Throughout the day that followed her encounter with Kim'dael, Claudia was burdened by an uncomfortable feeling which she could only interpret as guilt. The sensation of the elf's lips against her own lingered, ever present, and served to remind her that she was keeping a secret from Terry. She wanted to share what happened, but each time she attempted it, she felt knots in her stomach. She did not understand her own feelings, but she was tormented by them.
The face she wore also reminded her of her dishonesty. Greyed blotches still marked her features, and she had become uncomfortable in her own skin. It was that face which was keeping secrets, and had been kissed by another. She did not want to wear it any longer. She took Terry's suggestion to find more butterflies and restore herself, hoping that it would allow her to forget the encounter altogether. She collected several butterflies, in case she should need more one day. However, the butterfly spell did not give her conscience any reprieve. Somewhere within her, she believed that she deserved to carry the burden of guilt and shame for everything she had done or failed to do.
After she had mended herself, Terry at least seemed to be put at relative ease.
"You look happier," Terry stated when the spell took effect.
"I don't know if I feel any happier..." Claudia pondered.
"I want to say something, Claudia. No, I want to ask something of you," Terry continued.
"What is it?" Claudia questioned, preparing for a difficult subject to be raised.
"Claudia...something is happening to you. You did one simple spell, and it took a toll on you like it was the hardest thing you've ever done. You've never had that kind of reaction to that kind of magic before. I'm worried about you. We should find out what is causing this. And until we do, I want you to stop doing any magic," Terry pleaded.
Claudia moaned. She felt like she was being asked to give up the one part of herself she still had control over.
"Please, don't get angry. I'm not judging you. I'm just...scared. What if it gets worse next time? What if it really hurts you? What if it kills you?" Terry asked, a grim expression across his face.
Claudia knew that his concerns were not unjustified. Magic was affecting her on a scale it never had before. She had not revealed her feelings to Terry, but she harboured her own fears as well.
"How do you figure we find out what's wrong with me?" Claudia asked.
"I don't know. But once we're in Del Bar, once we're safe, I think we'll be in a better position to come up with something. Can you abstain until then?"
Claudia nodded in reluctant agreement.
"Thank you. I know it's a big ask, so thank you," Terry praised.
Claudia nodded once more. She knew it would be a hard promise to keep, but she would try her best.
In the days and weeks that followed, Claudia kept true to her word. Luckily, Katolis was peaceful in comparison to Xadia, so there was little need for magic on a day-to-day basis.
During their journey, Claudia began to recognize certain sights and places. She knew where she was even without a map. Every step she took which brought her closer to the castle where she grew up, the more hurt she felt in her heart. She wondered if her room was still in place there, or if someone else had claimed it and thrown out all of her things. She wondered if anyone within the castle walls missed her, or if she was hated by all. She had become a refugee in her own land, deprived of a place to belong, her family, and her happiness. Those painful feelings compelled her to take the long way through Katolis, staying as far away from the castle as possible. That route took her and Terry north, and then west toward Del Bar.
For nearly a month they travelled through Katolis. Little by little, the geography became more rugged. The peaks of mountains appeared over the horizon, and the air began to chill. Still they pressed on. They were uncertain when they crossed the border into the kingdom of Del Bar, but it became apparent that they had when they found themselves wanting for warmer clothes.
Then one morning, in the distance they spotted tall spires climbing toward the sky. Constructed of stone, they stood proudly over a city which was placed between two rivers. The twin rivers themselves had split from a larger river to the north. The city, known as The Serpentongue, was larger than any city in Katolis, and spanned the entire distance between the rivers. Looming over it all were the mountains of Del Bar, so large that they seemed to dominate the sky, despite still being so far away. Snow capped peaks warned of the bitter cold that would blow come winter.
Claudia came to a halt and gazed toward the city. The frigid Del Bar winds already made her shiver, and she huddled to warm herself.
"We made it...we're here," she stated as she rubbed her arms for warmth.
"Yeah, we made it. How are you feeling, now that we're here?" Terry asked.
"Honestly...I'm really nervous. Getting here was the easy part. Now we've got to find her somehow. And then I've got to talk to her," Claudia answered.
"We'll find her, love. I promise, it'll all work out," Terry said encouragingly.
