Prompt #3 - "He's too young to know what this means..." (July '18)

They went from one chaos to another as her magic pulled at them all, all at once. The battlefield was left behind only to be replaced by the receiving hall full of waiting medics and armed friendlies just in case.

The swarm of medics and family surged forward, engulfing the injured, the living, and the dead before the magic had dissipated completely. Shouts for equipment, for loved ones, and wails of grief quickly filled the remaining space in the hall itself. The noise was deafening yet people were still getting the supplies they needed, still reuniting, and still pushing on despite it.

The noise was nothing compared to the pain of magic coursing through her veins. It ate at her even as it had willingly done as she had asked, had happily followed her request. With no core magic to protect her anymore, the world magic left its mark as it did on all not born to handle its potency and she took the agony willingly if it meant those she was striving to protect could be saved. But the cost was growing and she fought to stay awake.

Several different hands grabbed at her and she grabbed back, finding herself coming face to face with a pair of green eyes on a scarred face. She grabbed at their shirt, refocusing her efforts to the noise around her.

"We cannot stay here!" she shouted. The silence that followed was deafening. She used it to carry her next orders. "We have been compromised. Follow the evac plans and relocate. This is not a drill."

The noise level exploded but it was controlled this time. People – those designated to lead the given relocation efforts – were shouting commands they had all been trained to hear, understand, and follow. The bodies around her surged forward and she turned, clinging to the one with the green eyes on a scarred face as she stumbled towards the back exit.

The group broke from the crowd. Strong arms wrapped around her from both sides and suddenly she was being supported by a pair she was so glad were still alive. Everything about them was the same; the unruly patch of red hair on top of their heads, the glint of determination in their blue eyes, the concern set into their identical frowns. But she could pick out the differences, just like the one with the green eyes on a scarred face could, how the Matt's concern bled into his expression and how Andy was rigid with rage.

They were both shaking as they led with her between them into the room.

The group flowed in and only those that knew what was going to happen had followed to help. The twins left her side only to be replaced by more bodies. The one with the green eyes on a scarred face was back and was accompanied by a bushy brown maned young woman and a lanky redhead with a smudge across his nose. She gave the green eyes a brief glance before her gaze went to two men that approached. One was holding onto a severed right arm that looked like it still needed more tending to despite the lack of blood.

The other met her gaze and his mask broke.

"Rachel," he choked, hands reaching for her. She reciprocated and found herself pressed against a chest she was going to miss. "You don't have to do this. It changes nothing here."

"But it at least mitigates half of his plans," she countered. She felt his arms tighten around her. "Please, Tom. You have to let me try and save as much of this one as I can and at least this way I get to save other timelines too."

"Tom." It was the one with the green eyes on the scarred face. "She's right. We can't risk it. Not after that, not with what we know now."

The man moved back, gripping her shoulders as if thinking it would be enough to keep her there. It wasn't but it was a nice thought. The one missing most of his right arm grabbed at the other's sleeve. "Tom," he urged. "We don't have time."

The man before her hissed. "I know. I just...I know."

The man missing most of his right arm walked around Tom as the other let her go. She buried her face into this man's chest feeling just as protected with the man's single arm around her. "Be careful for me, ok?"

"I will," she assured him. Her grip tightened and she was hit with a vicious defiance against going. "I'll see you soon."

She felt him huff a laugh before he released her.

She gave him one last smile before turning to the trio. The lanky redhead handed her a bag. "Should have everything you need in it. It contains everything from money to food, clothes, and supplies. There's a list of a few potential houses for you in there as well."

She nodded, taking the deceptively small and weightless bag. She smiled at the young woman. "Most of the spells on it your doing?"

She smiled big and bright. There were tears at the edge of it. "I had help."

The redhead rubbed the back of his neck, grinning. The one with the green eyes on the scarred face stepped forward to draw her attention. "Ready?"

"As ready as I can be." She looked back at Tom and the one armed man. "You two keep an eye on them all for me, yeah?"

They both nodded.

The one with the green eyes on the scarred face stepped in front of her and she pressed into the soft touches against her cheeks, against either side of her head. She reached up and held onto those hands like the lifeline they felt like they were. She met that green gaze with her own. "You stay alive, ok?"

A grin, large and bittersweet, broke across that scarred face. "I'll do my best."

Magic started rolling around them and the others backed off. She didn't drop that green gaze as she called out, "Zephyr."

The elf was at her side immediately, the snake draped like a scarf around the elf's neck flicking its tongue as the head swiveled around to take in the magic dancing. "I'm here and ready to leave when you are, Missus," the elf spoke calmly.

