Okay, time for another typical apology from yours truly. I'm so sorry it has taken this long for this chapter to be uploaded. For one thing, I'm just plain lazy, and for another, I have had a mountain of homework to struggle through. Even in the school holidays. Do you believe that? I had an assessment to do over the summer holidays. Now that is just plain cruelty. Damn teachers.

Anyway, I've been sick, so I have used this time off school to finish another chapter. If it doesn't make sense, it's because I have had a rather high temperature and have been hallucinating. That's my excuse. It may suck, but I use it frequently.

Chapter 9 - It's Magic


The next morning, as the tent was being disabled and everything else was being packed up, Mimi was trying to put out the fire. She was a little reluctant to extinguish the glowing embers. Looking at them reminded her of the night before. Sweet memories. Just as she had finally made up her mind to shovel the soil over the remains, TK came up and sat down next to her.

"I saw you and Matt last night." He said quietly.

Mimi was a little surprised, and also a little unnerved by his tone. "Oh yes? What exactly did you see?"

"Enough." TK's usually bright and lively demeanour had become oddly solemn.

Mimi looked at him as he watched the trickle of smoke rise from what was left of the fire. "Does what you saw upset you? Or make you angry with Matt and I? Because if it does, I humbly apologise. I did not mean to cause any trouble for anyone."

Sighing, he raised his head to look her in the face. "Nah, it doesn't upset me. He seemed happier than I've ever seen him. It's just that… well, I wanted to talk to you about him. He's a really great guy, you know. A while ago, when it was just me and Matt, we were banished from the town of Firion, and Matt was promised death on return."

Mimi was shocked. She knew the rulers of Firion. Queen Mariya and King Cory. Her parents were great friends with them. They had a huge feast with them on the last Sunday of every month. She didn't think they would kill for no reason. "Why? What did you do to warrant such a threat?"

TK shrugged. "Honestly? Nothing much. A bit of stealing from the market place, making trouble for the guards. Other homeless kids did it too, but the Chief of Guards really hated Matt. I guess it was because he talked back and didn't always respect authority. You know how he is. Anyway, all that matters is that these guys were serious. So we left, going to look for somewhere else to stay. But a little way away from the edge of town, I was bitten by a snake." He lifted the left leg of his pants. Clearly visible were two small puncture mark scars. "See, I still have the scar. Anyway, we were too far away from any other village for Matt to take me there. I would have died. So Matt took me back into Firion. He risked his life to save mine. And… I just wanted you to promise me that… you'll always try to make him happy."

Mimi looked straight into TK's eyes. "TK, I do not know what will happen in the future, but I give you my word that I will do everything in my power to ensure Matt does not get hurt."

TK smiled. "Thank you Mimi."

About twenty minutes after TK and Mimi had talked, everybody was ready to go. The tent was dismantled, all their personal items were packed away, and the fire had finally been extinguished. There was no trace of them having ever stayed there.

Matt smiled at his team and said, "Okay guys. We all know this journey is rough. And we all know that it's dangerous. So I want everybody to be extremely careful. I'll lead, and if you, Tai, could bring up the rear I'd be very grateful."

Tai nodded. He knew Matt only wanted him at the back because he was probably the strongest of the group, and he could take care of everybody else without falling behind.

"Well… alright then. Let's go."

The group fell in line as they walked along the mountain path. Matt was in front, always looking out for any dangers in the path. He was followed closely by Mimi, then Izzy, then TK and Kari, then Sora, and of course Tai was behind.

Mimi was glad she had spent so long training to escape the castle. This walk was by no means an easy hike. The path spiralled steeply around the mountain, sheer cliff faces either side. The path was thin, certainly no more than a metre wide. Often it was wet, either from the rain or from the waterfall that cascaded down one side. Repeatedly the group had to walk under and behind this waterfall, leaving them soaked from the splashes.

Mimi had to watch her feet very carefully. Often Matt would turn around and tell the group of a danger approaching. It could be anything from a rockslide partially blocking the way, to particularly loose stones on the path. And naturally every time they went behind the waterfall they had to be especially cautious.

It was at one of these times that Mimi almost lost her life. They were about half way up the mountain, maybe a little more. After walking for hours, they were getting used to going under the waterfall. Just be very watchful of where you step and you should be fine. Unfortunately, this case was a little different. The rock structure directly above was very strange. It was causing more splashback than usual, and making the water flow closer to the edge of the path that it had at all other times.

