Challe and I got on the next train just in time; ten o'clock on the dot. This time, without me even having to ask, Challe helped with my luggage. He put my suitcase up on the carte, then helped me up. Just like yesterday, there was only one seat reserved, so we were standing again. I did things smarter this time though; seeing as we'd be standing for the whole trip, I booked a few separate train rides, with short stops in-between so we could rest. This train journey was three hours total, and then another one for two hours after that. The train started to go, and Challe- not to the mention the other patrons- weren't amused. Challe just scoffed at me, crossing his arms defiantly and glaring off to the side.
"Stop being so stubborn and sit down already." "Not until you've sat down first for a while. If you take the seat for this train ride, then I'll sit for the next one," I suggested, earning another scoff. "You're not proving anything." "I'm not trying to prove anything. Look, you may not believe me, but I believe you when you say we'll never be friends. I'm just not trying to make you hate me more…. or well at least more than you already do," Challe was silent at this, so I continued, sighing to myself. "It doesn't matter how you treat or see me. It's no excuse for me to be anything but kind to you….. Heh, even if that makes me a stupid, empty-headed scarecrow," I flashed him a smile and Challe's posture crispened. This was followed by a moment of silence before he finally broke it again, keeping his arms crossed.
"I'll never know where you got these hairbrained ideas of freedom and equality. You obviously have no understanding of how the real-world works." "Mmmmmmmm, you're probably right; I had no idea humans could be that cruel….. I never realized how ignorant I was before…." And now that I know the truth, I can never un-know it; the way I view the human-fairy dynamic will never be the same. Never.
Challe rolled his eyes after a moment before shutting them. "When are you going to grow up and finally start acting like a human?" He asked and I laughed, gently closing my own eyes. "Never, if I can help it. If that's what being human entails, then I want nothing to do with humanity. But don't worry, Challe; you'll be free soon enough…" My eyes slowly, softly fluttered back open, to find him already gazing back at me. I looked at his perfect, flawless face, and let myself smile warmly. "You wanna know the real reason why I bought you? It wasn't cause you asked me to…." "It wasn't?" His inquiry made my head shake from side to side, still smiling. "It was because of the chain around your ankle. When I saw you there, chained up like a common criminal, it made my blood boil. I was angry… And in that moment, I realized that I wanted you to be free. It didn't matter who you were or what kind of fairy you are. You were in chains…" I said, and my gaze drifted out to nowhere thoughtfully. My lips hung open for a second, the words lingering in my mouth.
"Fairies aren't meant to be bound in chains."
Another moment of silence passed, where Challe continued to stare at me while I glanced out tenderly. My eyes softened a little before I spoke next. "Friend or not, I want you to be free. I want you to go out into the world, find a nice female fairy….. fall in love with her, and live out the rest of your days in peace. I may not know anything about you, and will probably never see you again once I return your wing…. But I know that's what you deserve. That's what all fairies deserve. No amount of human propaganda will ever convince me otherwise," I declared with finality. Challe just beheld me until the train suddenly jerked to a stop.
Some of passengers fell out of their chairs; Challe caught me in his arms before I stumbled over. After steadying me, both our heads spun around trying to figure out what was going on. "Why've we stopped?" I asked no one in particular. That's when one man standing near an open window pointed out of it with a horrified expression.
"Crows!" His voice rang through the carriage. Panic immediately set in, with everyone starting to run about and scream. "Close the windows! Hurry! Close all the windows!" Both the attendants and their wealthy patrons were rushing to close all the open windows. An announcement then came over the intercom, which I didn't know the train had. "Do not panic. Stay in your seats. Do not open the windows or doors for any reason. I repeat, do not open the doors or windows for any reason."
"Where're we gonna do?!" "There's hundreds of them!" "I thought this trainline was armed with weapons! How can they leave us defenceless like this?!" "I swear, if even one person dies, I'll sue!" Welp, time for even more panic to set in. I glanced over to Challe concerned; he stood very near me while keeping an eye on the crowd.
