Fire's Tongue

By Cassandra Morphy

Not much happens in the small town of Chicagorn. The mages rumored to still roam the kingdom of Fandor don't come there, as they would soon be caught and turned in. Most of the people born there head out into the world soon after they come of age. Those stuck behind often find themselves with few opportunities in life, much to Megana's dismay. But then, as long as no one finds out that she is one of those mages, she just fine with her sleepy little life there. However, when her boyfriend heads out to join the troopers, the group responsible for hunting those mages, she's left behind with only her best friend Claire.

That is, at least, until Claire kissed her. Such relationships don't happen in Fandor. Suddenly, she had two secrets to keep from the people of her small town, who always seemed to be in everyone's business. Always looking for reasons to turn on those that don't quite fit in. The stress of it all quickly seemed to become too much for Megana, though not enough to turn her back on this new love that she found in the most unlikely of places.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Cassandra Morphy
• Release date: Mar 10, 2023
• ISBN: 9798215941683

Cassandra Morphy

Cassandra Morphy is a Business Data Analyst, working with numbers by day, but words by night. She grew up escaping the world, into the other realities of books, TV shows, and movies, and now she writes about those same worlds. Her only hope in life is to reach one person with her work, the way so many others had reached her. As a TV addict and avid movie goer, her entire life is just one big research project, focused on generating innovative ideas for worlds that don’t exist anywhere other than in her sick, twisted mind.

Book preview

Chapter One

Lanterns

Megana was sitting alone at the kitchen table, staring at the lantern in front of her. The flame danced on the end of the wick, throwing light all around the small house. All the shudders were closed over the windows, blocking the light from heading out into the dark night beyond. She doubted that anyone would notice the lone light, nor care much about it if they had.

Her eyebrows creased and her nose twitched as she threw her hand at the lantern, causing the flame to flare up and brighten. Extending the wick on the lantern would have caused the same effect, except that the wick was burned down to a nub and wouldn't extend above the burner anymore. Megana kept meaning to get a new one, but she had no need for it. Besides, the oil had long since been spent, leaving the font bone dry. Yet no one would be able to tell by how well the lamp burned.

No one that didn't know the source of the flame.

Megana flipped her finger at the flame, causing the small fire to spin around in place. The light from it was bright enough that most people wouldn't be able to look directly at it without it burning into their vision. But Megana never had a problem with seeing through her own fires. She watched as the reds and oranges played around with each other, the yellows and occasional blues flicking up at the top of its peak. It was an absolute ballet, all for Megana to observe alone. An art form that no one else could quite appreciate the same way. That fact often made her feel alone, but that was hardly the only thing that did those days.

What are you doing? came a hushed voice from the door behind her. Megana hadn't been expecting the voice, or any voice. She hadn't been expecting anyone to come into her little house. She should have jumped to her feet, turning towards the new arrival with denials on her tongue. But she knew the voice well enough to recognize it even as the shock of her arrival went through her. Are you insane? Playing with the lanterns like that.

Good evening, Claire, Megana muttered, her voice low, as Claire closed the door behind her. She continued to stare at her little flame, throwing more magic into its dance even while the door was open. Claire was cautious enough for the both of them already, and she knew no one would be looking towards the house at that moment.

Do you have any idea what would happen to you if someone came in here like this? Someone other than me? I should turn you in myself, for that matter. I could certainly use the bounty that they have on mages.

Except, you won't, Megana said. She sat up in her chair, turning around to look at Claire standing by the door. Claire's hand was still on the doorknob, as if she really was thinking over that possibility. As if she were really considering turning Megana in to the authorities. But they had been friends for far too long for Megana to think that she would.

Claire's normally brown hair looked almost auburn in the light from the lantern. As she stood there, she stared over at the small kitchen next to her, her eyes searching for the food that Megana often left out for her. Megana usually cooked more food than she could eat by herself. But that night, she had the other half of her sandwich from lunch, leaving nothing behind for Claire. After a moment, Claire just shook her head before turning back to Megana, her hand slipping from the doorknob as she took that pointed step towards the chair next to Megana. The chair that once belonged to Megana's mother.