"Thanks sweetie, you have no idea how much your support means to me," Claudia said, and then grabbed Terry's hand. "Now, let's go."
They came to the perimeter of the city, which was not walled. The Serpentongue was known as the commerce capital of Del Bar and it was open to traders from all the kingdoms. With no particular destination in mind, the pair decided to head toward the heart of the city to get the lay of the land.
The streets of the city were wide to allow the movement of commerce and soldiers. They were constructed with precisely chiselled stones which locked together tightly, a method which allowed them to endure the tests of time and the harsh weather. The buildings, which were packed tightly along the roads, had steep roofs to combat the snow which piled high in the winter.
The hustle and bustle of the city grew as they made their way deeper into it. People moved in crowds, going about their own business with no regard or concern with the strangers who had entered their city. Claudia had hoped for anonymity there, and she had found it.
They followed the distant sounds of a large crowd, believing it would take them to a place where they could talk, ask questions, and get directions.
Near the heart of the city, they arrived at a large town square which served as a market. Countless vendors manned their booths and haggled with customers. Claudia scanned the crowds, hoping she might by chance recognize her mother, but her wish went unanswered.
She noticed one vendor selling traditional Del Bar cloaks, which were made of fur, and essential for winters in the north. Winter was quite some time away, but Claudia was already cold, being unacclimated to the northern way of life. Still pulling Terry along by the hand, she approached the vendor. But before she got there, her attention was diverted to yelling from nearby. She turned her head toward the commotion, and saw a group of children running from a small bakery. A man, presumably the baker, followed and berated them as they fled.
"You little cretins! You're not welcome here!" the baker yelled as he angrily shook his right hand and held a long loaf of bread in the other. He then hurled the bread towards the children in his rage.
The bread sailed through the air, and right into the hands of one of the kids. A girl, about seven or eights years old, Claudia assumed. The girl took a bite of out the bread, and them mumbled with a full mouth.
"Thanks for the bread!" she laughed at the baker, whose face grew red.
With her eyes still planted tauntingly on the baker, the girl ran by Terry and directly into Claudia and bounced off her leg.
"Ngh! Careful!" Claudia insisted as she rubbed her leg where the girl had collided.
"Sorry miss!" the girl apologized. She raised her head and locked eyes with Claudia. The girl had pale blue eyes and shoulder length black hair, which was in need of a thorough combing.
"Don't worry about it! Are you okay?" Claudia asked with a smile.
"Yeah, I'm fine," the girl said with a nod before scampering off.
Claudia looked toward the bakery. The baker had gone back into his shop, seemingly content to cut his loses to one loaf. Nobody else in the crowd seemed to have even noticed the altercation, they simply went about their shopping with no concern.
"Ooh, you're not from Del Bar, miss?" a nearby merchant called to Claudia.
"Me? Oh...no, I'm from Katolis," she answered.
All at once, the other merchants and vendors seemed to take an interest in Claudia. They stepped away from their stalls with product in hand, holding them out toward her and suggesting the price. Each of them assured her that their product was of the best quality, and that anyone else who told them that was a liar and a cheat. They closed in tightly around her, and she started to get uncomfortable.
"As I thought! That is most definitely the fashion of Katolis! While you're in Del Bar, you must try some of the local Musk Bear milk! Mine is the best in the entire kingdom! No, the best of any of the five kingdoms! Have a sip, only one silver!"
"It must have been a long, tiring trip from Katolis! My herbal tea will sooth your aching joints!"
"Bah! Why settle for tea?! I have powdered elf horn that is sure to spice up your love life! As powerful an aphrodisiac as can be found!"
"Map of the city! Only three silvers! All the best places to visit are marked to make your stay stress free!"
"Your fortune read for only three silvers, madame? Learn what terrible fate awaits you!"
"Traditional Del Bar rugs! Made from the finest banther pelts!
Claudia raised her hands defensively. Two years living under open skies and in near solitude had left a mark on her. The sudden flurry of people made her feel unsafe and claustrophobic.
"N-no thanks," she said meekly, not able to lift her voice over the growing chatter of the merchants, with more still joining the crowd with every passing moment. She gulped and turned toward Terry, but she could not see him over the swarm.
"I'm s-sorry, it all looks very nice, b-but I don't have any money..." she stuttered.