The door all of a sudden swung open- directly against the orders that had just been issued over the speaker- and some armed guards ran through the carriage. "Outta the way! Outta the way! Stay in your seats!" They shouted. As they ran, one of them noticed Challe standing off to the side with me. He paused, pointing directly at him and speaking to his fellow guards.
"Wait, look! A warrior fairy!" "Perfect! He'll deal with the flock," uh oh, I could see where this was going as they raced over to us, or rather Challe hastily. They didn't even ask if he wanted to assist them….
"You, fairy! You're coming with us!" My blood ran cold as I witnessed the scene with horror; they were surprised, but I doubt Challe was, when I immediately interjected myself in between the three of them, standing protectively in front of Challe. "Wait! You can't just make him go fight like that!" They both looked at me dumbfounded. "Is he yours, miss?" "He's….! Well, he's traveling with me, yes." "Then we need to borrow him. It's an emergency." "No! You can't just take him like that! He's not a slave!" "Look, our insurance will cover him if he dies. You can buy a new fairy," one of them had the audacity to offer, earning a vicious glare from me. My voice raised to volumes I didn't believe possible before as my arms shot out at my side, as if to shield Challe from their grasp.
"How dare you?! He's NOT replaceable! You're not taking anywhere against his will!" "But we need him! It's better a fairy dies than a human. You wouldn't want one of us to get hurt, would you?" They tried horribly to reason with me. I'd never been so enraged in all my life; I was seeing red, I was so livid….. "You're not taking him! You say that fairies are human property? Fine! He's my property, and I'm not going to let you put MY fairy's life in danger like that without his consent! It's not happening!" I yelled with finality. Both men looked at one another, unsure what to do; they addressed me like I was a confused child rather than an irate woman.
"Look, miss. We know you don't want your fairy here to get hurt, but the law grants us permission to confiscate warrior fairies in cases of emergency. Those killer crows out there classify an S-rank emergency, so we're taking him whether you like it or not," they spoke with low, soft tones, only angering me more. I glanced terrified at Challe over my shoulder, then back their way, pursing my lips tight together. "Then I'm coming with him." "Uh, miss; that's really not a good idea." "I don't care! You're not taking him anywhere without me! I have his wing, after all!" They rolled their eyes and sighed. "Fine. We just need to get going- now."
The four of us re-joined the others. Challe walked behind me the whole way; I could tell he wasn't happy, though I couldn't really pinpoint what upset him so much. Most likely being dragged into this mess against his will. We arrived at the front carriage, where the staff all looked at us perplexed. One of the guards in a black, padded uniform slapped Challe on the shoulder. "Alright, fairy; get to it. Kill all those crows." "And hurry up! We can't get the train moving again until they're taken care of!" The driver shouted from where he was standing. Flashing them a glare, I turned to Challe, softening my gaze. "You don't have to do this," I whispered and he looked at me. "Stay here," was all he said, opening the door and heading outside.
Of course the guards and I didn't listen to him, following him out there onto the deck as well. My eyes grew enormous at the sight- I'd never seen so many birds flock together before! You could tell they were dangerous by the red piercing glow in their eyes. While they fluttered around, Challe did something I'd never seen him do before; he manifested his sword from seemingly thin air. Once that was securely in his hand, he shot everyone, including me, a harsh glare.
"I said stay inside!" This was directed at everyone, also including me. The guards scampered in, leaving me out there with Challe; I guess they weren't too worried about my life either. I glanced at them disappearing before I turned to Challe, my hand balled on my chest. "Challe!" I cried before he gave me what looked like a death glare- he was NOT happy right now.
"Go hide inside!" "Yeah, but what about you?!" "I'll be fine! Just go in and wait for me! This shouldn't take long." "But Challe…..!" And that's when his already sharp glare hardened even more. "Quit worrying about me; worry more about yourself, you skinny scarecrow! Now for the last time, go hide!" "I can't just leave you out here! What if you get hurt?! What if….!" But he cut me off when he took a warning step towards me, narrowing his stare onto mine. "Are you going to go in, or am I gonna have to drag you inside?"