No, I guess not, Claire said, as she sat down. Still, it would be nice to have that money. Maybe we could find another mage somewhere. Someone that we don't know.

Ha, right, Megana said. The word mage played its way through her head as she turned back to the lantern, throwing more magic into the flame. This time, it was a little too much, and the fire flared up, filling the lamp chimney and licking the open air above it. Megana pulled her power back, drawing it out of the flame to bring it back down to a manageable level. But after she did so, she had more power in her than before she cast that spell, defeating the purpose of the exercise. Sorry, she said, not looking over at Claire.

Claire hadn't moved from her chair, hadn't flinched away from the intense heat from the fire. The two girls had spent enough time together over the years that she would have known Megana wouldn't let her fire get out of control. Still, Claire shook her head at Megana as she looked over at her.

Must you always be doing that whenever I come over? she asked.

It helps, Megana said. With the power bubbling up inside of her, she could feel her face flush. It flowed down her neck, seeming to cover her entire body. Instead of putting that power back into the lantern, she turned to the fireplace next to her, across from Claire. She threw it all into the open, empty space there. You know that I have trouble containing this power.

As Megana's magic hit the fireplace, a fire started up there with a loud thump. The house immediately started to smell of burnt wood and pine, a smell that always reminded Megana of home. The heat spiked up around the fireplace, singeing Megana's mother's old knitting in the metal frame that her father made. They stood as the only item on the hearth, a reminder of her parents that were no longer there. The knitting once said Home is Where the Hearth Is, but the slowly accumulating burn marks had started to mar the words. Those burn marks showed all the times that Megana had to make that move. She often worried that the whole thing would be destroyed one day.

The fire in the fireplace burned much like the flame in the lantern did. However, with the larger flame and the complete lack of wood beneath it, if anyone came in at that moment there would be no hiding her power. No way for her to explain how there was a fire burning with no fuel in the middle of her house. But she needed that fire burning, she needed to force her power out of her into it, feeding it into the fire so that it didn't burn her from the inside.

It just scares me a little, Claire said. You having this power and not knowing what to do with it. I just wish...

Ah, but I do know what to do with it, Megana said. She threw more of her power into the fireplace, pointing her fingers towards it to draw Claire's attention to it. I use it all up before it uses me.

There were evenings where, no matter how much of her power she used, she only seemed to have more of it. Fortunately, she was already starting to feel her power wane. To sense the flowing of it through her fade to just a small trickle. She knew that after a few more minutes of that, she would be able to sleep. That she wouldn't wake up in the middle of the night surrounded by flames. Not again.

I meant someone actually training you to use it properly, Claire said. Or for you to learn how to not use it anymore. To get rid of this power. There has to be a way, right? Otherwise, why would there be a bounty on mages? Being a mage is illegal for a reason, right? Mages are dangerous, aren't they?

Megana let out a small snicker at the questions. At the thought that the bounty was somehow justified in some way. Claire still thought that the emperor was a just man. That his rule over Fandor was beneficial to the people that lived within it. Or to the humans, at least. But Megana knew, her parents had known, that the rules the emperor set forth, the laws against magical creatures and mages, were anything but just. That there was no reason for them, besides the man's own jealousy and bigotry.

But their little village of Chicagorn had been filled with such bigots longer than the emperor had been in charge of the country.

It would have been a mage that taught me control, Megana said, pointing out the issue. Making all mages illegal makes it impossible for me to learn from one of them.

Well, sure, Claire said, nodding her head in agreement. It had been a discussion they had had many times over the years. Ever since Megana first told Claire that she had magic. Since the first time that Megana lit a fire in the middle of the lake. But the laws against mages had been around for longer than either of them had been alive. It was just a natural part of their lives there. I mean, if you really don't have control over it, you can't just get rid of it and all that...

You still think that I chose this? Megana asked. Her temper flared up as she turned to Claire next to her. Her eyes flashed purple, then red, before returning to their normal blue. It felt like her power flared up inside of her for a moment, begging to be loosed. Begging to be thrown free. To be turned on her friend. But it was Claire, and Megana would sooner hurt herself than hurt Claire. She took a deep breath in, calming herself further. However, her power still hung there, louder than ever. You think I want to be this? That I want to be a mage? I just am. I have no control over it. I wish that I did, but I don't. You know that as well as I do. Or you should.