This would turn out to be disastrous for the princess. While walking under this particular section of waterfall, she skidded a little on the wet rock. This wasn't anything unusual. Kari had landed on her derriere more than once, and Izzy had nearly taken a dive headfirst into the cliff wall. However, this time, Mimi had skidded in the opposite direction. Almost over the edge. Luckily she had regained her balance before taking a trip the fast way down the mountain. Unluckily, this put her in a very precarious position. Before she'd had a chance to move from this dangerous location, a stray stream of water had hit her, knocking her backwards. And off the path.

She cried out as she arched backwards, lost balance, and began to fall like a helpless rag doll. Her arms shot out, searching for something, anything, to grab onto. Anything to break her fall. But they found nothing.

Matt saw all this in slow motion. He saw her look at him with a look of helpless apology. He heard himself yell out, even though it didn't sound at all like his voice. It sounded warped, distorted, as if he was calling through water.

"Mimi! No!"

Then, suddenly he was hanging half off the cliff, holding onto the edge with one hand and grasping Mimi's wrist with the other. He wasn't entirely sure how he had got there in time. He didn't even remember moving.

But there was no time to wonder. He was fast losing balance, and if he didn't move soon he was going to take the trip down the cliff with Mimi.

"Little help guys?"

The rest of his group, who had been standing still in shock, went into overdrive. TK, Izzy and Sora grabbed Matt and began pulling him backward, back onto the path. When Matt was back safe, Tai leant a little way over the edge and grabbed Mimi's other wrist. Together they heaved her back.

She was drenched, water dripping off her clothes to puddle around her. Tears streaked her face, and red rings circled her wrists. She was sitting on the path, not quite finding the energy in her legs to stand. Matt was sitting a little way away from her, breathing heavily, emotionally exhausted. The rest of the group stood uncertainly around the two.

Mimi suddenly sprung from her place on the ground and landed with her arms around Matt. Looking deep into his eyes, she kissed him softly on the cheek and said, "Matt… I owe you so much. Thank you."

Matt smiled at her, still looking slightly tired. "Mimi… don't think anything of it. I didn't even realise what I was doing until I'd done it. It was just my first instinct to save you."

Mimi smiled back as she stood, finding the strength to do so in his eyes. Everything she needed seemed to be in those deep pools of sapphire. Matt followed her, brushing water off him. He smiled at the way she took control of the situation.

"Well, now that is behind us, we should keep moving."

Finally there was someone who could share his position as leader. Somebody else to look to when things got hard. His eyes softened. He didn't mind sharing with her at all. He'd share anything with that girl. His leadership, his group, his life… he blinked a few times. Where did that last one come from?

Could he really marry this girl? He'd known her all of three days. But wasn't that enough to know? Wasn't there such a thing as love at first sight?

… Love?

Besides, what did he have to offer? No family, no money, no home. Granted, she didn't have anything either. But she deserved someone who could give her anything she ever desired. If only that man were him.

He watched her as they walked. So beautiful… so perfectly exquisite. Like a porcelain doll. Even while dripping wet, with a long gash down her arm that he hadn't noticed before, she had a timeless grace. Matt found himself unable to look away. He was floating when she smiled, and when she laughed at something Kari said, he got lost in the music. He was entranced by her every move, every sway of her body furthered his rapture. He needed her to stay with him always. If he lost her, he was going to lose everything.

He pushed these thoughts out of his mind as they rounded the last bend of the trail. There was a hushed awe throughout the group. They had reached the summit. There was the castle. Matt gaped as he viewed its majesty. Never had he been so close to such an enormous building. It was made entirely of white marble, with turrets and statues and a giant wooden door. Surrounding the building were gardens thick with green. Trees that were almost as tall as the chateau bent their green leaves towards the white pebble path that wound towards that huge door. Flowers that Matt had never seen before dotted the grass. Nothing seemed dead or dying, everything was as vibrant as if it had only come into bloom that day.

Matt looked around at the rest of his group. Nobody had ever been here before, and they all seemed to feel as overwhelmed as he did. That is, all except Mimi. Even in the face of this enormity and opulence, the likes of which she must never have seen before, she managed to remain calm and collected. He had to admire that about her.

Mimi gazed up at the giant building in front of her. It wasn't quite as big as her palace, but it was close. In fact, it looked a lot like her castle, except for a few things. All the statues were different, her castle was more decorated, and had a larger courtyard, but other than that they were extremely similar. She turned back to the group.

