she asked in a shocked and frustrated tone.
My dad scratched the back of his head, looking down at the floor and replied, "Uh, well…"
"You DID, didn't you?!"
"Actually, I only found out tonight. That's what I was doing at Will's."
"But how does Will fit into all this?"
"The chocobos," I answered, "I rent a chocobo every night."
"And exactly HOW do you get the money to PAY for these chocobos you rent? You don't have a job that I know of."
"Well, duh! From the monsters I fight outside of town."
She stood there silent for a while, not knowing exactly what to do. She looked as if she was trying to figure out some way to fix the dilemma. The only problem with that was that there was no dilemma to fix, at least to me there wasn't one. I liked my training and enjoyed the battles. I gained experience and money when I won, and I learned something when I lost. So, no matter what she was going to say or do to me, I wasn't going to stop my training.
"What do you want to do with your life, Moira?" my mom asked me in a more calm (but exhausted) voice.
I wasn't quite sure what answer I could give her. I didn't really give my future much thought. It didn't help that I was too tired to think of a proper answer anyway, so I gave the best answer I could give under the circumstances.
"I guess to be the best at what I like."
"And what do you like?"
It took me a while to process what she meant by that.
"I…uh…"
My dad decided to step in again, "I think we should just let her rest now."
Mom didn't want to accept that, "But-"
"Can't you see how tired she is? She's had a long night." He led mom out of the room.
"Goodnight, Moira," he said as he shut the door behind him and mom.
"'Night dad," I replied just as the door latched shut.
I never answered mom's last question, but then again, what could I say? "Gee mom, you should KNOW that I wanna wield a scythe, even though you hate them to death." I couldn't tell her my short-term dream when she's been against it for as long as I could remember. I didn't want to think of the conversation that had just happened, so I just lay down on my bed and went to sleep.