Here's the next chapter.

Please read and enjoy.

Crackers

The first thing I felt when I woke up was a cool hand on my side. I was lying on the creaky wooden floor of my attic. How I had gotten there I could not fathom at that moment in time. My head still span, but I was breathing normally now.

My eyes had completely adjusted to the dark space lit only by a small candle. I would have to remember to get more of those. I followed the cool feeling on my side to a hand resting there. That hand was connected to a thin arm, which was connected to a young girl, smiling sadly.

Aida, the name came flouting back to me. I tried to sit up but was struck by pain in my side. With a gentle hand, Aida pushed me back to the floor. The cool feeling continued until she took her frail hand away. Only then did she finally allow me to lift myself so I was leaning against one of the cold wooden walls. I was surprised. The pain I had felt in my side the first time I had attempted to sit up was gone.

I looked to Aida for an explanation. She spoke no words but simply lifted the hand she had been resting on my side as if that would explain it and it did. Her magic was what caused the pain to cease. Whatever had been broken or bruised was now healed. I felt healthier then I had in a long time. I simply nodded my head in her direction and smiled, giving my silent thanks.

It wasn't until then that I was aware of another presence in the room. He stood in the corner next to a very small window with curtains drawn over it. It was placed in a way that no one would be able to see it from the outside. No one knew I had an attic, except Lavania.

And that is where he stood with a scornful look upon his muscular face. He looked at me as if caught between two emotions, the emotion of joy at seeing me awake or that of anger against being unconscious in the first place. Knowing Magnus I guessed he was going to go with the later. I hate it when I'm right.

"What do you think you were doing?" He barked. I said nothing. "We could hear everything from up here. What made that soldier punch you?" Concern lased his words.

"I may or may not have accidentally given him a dirty look." I said sheepishly, trying to make it sound like it wasn't as bad as it had been. My attempts were unsuccessful.

"You gave him a dirty look?" Oh, no. I knew where this was going. "With that he could have given you a worse punishment. Your lucky he didn't take you off to the stocks."

"I'm sorry, I slipped." I tried to explain. "It was an accident. I didn't mean for it to come out."

"No Joone." His voice rose slightly in anger. Then, without warning he enveloped me in a hug. His voice softened. "No my Red Wing. I'm the one who is sorry. This is my fault." I was so stunned by his embrace that I was speechless.

"I promised you that I would never bring danger to your door. Now look what I've done. You have two fugitives hiding in your attic." He broke from the embrace but still held me by my shoulders. "I wasn't careful enough."

A bit of anger boiled inside of me. "It's not your fault." It came out a little harsher then I had intended. "I signed up for this. I knew going in that this could happen and I was ready. I am not afraid of them Blackbird."

He stared at me and I stared back, trying not to let my mask slip because I was lying. It was true that I knew this was going to happen but that didn't mean I wasn't scared. We were walking a very thin line and who knows what would happen when we finally fell off. I should have known how this story would end.

I broke away from him and went to peer out the small window. No soldiers patrolled the streets that I could see. We were safe, for now. My eyes flouted around the small attic. I had set up a few beds up there. There was some food and a small box of candles. I needed to get something for them to do up here. No one knew how long the two would have to stay hidden up there.

My foot made small tapping noises against the ground. I bit my lip. A shiver ran up my spine. The chill of the night was bighting at my bones.

"I'll go get you some more blankets and candles." And with that I disappeared down the stairs hidden behind the cabinet. I found the cabinet in place and blocking my path, placing my ear up against the wood. There were no sounds that resembled those of the soldier's boots on my floor. No one other then my refugees and myself were moving about the house.

When I concluded that it was safe I pushed on the wood, opening it just enough so I could slip out. I went to my own small room and took a few of the blankets I had folded and stacked in one of the corners. The search for the candles took me all around my small home and back to my bedroom. Kneeling down on the floor, I peered under my bed and spotted three boxes.

One of the boxes was quite large, the next was about a third of the other's size, and the last was very small. My fingers found the medium sized one first. I knew that the largest box was actually empty, and the smaller box; well that was a mystery even to me at the time.

I removed the lid of the box I had pulled out from its space bellow the bed. Inside I found what I had been looking for. Candles.

Candles in hand I scampered back to the cabinet and squeezed back through the space between the cabinet and the wall. I pulled the cabinet, as well as I could from this side, back into place.

I spotted a light coming from the top of the stairs. It was dim but brighter then the candle that they had lit before I had left to find more. Quietly I made my way back up the stairs.