Of course, I know that, Claire said. Her eyes were trained on the fire across from her, and she didn't seem to notice the anger flare up in Megana. She seemed oblivious to just how close she had come to being burned. I just wish...

I know, Megana said, wishing the same.

Have you thought about telling Tommy? Claire asked. Maybe he could help.

Tommy? Megana asked, laughing at the very thought of it. How could Tommy help? She laughed a little more at the thought of her boyfriend, but for a very different reason. The boy was a bit dopey, but cute, always giving her a reason to smile. When she noticed that Claire hadn't answered her half-handed question, she shook her head, dispelling thoughts of him, before turning back to her.

Claire was looking down at the table in front of her, at the empty space between her and the lantern. The space that usually held her dinner. Megana worried for a moment that Claire would go to bed hungry, but she didn't have food to offer her. After a moment, Claire looked back over at Megana.

I just thought that... Well, with him heading out in a couple of days, he should keep his eye out for a mage. Someone that can teach you to control your powers. If he knows that you need that help...

Except if he knew that I was a mage, he'd be duty bound to turn me in himself, Megana said. She laughed a little when she said it, trying to play it off as a joke. But the humor didn't quite make it to her face. It was a serious thing that she had been worried about. It was one of the leading reasons why she never told him. Especially given the rumors that surrounded the emperor and how he gathered information.

He wouldn't do that, Claire said. She reached out her hand, placing it lightly on Megana's arm. Megana could feel a subtle energy flowing off of her at that touch, as it always did between them. After a moment, Claire looked down at her hand there before pulling it back. He... He loves you.

Sure, Megana said, nodding her agreement. But she wasn't as sure of that as Claire seemed to be. It wasn't like Tommy ever said the words. It wasn't like he proposed, or even suggested that he would at some point. They had been together for years, and yet there were times when Megana thought that she didn't know the boy at all.

Just-just think about it, alright? Claire said. You never know when telling the right person will solve everything.

Or when telling the wrong person will end everything.

Despite talking about herself, Megana couldn't help but think of how her parents died. About how they would feel if they had known the truth about her.

Chapter Two

Town

The sunlight came through the windows of Megana's house early the next morning, waking her instantly. The heat from the sunlight always revitalized her like jumping into the frozen lake. It charged her back up instantly, bringing her back to her normal cheery self. Much to Claire's and Tommy's annoyance, Megana was very much a morning person. Before the rooster at the farm across the street started to crow the morning, Megana was up and dressed, heading out into the day. She was wearing a light blue tunic that was a bit big on her, falling just past her knees. It used to belong to her mother, though it had been a much darker blue when it had. Blue dye wasn't easy to come by in Chicagorn, though she thought that her mother had dyed it herself.

Megana paused on her small porch for a moment, looking out at her front yard and the garden that was planted there. The flowers were only just starting to bounce back from the winter frost, despite it being halfway through spring already. Megana's mother had planted that garden soon before she had gotten sick, and it was all that Megana could do to keep it alive over the years since. It was one of the few reminders that she still had of her parents, and as she looked out at those flowers, she worried that they might not last much longer. That one good frost or a drought, or perhaps her own fire, would kill them at some point. It would be like her mother dying all over again, though not as drawn out as that had been.

Despite how early she was leaving, the farmers were already hard at work on the farm. Even though she had lived across the street from the Jeffersons all her life, Megana had no idea what they did most days. All the work that it took to keep the farm running. But she did know that they worked hard, as did all the farmers that lived in the village, supplying them with fresh produce. Other villages were days away on foot, which meant they relied on the food those farms provided more than most in the town would have liked. When the harvest was low or some wild animals made their way past the fences, the whole town would go hungry, though not evenly. As usual, Megana waved at them as she passed, knowing that they were probably too busy to notice, let alone wave back.