The crowd did hear those words. Immediately, they collectively lost interest in her and dispersed without another word and started accosting other passers by.
Claudia then noticed that Terry had been approached by another merchant, who carried a bundle of flowers.
"Flower for your lady love, sir?" the woman asked.
"Why, certainly!" Terry said with affection. He then plucked a white flower from the bunch and turned to Claudia, and placed it gently in her hair.
"Awww," Claudia swooned. "Thanks sweetie!"
"I hope you'll accept gems as payment. They're straight from Xaida! They're said to have magical pro-," Terry began before cutting himself off. He patted himself down, and then he panicked.
"M-my gems! They're gone! Did I drop them?" he asked himself.
"No way! They were totally safe and secure!" Claudia insisted. She then noticed something of her own was missing. The flute which Kim'dael had gifted her was no longer tucked safely into her tunic.
"Wait, I'm missing something too!" she fretted.
They looked at each other in confusion for a moment, before the same thought struck them at once.
"That girl! She robbed us!" they shouted in unison.
Terry then turned toward the flower vendor.
"S-sorry, looks like I don't have any money after all..." he confessed.
The flower seller sneered at him, and then with one swift motion she snatched the flower from Claudia's hair and placed it back into the basket.
"Cheapskate foreigners! Go back to where you came from!" she muttered as she turned away.
Claudia brought her hand to where the flower had been placed and pouted.
"I'm sorry love, I'll get you another one when we get our gems back. I'll get you all the flowers!" Terry promised.
"We've got to find that kid! Did you see which way she went?" Claudia asked frantically as she scanned the streets
"I'm pretty sure the lot of them went that way!" Terry said as he pointed down a road that led away from the market. "I bet we can outrun them, they're just kids after all!"
They set off quickly down the road. Not far from the market, the crowds started to thin, and the noise became little more than a murmur in the distance. As they continued, the character of the city began to change. The buildings looked shabbier with each block they traversed. Doors and windows were not left open, and eventually they were either smashed out or shuddered entirely. The streets themselves became worn, clearly neglected of upkeep for quite some time. They felt like they had entered a completely different city.
"This looks like a ghost town. Where is everyone?" Claudia asked aloud, observing nobody on the streets.
"Beats me," Terry answered. "Do you remember what that girl looked like? Will you recognize her?" Terry asked.
"Absolutely! I looked right at her! She was maybe eight years old. She had this look of confidence in her eyes, like she was just a little bit too sure of herself for her age. She kinda reminded me of myself when I was that age, when I discovered I could do magic. I'll recognize that little pickpocket as sure as I recognize my own reflection!" she answered confidently.
As they continued quickly down the road, the sheer size of the city began to dawn on them. It seemed to go on and on without end. After a few kilometres, they started to feel short of breath and had to slow their pace, and then stop entirely to rest. As they stood panting, the sounds of footsteps echoed behind them. Claudia turned, and saw a girl walking across the street.
"Look!" Claudia said to Terry with a tap on the shoulder. She pointed out the girl in the middle of the road. It was not the same girl that had robbed them, but Claudia hoped the child could offer directions or an explanation for the decrepit state of their surroundings.
"Hi there," Claudia said as she slowly approached the girl.
The girl turned her attention to Claudia, seemingly only registering her presence as she neared. She stared hard at Claudia but said nothing.
Close up, Claudia realized that the girl was frail and dirty. She seemed as neglected as the roads on which they walked. She had a stillness in her eyes, which seemed to Claudia not to belong on a girl so young. It was the look of a person who had lived a hard life, not that of a child.
"Um...we're sort of lost. Do you know where everyone is?" Claudia asked.
The girl remained silent but peered into Claudia's eyes with an eerie intensity.
As she stared longer at the girl, empathy swelled within Claudia and she put her own concerns aside.
"Um...are you okay? Do you need help?" Claudia asked as she placed her hands on her knees and leaned forward.
The girl remained mute but it seemed like she wanted to say something, and her eyes softened subtly.
"Where are your parents?" Claudia asked.
The girl's eyes suddenly sharpened. She bent down to the ground, and ran her fingers though the mud at her feet and scooped up a handful. She then drew back her arm and tossed the mud directly in Claudia's face, and ran off without a word.