Magnus was sitting on one of the cots I had pulled out. His head rested against the wall and his eyes were closed. He didn't look like he was asleep, more like he was listening to something. Soon I heard it too, the crackle of a fire.

Aida was sitting on another cot but her eyes were not closed. Instead she was staring deeply at something she had cupped in her hands. I looked closer and saw a tiny flame floating just a few inches above her palm.

It was beautiful magic. I had been working to protect sorcerers but I cannot say that I have seen them perform any of their magic. I may have seen the art when I was a young child but those memories are lost to me now. You would never expect to see magic in those dark days. The danger it had brought to the wielder made it too dangerous for them to share their talent. But in this attic, where no evil eyes could see, magic was safe. At least small magic was.

The small flame danced in Aida's eyes. Her head rose slowly and finally spotted me standing at the top of the stairs. All she did was smile. Aida had not spoken a word since I had sent both her and Magnus up here to hide. Her smile was half hearted.

Even though the flame gave off light and danced so eagerly in her hands, it still did little to warm the cold attic. Remembering the objects in my arms, I through one of the folded blankets at Magnus' face, startling him. Aida giggled.

I walked over to the small crate that sat in between their two cots where the other candle stood, still burning and placed the box of candles I had found beside it. The other candle was dying and didn't give off much light so I took out another. I lit it using the already burning flame of the other candle. It wasn't much but it would have to do.

Aida was so transfixed by the glow coming from her hands that she did not notice me coming up beside her. She still wore the blanket I had given her earlier to dry her off. It was still wet so I gently removed it from her small shoulders. She was not startled by my touch but only continued to stare into the endless colours that danced before her. I replaced that blanket with the dry one I had carried from downstairs.

Now that we were safe I finally got a good look at the girl I was risking my life to protect. She was very thin, as if she hadn't eaten for days, and her skin was an unhealthy kind of pale. She had long ginger hair that fell half way down her back. The fire in her hand was starting to go out as her eyes fluttered. Poor thing. How long had she been running?

Again I noticed how thin she was. I wanted to slap myself. How could I have missed it? Food. I quickly moved to lift one of the floorboards. Underneath was an assortment of food that kept for a long time. There was enough there to last one person for a week, but seeing that I had two guests I might have to go shopping sooner then I originally thought.

A medium sized tin slipped into my hand and I lifted it from its hiding place. Beneath the lid were crackers. I know it wasn't a meal but it would have to do for now. The tin clanged slightly as I placed it in front of Aida who was still transfixed by the fire in her hands.

I through one of the crackers at Magnus, but it didn't hit him this time. One of his hands flew up and caught it before it crashed into his face. I found myself feeling slightly disappointed but not surprised. Magnus had been a sword smith for a while and had been trained how to fight. His reflexes were amazing. So far only one person was ever able to surprise him. Recently though he had become more of a locksmith. He became fascinated with them when I had shown him how to pick the lock on the cage to a sorcerer.

Magnus' quick movements caught Aida's eye and she finally looked up, the fire dying in her hand. She looked hungrily at the cracker he was flipping over in his fingers. Then she noticed the tin sitting at her feet. She looked at me asking the silent question.

"Go on." I smiled. No sooner had I said did this young predator descend upon the unsuspecting crackers. Within ten minutes the tin was empty. Magnus was still flipping the same cracker in his fingers. He laughed at the sight of Aida devouring the crackers. I couldn't help but join in.

Aida's eyes were beginning to close again. Magnus got up and gently laid the girl on one of the cots. She was asleep within seconds. The sight of her chest rising and falling rhythmically made me yawn. Aida wasn't the only one who was tired. My head tilted forward but I jerked it back, trying to stay awake.

"You should get some sleep." Magnus stated beside me.

"So should you." I retorted.

He lifted his hands in defeat, smiling and lying down in his own cot. I knelt down and pulled the sheets up over Aida a little more. My feet glided silently across the wooden floor, kneeling down and blowing out each candle. The room fell into darkness.

I stood there in the dark for a moment until my eyes became adjusted to the darkness. As quietly as I could I made my way down the stairs and slipped back out into the main part of the house. The cabinet scraped across the floor as I pushed it into place.

Once I was done I took a step back to look at the cabinet. The sight of it moving would become so familiar. It looked so ordinary but it hid our greatest secret.

Thank you for reading and please REVIEW! So that I can morph this story into one that you would enjoy.

Any and every comment is welcome.

What do you think will happen? Do you think they will be able to hide all of their secrets?

As you well know, nothing lasts forever.