Right behind Megana's house were the tall, imposing walls of the town itself. They loomed so closely that Megana barely had a backyard at all. With her having to take care of the house after her parents had passed, she was glad that it was one less thing for her to maintain. While the town of Chicagorn hadn't seen attacks for decades, not as long as Megana was alive, the walls still showed the marks of those attacks. The holes where giants had thrown stones against it. The melted blocks where mages had struck. Even nicks and cuts from arrows and swords. Every bit of damage told of just how dangerous the world had been at one point, back when the world was still wild. Back before the emperor and his troopers had hunted down those magical creatures that lived in Fandor. Megana knew that there were some benefits to his rule, though she also knew that most of the victims of his edicts had nothing to do with that destruction. That most of the magical creatures and mages had been living their lives, much as she was living hers. However, the fact that her house, and all the houses next to hers, were outside of those imposing walls and showed no sign of the marks of those battles, despite being built ages ago, proved that those wilder times were long history.

There were several other houses all in a row, running along the northern side of Jared Street, opposite from the Jeffersons' farm. None of them showed signs that anyone was awake as she made her way through the neighborhood, heading towards the town square. Most of the people who lived there worked on the farm during harvests, doing odd jobs around town when they weren't busy with that. The work was enough to keep a roof over their heads, but not much else. That whole neighborhood was one of the poorer ones, despite the houses being newer than most of the ones within the town walls. The houses, mostly small like Megana's was, were starting to show their age, weather worn and sun-bleached, with their wooden siding warping and sliding down in places. And yet, the road that ran past them was well kept cobblestone, practically shining in the light coming through the trees in the distance.

Five houses down from Megana's was Claire's. Claire's father was one of those farm hands, but her mother had a steady job doing the wash for some of the wealthier people in town, including Megana's boss, Mr. Howertzen. Megana didn't know much about Mrs. Porter's job, including where she did it. All she knew was that their yard, as small as her own, wasn't used in any way. The grass there always grew tall, unkempt and haphazard, with no signs of care. No place for her to work in without taking it all inside.

Megana paused for a moment outside of Claire's house, as she often did those days. She looked towards the window on the right, the one by Claire's bed. Even if Megana hadn't been inside Claire's house a bunch of times, each of those houses on that row looked the same on the inside. She knew exactly where Claire's bed was, despite the shudders being closed, blocking out the morning light from Claire's eyes and allowing her to hide from the world, at least for that morning. Despite not being able to see her best friend at that moment, Megana just stood there for a moment, staring at those shudders, hoping that she could see through them. Wishing that her power could somehow make it so that she could see through the wood, plaster, and glass in her way and see Claire's sleeping face. Megana always thought that Claire looked so beautiful when she was sleeping.

After a while, Megana let out a sigh of defeat, turning away from that window and continuing down the road towards the square. The walk through the village at that early hour was long and lonely, but Megana needed to be at work before the store opened. If she had off that day, she might have stayed there outside of Claire's house, waiting for her to wake up. But she knew that wouldn't be for an hour at least, if not three, and she didn't have the time to waste.

Good morning, Megana, Sheriff Goodman called out, as he was coming up the street towards her. Sheriff Goodman was one of Megana's father's oldest of friends, one of the many that he had asked to look after her once he was gone. Megana smiled at him as he approached, wondering if this was more of the same. More of Sheriff Goodman's attempts at looking after her. But every time the sheriff came to look in on her, she couldn't help but think, worry, fear that he was there for a different reason. That he was there to arrest her for being a mage.

Good morning, Sheriff, Megana said, nodding towards him as she continued down the road. She hoped that he was there for someone else. That his job had brought him down there to arrest someone that she didn't know all that well. And yet, she knew pretty much everyone in town. That was the curse of living in such a small town as Chicagorn. Arresting anyone I know? she asked, trying to make a joke out of it.

Nothing that grave, the sheriff said, laughing a little. Frank Jefferson wanted me to check out their back fence, worried that someone was breaking onto their farm in the middle of the night. I'm assuming that isn't you.