Claudia was speechless, and stood in disbelief as the mud dripped from her face. Within a few seconds, anger seeped from her.
"You little brat! I was trying to help you!" she screamed at the child, who had already disappeared from view. She then wiped her face clean with her cuff as best she could, but she still felt dirty.
"What is with this place? Is everyone here a jerk?" Claudia fumed.
"I wish I had an answer for you, love," Terry responded.
"Let's just go find our stuff..." Claudia huffed before setting off once more down the road.
As they continued through the maze or roads, small groups of children, usually three or four in number, scuttled through the dark alleys, or spied at them from the condemned buildings.
"This place is starting to creep me out..." Claudia confessed to Terry, and squeezed his hand tighter.
In the distance, the sound of a crowd began to build. They followed it, and it grew louder and louder with each block.
Within a few minutes, they turned a corner, and came upon a gathering of dozens of children. They occupied a square, similar to the one they had visited on the other side of town. Whereas this first market was busy, the one they stumbled into was chaotic.
Claudia lunged back behind the corner, determined to maintain the element of surprise. She then peeked around the edge of the building to spy on the crowd.
Gangs of kids ran through the square, shouting loudly at rival groups and hurling insults and taunts. Other children bartered with one another, exchanging all manner of ill-gotten contraband. Among the items passing hands, Claudia spotted everything from jewellery, food, weapons, clothing, and money. It reminded Claudia of a busy playground, but without the innocence. In one corner of the square, Claudia noticed a circle of kids tossing dice and gambling away their valuables. Some passed around bottles of spirits and ales, and staggered along tipsily.
"Those kids are way too young to be drinking! What did we walk into here Terry!? This is total pandemonium!" Claudia said with shock. She then pulled herself around the corner and leaned on the wall next to Terry.
"On the plus side, I think this is the kind of place a little thief would hang out!" Claudia assessed. "I want to get a bit closer to get a better look, but we can't let them see us!"
"Let's creep around this building," Terry replied and slapped his hand against the wall. "If we go down this alley, I think we'll come around the other side and get a better vantage point."
"Alright, let's go," Claudia whispered.
They tiptoed down a narrow alley that took them around the square. At the other side, Claudia peeked around the corner of the building once again. As hoped, she had a better view of the kids, and could see most of their faces.
"Can you see anyone you recognize?" Terry whispered while Claudia scanned the crowd.
"No...not yet. There's too many of them," she answered. "Wait! I see that girl! That's her for sure!"
The blue eyed girl was crouched in a circle with half a dozen other kids about her age, and they seemed to be engaged in trade or showing off their plunder.
"You see her? That's great, love! So, what do we do now? Rush in there and take our stuff back?" Terry postured.
Claudia looked through the crowd once more. Despite them all being kids, they were numerous. Confronting one of them might draw the ire of the rest, she considered. She did not want to fight children if it could be avoided.
"No, let's get closer first. We'll see if she separates from the crowd and then we'll corner her. Then she'll have no choice but to return our valuables!" Claudia declared.
Claudia led the way as they crept behind the makeshift stalls that some of the children operated out of. They kept their heads down and moved as quietly as possible. An unbroken line of five or fix stalls allowed them to move in stealth from one side of the square to the other, and by the time they reached the edge of the final stall, they were close enough to hear the thief and her friends talking. Claudia held a hand toward Terry, signalling for him to wait while she crouched down and eavesdropped on the bandits.
"So whatcha got today?" one of the boys in the group asked.
"Some cheap rings. Not much, but some sucker will think they're real gold and pay for 'em," another boy answered.
"Stole some old man's wallet. He musta been poor though, because it's got no money in it..." another boy said sadly.
"How about you?" the first boy asked the girl with pale blue eyes.
"I hit the jackpot today! Look at this!" she gloated as she opened Terry's bag of gems. The other children leaned forward with envy.
"You're rich! What are you gonna do with all that?!" one of the other girls asked.
"I dunno! Find someone who'll give me money for them I guess. Who in their right mind carries around a bag of gems anyway? You're just askin' to get robbed!" the girl laughed.
"Lots of people in Xadia carry gems with them," Terry pouted as he listened to the girl.
