Disclaimer: DreamWorks owns RotG, not me.
Grusiri was big.
Bigger than Burgess, anyway. Big enough that the city itself was divided into a few smaller sections, as though to help keep people from getting lost. Jack had seen at least three inns, two taverns, and a fancy place that called itself a 'motel' so far.
The sun was setting by the time he reached the section he wanted to be in, and he sighed, realizing he would probably have to find someone who could refill his bottle the next day. As he walked the streets, he sipped from his flask and realized with dread there was only enough left for one more day. He located the nearest place that offered lodgings, a small inn near the center of the city (where all the sections seemed to meet in a spiral) that boasted 'magically cleaned rooms'. It seemed silly to Jack that that was something to advertise, especially in a city where magic was encouraged as much as it was in Grusiri. Apparently many people agreed with him on that point, for the rooms were cheap, though not quite as cheap as the April Inn had been.
In the small room he'd rented, Jack curiously held the bottle he'd bought from the shop owner in the last city he'd stayed in up to the small lamp in the room, wondering if that was acceptable as sunlight. He didn't expect much, after all the bottle promised rainbows of all things (ridiculous, Jack thought), but the light above the bottle turned a multitude of colors that twisted into a rainbow from the bottle. Gasping, Jack caped the bottle quickly. That was magic for sure, which meant he could trade it to a cauldron witch in exchange for the syrupy liquid he needed to conceal himself. He laughed in delight; now he wouldn't have to attempt to perform any magic himself!
Stuffing the bottle back into his bag and leaving the bag in his room, he took the small pouch of money and locked the room and exited the inn (noting that it was called 'The Rest' so he didn't try the wrong inn later). He wandered the city, for though it was dark it was still alive; people calmly entering buildings and walking the brightly lit streets. There was a small stand he discovered that was selling exotic fruits, such as pineapple and kiwi, none of which you could get in Burgess. They also sold chunks of the fruits on a stick, which Jack happily bought for dinner (though he ended up purchasing a small amount of chicken later, because as good as the fruits had been they weren't quite filling enough).
He was checking out an academy that proclaimed to teach alchemy and potions when he heard something that made his blood run cold.
"Naw, we can't have lost him! 'E's around here somewhere, we just have ta find out where e's staying."
They can't have followed me, Jack thought in panic. Getting away from them was the point of this trip in the first place! He bolted back to The Rest as quickly as he could, dodging the remaining people on the streets. He locked the door to his room behind him, hoping that the group hadn't caught sight of him.
Jack sat on the bed, taking in deep, calming breaths. They were the presence following me this whole time, he realised furiously. He had two choices, try to keep them in his sight always and keep tabs on them, or do his best to avoid them. Getting ready to sleep, he decide the latter option was probably the safest bet.
As he pulled the sheets and blankets over himself he had a comforting thought: Mrs. Overland and Emma are safe from my troubles.
"Where did he go?" North asked suddenly, looking around the street they were on.
The four of them had done their best to track down Jack, but it wasn't until the boy had stopped for lunch that they caught up to him. They had shadowed him all the way to Grusiri, though Bunny had pulled them all back and Sandy had shushed them several times. They had been sure Jack didn't know he was being followed, but then he'd shouted for them to come out.
Okay, so they hadn't been as subtle as planned. But they were certain Jack didn't know who was following him. In the bustle of the city, Tooth had proven the best at keeping an eye on him, though she'd gotten distracted several times. When they ended up in the section of the city that was more on the magic side, Bunny couldn't help but wonder why the kid had come here, since he'd seemed to despise most traces of magic the day before.
Tooth was currently side-tracked looking at jewelry, but looked up when she heard North's question. "You lost him again?"
"Naw, we can't have lost him! 'E's around here somewhere, we just have ta find out where e's staying."
Sandy nodded and signed something with his hands quickly.
"We could simply wait until morning, but! we do not know why Jack is here, and it would be very hard to find him then." North said, stroking his beard.
"Oh!" Tooth spoke excitedly. "I think I see him!" She pointed at a figure slipping through the remaining people on the streets. "Come on!" she zipped after the figure, the others following seconds later.
Bunny almost ran into her when she stopped suddenly, looking all around. "Did ya see where he went?"
