"You could have left with them…" Sophia said from her place next to Luz.

"You know I can't. We have to make sure nothing goes wrong for those two. Are you sure you can do it?" Luz turned to her elder.

"You doubt me Luz, this old lady still has something left in her yet. Do you remember the conditions?"

"Yes, I've already gotten rid of anything that could trigger your ability to malfunction. After this, there will be no such thing as Carlene and Iquella Kurta." Luz said grimly, her hands gripping her tunic.

"I'm sorry Luz-" Sophia started, but she knew that it was the last thing the grieving mother would want to hear, "Remember, even the smallest thing can bring the memories back and the longer it stays intact the harder it is to snap out of it."

"I know. We should get started before the others start to wake…" she was ready to forget. Ready to forget about how there was an emptiness in her daughter's eyes that wasn't there before- the kind she had only seen in those who had lost everything- and it chilled Luz straight to her bones every time she met that vacant gray.

Such a look shouldn't be in her child's eyes.

The day Luz died, she saw there was something familiar in the blackness of death- she had been seeing the same darkness in her daughter's eyes since she got sick. And so Luz welcomed the emptiness she had feared but accepted; because if she could love a child whose eyes reflected death, then what had she to fear from death itself?

It was rare for Carlene to dream of the past, of the last night she had seen her people alive, her mother and one of the village elders helping her and Iquella pack and sending them off. She preferred dreaming of them alive than the alternative.

Dreaming of a shovel and dirt all around, beneath her feet, entangled in hair, mixed in blood.

Of avoiding to look at their faces while she works. To not look at any of them until the last, or guilt will make her forget the task at hand.

Of looking into the empty eye sockets of that final one, her mother, once.

When she first begins, she sees no end. Piles of bodies, all needing to be buried, prayed for, remembered. She's small, still, and not strong enough. But she will not allow herself to stop.

Of not crying until the last body. Then she lets herself go. The child beside her looks up at her with wide red eyes and he holds her hand.

Of being a gravedigger with the ghost of her mother's voice in her ear telling her how brave she is.

Yes, it was better to dream of them alive than the alternative.

The sound of the gulls crying as they took flight in the air and of fishermen calling their wares to passing on goers of the morning market.

It was by some odd chance the two of them settled in Dolle Harbor, a part of Carlene felt as if the world was trying to keep her involved but she wanted anything but. Her goal was to keep Iquella safe and having anything to do with the main cast would throw a wrench into said plans.

She was careful on what information she shared when it came to Iquella, simple teachings of how to survive on his own if they were to ever get separated and the whatnots.

But like every thirteen year old boy, he got into his head that he wanted to take the Hunter Exam. She was sure to shoot down that idea quickly, knowing that his thought process was leading to dangerous territory of the plot. But he was persistent in trying to convince her.

From stating that she should take the exam then moving to that the both of them should take it together and each attempt to convince her were shot down till he stopped mentioning it all together. She thought it was the end of it and moved on, but in hindsight she should have known better.

So when she started to descend down the stairs and called out asking what Iquella wanted for breakfast and didn't get a reply her guard was up. Nothing was out of place in the small space they called a living room besides the neatly folded clothes and a note.

Carlene walked slowly, irritation stepping into her bones, already knowing what the note was going to say. She lifted it up and flipped and nearly ripped the letter to pieces when she saw her ward's messy writing.

Dear Carlene,

I know what you said about taking the Hunter Exam and took your words in deep consideration… and decided to take it anyway! I'll write to you when I get the chance, I found a ship that is picking up applicants for the exam, it's too late to stop me because by the time you're reading this I will already be on the way to the next port. You don't have to worry, I have my contacts with me and I have supplies to help. I'll seen you after I get my license.

Your favorite little brother,

Iquella

P.s. I grabbed one of your nets and a few of your specimen jars, so when we see each other again I'll give you all the bugs I catch.

P.s.s. please don't be too mad!

Don't be mad? Carlene laughed slowly, pulling a chair out and sat down with a sigh. Fiddling with the parchment. Two paths laid out before her.

In the first path she stays put, in the two floor apartment by the docks waiting for the child she calls brother to return home, to wait in worry not knowing what he's doing or if he's safe.

The second path she could leave. She can pack a small bag of supplies and march her way to the giant oak tree and make it to the exam site before Iquella does and take the exam by Iquella's side.

And as much as she hates to admit it, she knows which path she is going to take.

So she got up and started getting ready for the task at hand. Going up the creaking stairs to the hallway lined with wide windows, the view from a glance showing the harbor and the silhouettes of townspeople on their way to and fro. As she passes Iquella's room she ignores the need to go in and check for the things he might have forgotten and moved onto her own.

Carlene slid the door shut behind her with a sigh. The bedroom was modest in a way she could never get past. A nightstand; twin bed; linens, and pillows already in place- a habit she brought with her from her last life- a single window lay against the same wall as the bed, and a small desk with jars and a few supplies.

She sat on her bed, the frame creaking but settling after a moment. Trying to take her time to prepare herself mentally for what she's about to do, "The 287th Hunter Exam… Iquella, you really know how to pick em'." She chuckled as she pushed herself off the bed and grabbed the bag she kept hanging off the bed frame.

She was quick to grab supplies from her room before changing out of her traditional wear to a grayish white sleeveless turtleneck and a darker gray pair of harem pants. She then went to the small shard bathroom and looked into the mirror. Splitting her dark hair into two different sections and braiding them both, tying them in place with a light green fabric that she cut from her original garments that she left the Clan in.

She stared into her reflection, gray eyes looking back at her and a shiver still went down her spine whenever her and the stranger in the mirror made eye contact, a sense of wrongness turning her blood to sandpaper and her bones to ice- these aren't my eyes, these aren't my eyes, THESE AREN'T MY- grabbing the contacts container she opened them up quickly and carefully put them in, blinking a few times before checking to see if they are in the right placement. Seeing black eyes looking back at her she looked away.

Sighing, she left the bathroom and went back to her room to grab her bag, only stopping by her desk to grab some of her pins and needles. While small, they came in handy when one needed a quick weapon.

Heading back to the kitchen she opened the cabinets and grabbed a few protein bars and dried meat that she had made, along with a few rolls of bandages.

Slipping on her shoes she looked back into her silent home before turning away, closing the door behind her. She'll be back, the chances of her or Iquella passing the Exam are slim! And if she's lucky she might not even have to step into the elevator leading to the exam and she and Iquella can go home without any trouble.

Dolle Harbor morning life welcomes her in its glow. There were people hustling about, flitting from stall to stall like bees flying from blossom to blossom. Voices clamored together as merchants advertised their goods. The air smelled like the ocean, crisp and fresh, with the faintest tang of sea-salt.

But now wasn't the time to enjoy the morning weather, she had some walking to do and she had to be quick in order to get to Zaban City before Iquella did.