Claudia placed a hand on Terry's cheek to offer her understanding and sympathy before turning her attention to the kids again.
"Oh! I got this too! Check it out!" the girl boasted as she pulled the flute from her pocket. She brought it to her lips and pretended to play a song. All the other kids laughed and hollered.
"Do you even know how to play that thing?! I doubt it!" a boy jeered.
"I can learn! I'm not some stupid kid! I can teach myself!" the girl lashed out.
The two grumbled at each other for a moment, and it seemed that they might get into an altercation.
"Where did ya get that stuff anyway? That's not a typical haul," a slightly older girl asked,
"Over in the market on the other side of town. I stole it from some skinny kid and an old lady," the girl recounted with a smirk.
Claudia's eyes widened and her jaw dropped.
"Terry! She just called me an old lady! The nerve of these children!" she complained.
"Well, it's probably the white hair, love. An honest mistake, I reckon," Terry replied.
"Terry! Don't take their side!" Claudia shouted.
Claudia's protestation was loud enough to be heard by the children, and they all turned their eyes to the corner of the stall. Still peeking around the side, Claudia made eye contact with the girl holding the flute.
"That's her! The old lady! Run!" the girl shouted. The kids ran in all different directions, most dispersing into the nearby crowds.
"Grrrr!" Claudia snarled as she sprung to her feet to give pursuit. The girl however had already dipped into an abandoned building, crawling under a narrow gap in the boarded up door that was too small for Claudia to squeeze through.
"Enough of this! Time for a change of perspective!" Claudia growled. She ducked back behind the stalls and performed a spell. With a flash of purple light, wings materialized on her back. She stretched them out and exhaled.
"Just hold on a sec, Claudia!" Terry pleaded, but she did not wait. Claudia lifted herself into the air quickly, and flew over the building into which the girl had run.
From the air, Claudia could see the building had narrow alleyways on the other side. They twisted wildly, which meant the child could not have covered much distance. With a few minutes Claudia spotted her, huddled over and breathing heavily in one of the narrow alleys, no doubt from running as fast as her legs would carry her. Claudia smiled and circled overhead.
On the ground, the girl leaned against the alley wall and slid to the ground with the bag in hand, certain that she had shaken her pursuer.
"Like she'll ever get her stuff back! I stole it, fair and square!" she bragged.
"Is that so?" Claudia asked, as her feet touched the ground.
"Huh?" the girl gasped as she turned her head to see Claudia, who stood with her wings outstretched, before she dispelled them.
"Give me back what you stole..." Claudia demanded, a threatening aura in her tone.
The girl looked to her right, and contemplated making a run for it.
"Don't even think about it!" Claudia warned. "Give me back my things! Now!"
"W-why should I?" the girl asked
"Because it's mine! You stole it!" Claudia said in disbelief that the girl would not accept defeat.
"So what?" the girl scoffed.
"What do you mean so what?! What is wrong with you kids?!" Claudia shouted back.
"What's in it for me if I give it back?"
"Nothing!" Claudia shouted and threw her arms into the air. "Why would there be?!"
"You're not very good at making deals, are you?" the girl laughed.
By that point, Claudia had heard enough. She briskly walked over to the girl and snatched the bag from her hand. The girl rolled her eyes and shrugged her shoulders. Claudia opened the bag, and was met with shock.
"It's empty! Where are the gems?!" Claudia huffed.
"I put them somewhere for safe keeping! If you want 'em back, you're gonna have to cut me a deal!" the girl grinned.
Claudia stared at the girl and her mouth hung ajar. She could not fathom the precociousness of the youngster.
"Don't worry, I'll be fair," the girl chuckled.
"What do you want?" Claudia asked reluctantly with a sigh.
"You know how to do magic, don't you? That's what those wings were, right?" the girl asked.
"Yes, I know how to do magic. I'm a mage," Claudia said, feeling proud of her talents.
"I'll trade you those gems if you do some magic for me," the girl offered.
"The flute too! I want that flute back!"
"Sure, I'll throw that in at no extra charge!" the girl said cheerfully.
"How very generous of you..." Claudia blurted dryly. "But I want my stuff back first! No magic until the gems and the flute are in my hands!"
"How do I know you're not just gonna fly off? Why should I believe you'll make good on your side of the deal?"