That was all he had to say. Without another word, I spun on my heels and rushed in, slamming the door behind me. I didn't see the carnage, and none of the guards or other men paid attention to me now; they were all too busy panicking and trying to sort out a new plan. With tears welling in my eyes, I ran out of there and down the many carriage's lanes. I ran and ran until I found a vacant train cart with individual rooms; you could only access them through a sliding on each, which I did. They were all empty, so I guess this carte wasn't in use. It's not like I was intentionally hiding from Challe, or anyone for that matter. I just wanted to be alone…. Be alone and cry. Sitting down on one side by the window and pulling my legs up to form a ball, I silently wept into them. All my fault…. This is all my fault; Challe shouldn't be here right now. I never should have bought a fairy… I should have told Dad while he was alive that I NEVER wanted to own a fairy, to please not make me buy one. I don't feel protected; I feel like a monster….. a slave driver. I'm such a bad person…. forcing an innocent warrior fairy on this parlous journey with me. No wonder he detests me so much… This is all my fault. I don't know how I'll ever forgive myself….. What I can ever do…. to make this up to him.
It grew quiet outside and the train started moving again. The motion made me jerk in my seat, but I was still huddled into this little, compact ball. It took some time- I actually don't know how long- but soon enough I heard the door slide open. My head shot up to see Challe come inside; his coat and hands were covered in blood. "Challe…" I whimpered, olging him startled; I honestly didn't expect him to find me in here. "So here's where you've been hiding," he came in to take the seat opposite from me; it was the first time we'd sat at eye level on a train together. He sat down and sighed before looking at me. I examined him cautiously, still hugging my legs in my arms. "Are you alright, Challe?"
There was a very tense moment of silence. "Why did you try and stop them from taking me earlier?" He demanded and I lowered my eyes gently. "You know why….. I only wanted you to go if you wanted to. You shouldn't be made to work as a soldier….." He watched me a second longer, then sighed- heavily so. "You truly care about my freedom, don't you?" "Of course I do, though I don't know if I'll ever convince you of that….." "I believe you," he replied quickly and earnestly, making my eyes widen in sudden shock. "You do?" My head lifted up a tad, and he crossed his arms firmly.
"Let's get one thing straight, scarecrow. If you want me to be free and treat me as an equal, then you need to follow your word." "Huh? W-What do you mean?" I blinked confused, and he closed his eyes. "It means that when I give you a command, I'm doing so of my own free will. I didn't order you to stay inside because you purchased me with intentions that I protect you. You've made it crystal clear that you don't want me to think of myself like your guard dog." My lips stammered slightly as my heartbeat began to pick up. W-Why….. Why is he telling me this? What does he mean? I don't understand… Challe continued when there was no verbal response from me.
"So that means that when I tell you to do something, like watch out for your own goddamn life, I'm doing so as a free agent; not as your purchased, legal protector. When I tell you to eat, sleep, or go hide from danger, I'm doing so because I want to, understand?" "Uhhhhhhhhhhh…?" I did not understand. What the heck is he talking about? Does that mean…. that he wants to protect me, of his own volition? But no, that can't be true; he hates all humans, he's told me so himself. I mean, we're not even friends….. I'm so confused right now.
Sensing my confusion, Challe merely shut his eyes and gave a single, low chuckle. His shoulders relaxed and he sat in a more casual posture now. "I don't blame you for being confused. I scarcely understand it myself." "I-I'm sorry, Challe. Maybe if you explained it to me differently, I'd get it," I suggested but he merely shook his head, still half-smiling ever so slightly. "Don't worry about it. Just know that…. that when I give you a command, I'm not doing so as your fairy, your property," he said, not clearing things up for me. But I did crack a smile, my eyes lightening up a tad with playfulness. "Heh, you're gonna start issuing me commands now?" "When it comes to your safety and welfare, it doesn't look like I have much of a choice," he slyly quipped back and I giggled, still feeling playful. "But you don't care about those things, do you?" Silence. "Do you?" He finally let out a small, light chuckle while keeping his eyes closed. "Well, you do me better alive than dead. After all, I doubt I'll ever have a master as foolish as you again," he remarked and I smiled, leaning my head against the seat cushion.
Then I peered out of the window, watching the scenery as Challe and I sat quietly across from each other for the rest of the train ride.