Nope, Megana said, smiling as she shook her head. That wasn't a crime that she had committed, though there were several others that she was guilty of. Namely all the laws against being a mage and using magic. But the sheriff was oblivious to that fact, like most of the people of that town. Oblivious of the mage living amongst them. The sheriff just nodded and smiled at her as he continued down the road past her. Megana only started to breathe easily once he was safely behind her, but she quickened her step down the road anyway, wanting to be as far away from the man as possible.

Four houses down from Claire's was Tommy's. Tommy's father, Mr. True, was sitting outside their door reading the newspaper as he took in the morning light. Tommy's mother, much like Tommy, wasn't a morning person. Megana knew the entire house behind the man was asleep. Mr. True usually spent his mornings right there on the porch, letting the rest of his family sleep as he enjoyed himself and what little quiet time he could manage.

Hey, Megana, Mr. True called out. His eyes were still locked on the newspaper that he was holding up in front of his face, so he wouldn't have been able to see Megana passing by the house. That morning, he had the added benefit of the conversation between her and the sheriff, which no doubt would have carried down the road. But he never seemed to have trouble knowing that it was her. She always figured that there weren't many people walking past his house at that hour, though it was his own little magic that often made her smile.

Hey, Mr. True, Megana called out. How are things?

Oh, you know, he said, as he always did when Megana asked that. However, his voice dipped near the end, the sadness that was filling that house filtering into it. Megana knew the source of that sadness, Tommy's impending departure. But for some reason, she never quite worried about her boyfriend leaving. It wasn't that she didn't care about him, that she wouldn't miss him while he was gone. But Tommy always seemed like the type that could take care of himself. She knew that he would be back soon enough, with tales of his time out in the world. The way the Trues were handling his impending departure seemed more like they thought it to be his impending death.

Megana hadn't stopped during their short, well-practiced conversation, continuing down the road. Soon after leaving Mr. True behind her, she came to Pine Avenue at the end of the block. It was only there that the Jeffersons' farm ended, with that entire space dedicated to that land, and stretching out to the forest just visible in the distance to the south. That forest mostly encircled the town, other than the lake in the north and the larger section of farmland in the northeast. Pine Avenue stretched past the Jeffersons' farm on the right and the Goldings' pine tree farm on the left, before turning into the main road heading through the wilderness to the south.

As familiar as Megana was with her well-practiced morning commute through the town, she didn't bother to look around the corner as she turned towards the square. That was why she walked right into the man that was coming the other way, bumping back a step.

Oh, sorry, sorry, Megana hastily apologized, before taking a step to the side, allowing the man to pass. But the man just stood there, looking over at her.

Hey, Megana, he said.

It took Megana a moment to recognize his voice, to notice that she knew him. Longer than it should have. When she did, she stood there for a moment, looking between him and the house back the way that she came, surprised to see him out and about at such an early hour.

Chapter Three

Boyfriend

Tommy? she asked. What are you doing out here so early?

Oh, I, uh, Tommy said, dithering in place. In his hands was a letter, the envelope folded and refolded several times, seeming worn out, though the seal on the front still looked fresh. On his back was a pack, stuffed thick and tall with supplies. Seeing him standing there, decked out so, told Megana all that she needed to know.

No, she said, denying what she already knew was true.

I'm afraid so, he said.

But I thought it was days off.

It was supposed to be. He tapped the envelope a few times against his hand. The letter came late last night.

Why didn't you come by? You should have come by. You should have told me. Despite her words, she remembered what she had been doing the night before. What she did every night. If Tommy had come over that night, he would have seen that she was a mage. Seen what she did with her power. Maybe it was a good thing that he was leaving early. When? she asked.

Today, Tommy said. I wanted to see you before I left, so I headed to the store. It wasn't open.

It doesn't open for another... Megana paused, looking towards the sun on the horizon. It was difficult to gauge just how long it would be until seven, but she knew it wouldn't be long. That she should already be on her way. Twenty minutes, she guessed. She hoped. That would still have been plenty of time for her to get over to the shop. Plenty of time to say goodbye to Tommy, though not a proper goodbye. Not the farewell party that she had been hoping to put together before he headed off.

Well, I'll walk you, he said, nodding back towards the town square. The way that he had just come from. I wanted to talk to you about it anyway.