"You'll just have to trust me," Claudia replied.
"Why are you in the Serpentongue? You're not from around here. What brings you here? Where are you staying?"
"No, I'm not from around here. I'm from Katolis...well..I used to be from Katolis. I'm not really from anywhere anymore. I'm here looking for someone..."
"Who are you looking for?" the girl asked with raised eyebrows.
"That's none of your business..." Claudia stated firmly.
"Well, where are you staying?" the girl inquired.
"I'm not sure. We just got here, and then you robbed us. So, thanks for welcoming us to town! We were planning on finding an inn or something..."
"An inn?! Do you have any idea how much a single night at an inn costs in the Serpentongue these days!? Those crooks will rob you blind!"
"You're one to talk!" Claudia shot back.
"I've got a better offer for you. You can stay with me! That way, you'll be close by when it's magic time!"
Claudia weighed the proposition in her head.
"You have a home nearby?" she asked.
"Not exactly. It's a shelter. Lots of us stay there from time to time. And it won't even cost you anything to spend a few nights there!" the girl explained.
Claudia weighed the offer. It was already cold, and sure to get colder soon. A free night with shelter tempted her. She decided to take a chance.
"You've got a deal," Claudia said, and held out her hand to shake on it.
"Great," the girl replied. She walked by without shaking Claudia's hand, but grabbed the empty bag from her. She took a few paces forward, and then removed a loose brick from the alley wall. She placed her hands inside the gap and fished out the gems and the flute. She placed the gems back in the bag and tied it shut.
"Here ya go," the girl stated as she tossed both items to Claudia.
"Thanks," Claudia said as she safely tucked them away.
"Are you...sick or something?" the girl asked.
"Um, no. I don't think so. Why do you ask?" Claudia replied.
"Y-your face is...well...you don't look so good," the girl said nervously.
Claudia brought her hands to her face and examined herself. She could feel the marks that covered her. Just as Terry had feared, her magic was draining her somehow. Her heart beat faster with worry. She was able to calm herself when she remembered she had collected extra butterflies for just such an occasion. She took one from her collection and promptly cast the spell to remedy the blight.
"There, all better now," Claudia assured.
"If you say so. Now, follow me," the girl instructed.
At that moment, Terry turned the corner, huffing and puffing.
"Claudia, are you alright? Did you get the gems back?" he wheezed.
"I'm fine. I got the gems back, and we have a place to stay too! It all worked out!" Claudia announced.
"Are you coming or not? Let's go!" the girl pestered.
"Sooo, we're just gonna trust her now?" Terry asked.
"Yup!" Claudia said confidently.
"Okay then!" Terry said, placing faith in Claudia's decision.
The trio set off through the narrow alleys, the young girl guiding them to an unknown destination. Terry drew up beside Claudia, and looked her over, head to toe. He was relieved that she was not displaying any of the symptoms of magic use that had become familiar.
"You promised me you'd refrain from magic, Claudia," Terry scolded.
"I know! And I'm sorry. But what choice did I have? What was the alternative? We needed those gems back," Claudia rationalized.
"You don't have to take on the world by yourself you know. I can contribute too," Terry insisted.
"I know sweetie, I know. But can we talk about this later? What's done is done," Claudia replied.
"Fine..." Terry responded, unsure if Claudia truly understood his concern for her well being.
As they walked, Claudia looked at the girl with a sort of admiration. She could not have been more than eight, but she knew how to take control of a potentially dangerous situation. It was a skill that most adults lacked.
"What's your name?" Claudia asked the child.
"...what's yours?" the girl replied.
"Claudia. I'm Claudia," she answered.
"...Emma. My name's Emma."
"That's a pretty name. I like it!" Claudia said, and offered a warm smile.
"Thanks! I like your name too. It sounds like a name a princess would have or something," Emma replied.
"Well, I think I was technically a princess...for about a week..." Claudia said, unsure if the statement was accurate or not.
"Oh wow, a whole week..." Emma laughed, "...you're weird."
"I'm not weird! I'm quirky!" Claudia insisted as she picked up her pace to walk alongside the girl. "So how far is this shelter, Emma?"
"I dunno. Maybe fifteen minutes walk from here. Something like that," she said with a shrug.