"Well, I suppose I had better go in now. Nothing to be gained by waiting, is there? Are you going to wait here?"

Matt smiled. There was that voice again. "Yes. We can't go in with you. That would bias what the guardians have to say. But of course we will wait for you."

Mimi smiled back as she turned to walk down the path. Everybody else sat down on the grass. Sora even swallowed her fear enough to sit with her knees touching Tai's leg. Tai noticed the slight pressure on his left leg and turned to see Sora looking nervously at him. He looked at her for a moment, then placed his hand lightly on her knees. Sora bit her lip, expecting to flinch, forcing Tai to remove his hand. But, to her utmost surprise, her natural defence mechanism didn't show itself.

Tai gave her a look of absolute warmth and love, and suddenly Sora knew with certainty that she would always be safe with him.

TK and Kari were sitting under a tree making floral wreaths. It didn't shock Mimi to see that every time they picked a flower, another immediately grew in its place. There was something magic about this place. Mimi grinned to see TK give Kari his beautifully made chain. It was alternately pink and white, and he had evidently put a great deal of effort into making it so perfect. Kari took it and placed it around her head, where it sat like a halo.

Mimi kept following the white pebble path. It felt like something was pulling her towards those huge doors. She doubted she could stop if she wanted to. A warm breeze, unusual for such altitudes, seemed to push her along.

All of a sudden, out of nowhere a young man with dark blue hair and a long, lanky stride stumbled out in front of her. The breeze blew out into nothing more than a whisper, and Mimi halted. The man in front of her looked extremely dishevelled, his clothes torn and sticks and leaves stuck in his messy hair. He had a long cut snaking down one cheek. He looked wild, but Mimi sensed she need not fear him.

Upon seeing her, he sunk to his knees. "Please help me." He begged.

Matt, who upon seeing the man come in contact with Mimi, had left his place under a solitary tree at a run, was now at her side. Other members of the group were dragging themselves up from their peaceful rests to find out what was going on. When they had all arrived, the man repeated his request.

"I beg of you, help me."

Uncertainty shot through the group. What were they to do? Again Matt could feel all eyes on him. That is, all but two. Mimi had already knelt down next to the man and was cleaning his wound with a strip of material torn off her cloak.

"Please?" he asked yet again. "I have nowhere to go. Nobody to turn to."

"Why come to us?" asked Matt in return. "You don't even know who we are."

"Please!" He repeated, desperation ringing through his voice. "You all look like decent people, won't you help me? I was thrown out of medical school for something I didn't do, and now I can't return to my family. They were all depending on me to become a doctor, and come back to my home town to continue the family business. I was supposed to be the one to bring health and peace to Eschar. I promised… I can't go back a nobody! I just can't!"

Matt regarded the crouching figure before him for a few moments. A stillness hung in the air, anticipating his decision. "This doesn't change the fact that we are complete strangers to you." He said finally.

Hearing this, Mimi stood up to face Matt. "Matt! Can we not do a single thing for him? You took me in without knowing more than my name, why not him?"

They didn't say it, but they both knew the answer to that question. They both knew that this was different. Matt wasn't going to fall for this boy. And though neither of them was going to admit it aloud, deep down they both knew that they were head over heels in love.

Nonetheless, Matt sighed as he said, "You're right, Mimi. Okay. We'll take you on… uh… what's your name?"

The blue haired man struggled to his feet, grabbing Matt's hand and shaking it vigorously. "Joe… my name's Joe. Thank you so much… Matt, is it? Oh, thank you!"

Matt was a little taken aback by his enthusiasm, but shook it off. "Mimi here is visiting the guardians for guidance… we were waiting over there. Come back with us and I'll introduce you to everyone while she is being read."

Joe nodded, and the rest of the group left Mimi to continue on her little quest. The breeze was back and urging her forwards again. It wrapped itself around her body and pulled. She let herself be drawn along again, until she finally reached the doors.

Taking a deep breath, Mimi went to push them open. But it was unnecessary. They swung open by themselves. Mimi gasped as her eyes grew accustomed to the darker light inside, and she saw what those doors concealed.


What's behind door number one? You'll have to wait until the next chapter to find out. It might be something, or it may be nothing.

Anyway, I know this chapter wasn't up to the standard of the last one, but I figured I needed to enter Joe at some point, and now was as good a time as any. Still, please review. I want to hear your opinions. "I value your input," to quote my English teacher. Even though she doesn't.

Emma's useless facts about nothing in particular

It is physically impossible to lick your elbow.