Oh? Megana asked. As they headed up Pine Avenue, Megana started developing a knot in her stomach. Did Tommy already know? Was he going to ask her to come with him? Come with him so that he could turn her in, or so that they could be together. In either case, Megana wouldn't have gone. She didn't want to be anywhere near The Capital. Not with the emperor still in power. Not with the bounty on the heads of all mages, herself included. She'd sooner head the other direction, out into the wilderness where she had no right being. Where she would have no idea how to keep herself alive.

I know it's not ideal, me leaving like this, Tommy said. I'd understand if you don't want... to wait for me.

Wait for you? Megana thought the words over, playing them around in her head for a moment. It took her far too long to realize what he was saying. What he wanted to talk to her about.

He wanted to let her off the hook.

You know how long I've wanted to be a trooper, Tommy said. To see the world. To bring peace and justice to the places that have neither. To chase out the dangerous creatures and protect the defenseless. But I know you didn't sign up for that. For having a boyfriend who you never see. I'll be traveling for most of the year, with long stretches when I don't know when I'll be home. Or if I'll be home. I just... I don't want you sitting around missing me.

Are you... Are you saying that you think I should see other people?

I just... I won't be, obviously.

Obviously, Megana said. She nodded, smiling over at him. While women were allowed to join the Jakala Trooper Corps, not many did, and Tommy wasn't the type to sleep around. The two of them had been dating for years and they still haven't gone there. Megana had thought that maybe they would before he left. But if he was leaving that day, that wasn't going to happen. Their first time wasn't going to be when they were hiding in the pricker bushes in the lawn of some random house, two blocks over from the town square.

I just don't want you thinking that you can't. If you meet someone that you feel a connection with, one stronger than the one we share... Tommy reached over, taking Megana's hand. He pulled it up to his lips, kissing it lightly. Megana knew the move was supposed to be romantic, but she never quite felt that way about it. However, she didn't take her hand away, letting it fall between them and swing as they walked. I won't be offended if you move on, he said.

Move on with whom, exactly? she asked, laughing a little. She waved her hand around the town, motioning towards the people there. All three of them knew pretty much everyone in the town, and Tommy, Claire, and Megana always stuck to each other because they were the only ones their age that were tolerable. Everyone else their age was either busy with farm work, insufferably spoiled, or already shipped out for the trooper corps. And with Tommy joining that latter group, Megana was stuck with only Claire to hang out with.

Somehow, that seemed like it was enough for her. That even if it was just Claire and her for years to come, she'd be able to make do. But even as she thought those words, they didn't seem to fit correctly. Being left with just Claire wasn't just making do for her, but something more than that. Something she couldn't quite put the words to. Not yet, anyway.

Like I said, if you met someone, Tommy said, knowing exactly what she wasn't saying. People move out of this town all the time. That means people move in just as often. I'm sure there will be someone that moves in here that will see just how awesome you are. That will see you for the sweet, amazing, beautiful woman that I fell for ages ago. Someone that will just sweep you off your feet and have you thinking 'Tommy who'. And when you meet them, I want you to remember me, and know that I'll be okay if you're not here waiting for me when I get back.

And just when would that be? I asked. How long did you sign up for? It was the one thing that they hadn't discussed. Tommy would always talk at great length about his ambitions. About joining the troopers and seeing the world. Changing it for the better. Ever since the troopers had come through that town when he was ten, he was completely smitten with them. He would read everything there was to read about them, saving all the newspaper clippings of their endeavors under his bed. It had gotten annoying at times, especially when Tommy would talk about the dangerous mages. The mages that were apparently so dangerous that the laws against them made perfect sense to him.

Mages like her.

But the one thing he never talked about was how long he planned on being in the troopers. There were people that spent their whole lives in the corps. People that signed up as soon as they could and stayed in it till they died. Not many of those deaths came early at the end of a sword or spear. There weren't enough of those supposedly dangerous mages and magical creatures left out there.

Most of those career troopers still had a family somewhere. Families that they never got to see. And as the silence from Tommy lingered, she had a feeling that he was planning to be one of those kinds of troopers. That she might never see him again after he left. Not unless he failed at his plans. At his ambitions.