They walked for a few more minutes in silence. Claudia felt a bit awkward, and wanted to engage Emma in more conversation.
"So, what kind of magic do you want me to do for you? Maybe a spell to find something you misplaced? Or maybe a nightlight spell if you get scared of the dark?" Claudia asked with a chuckle.
"I don't want any little kid stuff..." the girl replied dismissively.
"Oh no? Then what would you like?" Claudia pressed, still wearing a smile.
"Can you bring my parents back to life?" Emma answered.
Claudia stopped dead in her tracks and her smile vanished.
"Y-your parents are...dead?"
"All of our parents are dead. All the kids in this part of town, I mean. We're all orphans..." Emma explained as she kept walking forward.
Claudia thought about all the children she had seen running through the streets. She was sure see had witnessed dozens, if not hundreds. It pained her heart to think about the sheer number of them that did not have parents to go home to.
"What happened? That's what you're going to ask me next, isn't it?" Emma continued. "They all died in the war, two years ago. Lots of the grownups went to Xadia, but most of them never came back. My parents never came back..."
"I-I'm sorry..." Claudia replied.
"So, can you bring them back?" Emma asked once again.
"I-I...I dunno. It's...complicated," Claudia stuttered.
"Well I hope you can figure it out, because that's the only thing I want," Emma insisted.
As they continued to walk, Claudia noticed a subtle change in the way Emma held herself. After mentioning her parents, her shoulders slumped slightly, and she kept her head lowered. Claudia knew that the feelings stirring within the girl were torturous. She wanted to reach out and console her, but she decided not to pry further, as she knew from experience that opening up could be its own sort of agony.
"What exactly is this shelter you're taking us to?" Terry asked.
"It opened after the war. It's a place where us war orphans can get some food or medicine, or have a bed to sleep in. When the survivors came back, there wasn't enough people left to work the fields or enough food to go around. The grownups that were left didn't want to share with us orphans. They forced us into these slums. I don't think they expected us to survive the first winter, but we did, because we had the shelter. Now they don't like it when we leave the slums. If they see us in their part of the city, the guards will catch us and bring us back over here...if we're lucky."
"That's horrible! Why are they so cruel to you?! You're just kids!" Claudia seethed.
"The world is cruel place," Emma responded.
An icy chill ran through Claudia upon hearing a child say such words with absolute certitude.
"It seems like someone must be a good person. I mean, whoever opened up this shelter must be good, right?" Claudia insisted.
"Uh-huh! A nice lady runs it! I was six when it opened, now I'm eight!" Emma answered cheerfully.
"A nice lady?" Claudia inquired.
"Uh-huh!"
"Oh, I see," Claudia laughed.
"It's just around the next corner," Emma assured.
They came to a large building. It stood two stories, and had many small balconies on the second floor. It seemed like it may have served as an inn or hotel at one point, but now displayed the same decay as the buildings which surrounded it. However, unlike the other buildings, it was not abandoned. Children filtered in and out of it, and small groups dotted the adjacent streets. They seemed to be more well behaved than the kids they had encountered earlier, which filled Claudia and Terry with relief.
"So what now? Do we just walk in?" Claudia inquired.
"Nah, we'll just wait outside for a while. The nice lady will want to meet you because you're new here. You can't be too careful with strangers you know! She's not here right now, so will just have to be patient until she comes back," Emma instructed.
"Fair point. So, I guess we'll just wait over here then," Claudia replied as the pointed toward the square.
In the centre of the square stood a large fountain, which had long ago run dry. Claudia and Terry sat themselves upon the circular brim. Claudia passed the bag of gems to Terry, and he looked through it to verify that none had gone missing.
The trio sat at the fountain for what seemed like a very long while to Claudia. Enough time passed that the sun had noticeably changed position in the sky.
"How long are we gonna have to wait for this 'nice lady' of yours? It's getting cold out!" Claudia chirped.
"Not long, I promise. Oh, here she comes now!" Emma said as she lifted her arm and pointed behind Terry and Claudia.
"You there! What are you doing?! Are you tormenting these children?!" a woman's voice sounded from the direction Emma pointed.
Claudia stood up and turned toward the woman who spoke, and her entire world stopped as she laid her eyes upon the 'nice lady.'
"...Mom..." she gasped.