Her shoulders slumped. "No," she sighed. "He just sort of- vanished!"
Sandy tugged on North's pants. When he had North's attention, he signed a suggestion.
"Yeah," Bunny agreed. "Might as well find a place to sleep for the night, we'll have better luck when we're re-energised."
North looked around the small plaza they found themselves in. "Have two options, stay at little place there," he pointed to an inn with a sign that said it was 'The Rest', "Or we could find something somewhere else."
Sandy gestured to the nearby inn.
North looked at the others, and when they didn't protest he shrugged. "The Rest it is," he said, already walking towards it.
Jack wondered why he felt dread knotted in his stomach when he woke up. He quickly reviewed the previous night. He was in Grusiri, he was going to get his bottle refilled, and he was nowhere near those snooping travellers- Wait. He shot up in bed. They were here, in this city! Looking for him!
Jack spent the next five minutes panicking, and three after that trying to calm his heartbeat and slow his breathing. When he felt he was in a better state of mind, Jack began to plan how he would avoid the foreigners. They probably didn't know where exactly he was staying, so they wouldn't be staying here. Good.
He hopped out of bed and changed into his other pair of clothes (which he'd dipped in water and hung up the night before. Not exactly washing them, but it was better than nothing), while glancing out the small window. The Rest was small in ground space but went up five levels, which was the tallest height Jack had ever seen a building reach but it was apparently very common in Grusiri. Jack was on the top floor, which gave him the best possible view of his surroundings without too many buildings blocking the window.
Alright, Jack thought. If I leave here and walk towards the stone building with pillars in front, then turn… he held up his forefinger and thumb on both hands for a second, …left, I'll be able get to the small wooden structure, which supposedly houses a cauldron witch who sells potions to anyone. Jack straightened the room (as though it needed straightening. The only things out of place was his staff, which was leaning in the corner of the room, and that darn book he'd been trying to decipher) and grabbed his bag, double-checking that it contained both the bottle he needed to refill and the rainbow bottle to trade away. He took a deep breath, then realised he would have to buy something for breakfast. Deciding to get something on the way, he added the money pouch to the bag, opened the door, locked said door, and ran down the several flights of stairs to get to the ground level, where he could exit onto the streets. Just as he was opening the door, there was an exclamation in a voice he recognized.
"That's him!"
Turning around, he caught a glimpse of four pairs of eyes through the closing door. Surprised blue ones, irritated green ones, and wide violet ones. There were also kindly brown ones, but those eyes were knowing and Jack was almost certain their owner could read his mind.
The door swung shut.
Jack shot off through the sleepy morning streets, cloak flapping wildly behind him.
A/N: Oh my goodness, I'm so sorry, it feels like forever since I've posted, even though it hasn't even been two weeks (well, not quite). Classes have been slowly absorbing the majority of my attention, and though they're mostly fascinating (World religions, Chemistry, American history, and Music are some of my favorites!), they also make it very hard to do anything with my inspiration, since I often get it in the middle of class and not when I actually have time to write. But enough of my complaints, reviews!
WinterCrystal1009: Yeah the war is pretty darn important, might want to keep it in mind. And thank you so much! :D
One Wing In The Fire: Well here it is!
IReviewThings: Yeah, it's things like that that make education so important, one can't properly form an opinion without having allllll the facts, which Jack clearly doesn't have.
The purple hippocampus: Haha, thanks! I appreciate that!
KorrieChan: Keep it down, would you? Jack doesn't know yet ;)
Aekidna: Oh, thank you!
Serami Nefera: Don't worry, that's all it is... for now. Gosh darn it Pitch, you're just showing up everywhere.
I'm the lonely life: No, I don't think Pranks will be making a return, but can you guess what he represents? (Hint: Pranks lives in the April Inn) And yeah! Finally, some concrete evidence of Pitch!
Guest/Mikalya Elwood: I've read the first three chapters (I'm rubbish at commenting, so I probably won't review often) of yours, and Solitude and Darkness is on my to-read list!
acrisafu: Glad that the confusion was straightened out! And thank you!
Okay, honestly you all are so amazing, bless your very souls for all the follows, favorites, and reviews. Sorry for the slightly shorter chapter and longer wait, I'll hopefully have time to actually work on this story more often.
Until next time!