Oh, she said, as they came into the town square.

Yes, Tommy said, nodding his confirmation. I know that the first deployment is always out in the world, traveling with the corps. Exploring and expanding the empire. Chasing off those magical creatures that dare to live within our borders. But after a few years, after I go up a few ranks, I might be stationed somewhere. If that happens, when that happens, I'll send for you. You know, if you're still waiting around for me. If you haven't met someone in the meantime. I just... Well, I didn't want you to think that was your only option.

Sure, sure, Megana said. But she couldn't look at him. Couldn't see the man that he had become. Because if she looked at him, looked at the man eager to become a trooper, she might just see him like she saw all the troopers. She might see him as an enemy. Someone to fear. But no matter what happened, Tommy would never be that. She never once thought that he would become one of those monsters. Not really. He was far more likely to change the corps for the better, than for the corps to change him for the worse.

I'll-I'll write you, he said. As often as I can. But I don't think you'll be able to write me back.

I'll write you back anyway, she said. You'll get them when you get them.

Yeah, Tommy said. But there was so much longing in that one word, so much hesitance. This was everything that he had wanted. Everything that he had been working towards. The only thing that made him hesitate there was her. Not his family, not heading out into the world, not leaving Chicagorn, possibly for the last time.

Megana turned back towards him, looking up into his eyes. There were tears there, but they didn't quite fall beyond the corners. Didn't quite form into the drops that would stream down. And yet, they were enough to break her. Enough for her to wish that she could have gone with him. Enough to risk being caught out there by the troopers. Discovered as a mage where it really would be life or death for her.

But then, she spotted the wanted poster on the wall of the sheriff's station across from the store. It wasn't anything specific, just for mages in general. Mages, elves, dwarves, fae, thieves, all the people and creatures that the emperor was hunting. That the troopers were hunting. The ones that they were calling monsters, despite most of them doing no real harm to anyone. That poster, that reminder, was enough to keep her there. To keep her from following Tommy out into the world. Following him to her doom.

Still, Megana couldn't let him head off like that alone. Not without a proper goodbye. She reached up, her hand going to his cheek, brushing away the tears that still lingered in the corner of his eye. Tommy smiled down at her, giving her his usual broad, dopey smile. He licked his lips, his usual warning that he was about to kiss her, before leaning down towards her.

Several thoughts flitted through Megana's mind in the brief moment between him leaning down and their lips meeting. Most of them were about him leaving, about her possibly never seeing him again. About all that he would miss out on by not being there with her. But as their lips touched, locking for the longest time, far longer than they should have given the fact that she needed to be in the shop within minutes, the one thing that she was thinking of wasn't about Tommy at all.

For some reason that she couldn't quite explain, even to herself, it was about Claire.

Chapter Four

Goods

You're late, snapped Mr. Howertzen, the moment that Megana came into the store.

Sorry, Megana mumbled, more out of reflex than anything else. He wasn't close enough to hear it, and it would have little impact on his mood. But it made her feel a little better, at least. The thought of speaking up to him, even if he wasn't aware of it.

The bell over the door rang again as Megana closed it behind her. Despite her being late for the opening of the shop, late for her shift there, it was still early. As she looked around at the space, it was as empty as it usually was at that hour. But that didn't matter for Mr. Howertzen. It didn't matter that Megana wasn't needed yet. All that mattered to Mr. Howertzen was that she was later than she was supposed to be there.

She would have explained what happened, that she was seeing off her boyfriend, whom she might never see again, but she knew from experience that Mr. Howertzen wouldn't care. To him, there was no excuse for being late. Rumor had it that Mr. Howertzen had broken his leg on the way to the store one snowy day and he still arrived on time, opening the shop and running it all day before going to the healer up the street. That would have been before Megana's time in the shop, though. Before she would have been in a position to know. But Luke, the shop boy that she replaced, told the tale often enough.

Without needing direction from Mr. Howertzen, Megana moved around the counter, grabbing her smock off the hook back there. The shop held mostly dry goods, with flour, rice, and raw vegetables being their most