The magic surged to life around them, bathing the room in brilliant lights and colors. She let out a shaky breath against the strange sensation of the foreign spell against her. She felt Zephyr's hand grip at the back of her shirt. "I can't do this," she choked, finally giving voice to the fear scraping at her throat.

"Yes you can," the other assured her. "You can do anything."

Those hands slipped free from her touch and she fought the urge to try and keep the one with those green eyes on a scarred face from stepping away. The other's name caught in her throat in a panic as they stepped beyond the boundaries of the spell, arms wide open. "You can do this, Ray!" they called to her, grinning big and confidently. "I know you can." Those green eyes flickered to those surrounding the spell. "We all do."

Another surge of magic and each person standing at the rim of the spell's border became a fountain of magic of a different color. Some complimented those that were most important to them, whether it was a similar color or contrasting. The one with the green eyes on the scarred face had a magic that didn't seem to want to pick one color and curled around them in a way that was far calmer yet far more powerful than anyone standing near them. A glance back to Tom and the man with one arm to find Tom's rich green magic was behaving the same way. The man with the one arm's magic was a blue of the same richness behaving just as controlled but far less powerful.

All around was an assortment of colors and for the brief moment, each unique magic was isolated. Then a tendril slow, calm, and controlled stretched out towards the well of magic she was standing in.

When it touched, it was like a domino effect. The well of magic spider webbed connections to each individual remaining at the same time and every unique color swirled together before blending into a brilliant white.

Shouts of good will edged her hearing range as the magic overtook her vision.

Their intentions surged through their magic anyway.

There was no way to describe what it was like in the middle of the spell nor how she knew how to guide it along. It had been a haphazardly thrown together spell that they knew would work but not so much how. But just like any magic she had done since her magical core could no longer sustain magic, it burned.

Unfortunately, this time it wasn't just internal burns.

"Missus!" Zephyr cried out as she collapsed with a cry of pain, wrapping around the burned limb and the burns she could feel under her clothing. For a brief moment at the beginning of the pain, she was grateful the magic had left her clothing untouched. Zephyr's hands were gentle. "Missus, I need to take us to someplace safe."

"The bag," she started but was cut off by the pain. Even just tracking Zephyr's words was difficult. It seemed to be enough because after a stretch of her just being in pain, there was the familiar sensation of Zephyr taking them elsewhere and she opened an eye to find the stretch of an empty entrance hall. "Where..."

"Certainly you recognize it?" Zephyr countered gently.

And she did after a moment. She hissed in displeasure. "I told them not anywhere we were occupying or had been occupied."

"The grounds and the buildings have not been touched for a good decade at minimum, Missus. There's a lot of work to do but it is a good place to settle."

She shook her head. The motion made the world spin and she fought against the urge to pass out, fighting to keep her thoughts long enough to finish giving the last bit of directions she needed to. It wasn't like Zephyr needed them but they made her feel better. "But we cannot sustain it nor have people over. For now, it'll work, but we move on when I'm well enough. Zephyr, if you are willing, I'm going to rely on you to check out the other locations and pick."

The elf didn't verbally respond. She hadn't expected one as the pain swallowed her again.

When she came to, she felt gratitude to Zephyr's initial choice. As much as she would love to be in the familiar home, they could not take it over for another twenty some odd years at least.

She pushed herself upright and looked around. The room was clean and held things that were reminiscent of the room she had occupied in her yesterdays and the world's tomorrows. The small differences and few items lacking in the room were the only signs that she wasn't in her own time anymore.

Magic brushed against her arm and she looked over to Zephyr. "How do you feel, Missus?"

"Tired." She let Zephyr adjust the pillows behind her and help her settle against them. "No pain, though, so that's good." A different kind of magic pressed against her and she closed her eyes. "Zephyr, have you tried speaking to Magic?"

"No, Missus. I have had no need to."

"Ok." She took a breath. "Can I have a moment, then?"

"Of course, Missus. Call when you need anything."

"Thank you, Zephyr."

She waited till long after the elf's magic had dissipated from the air before she reached out her senses. Magic reacted immediately and it seared against her skin in retaliation. She sucked in a sharp breath but didn't fight the touch.

"Magic," she breathed. It pressed against her, pressed against her chest and forced her deeper into the pillows; it was like fire against her chest, in her chest. "Please," she half begged. "I know we don't belong here and I know you don't want us here but you have to let us stay. We're trying to prevent numerous deaths and protect you."

The fury of Magic's touch retreated, leaving the impression of wary confusion. She raised a hand as if to touch a solid form but there was nothing physically there for her hand to press against. Still, the weight of Magic against her palm did increase from the gesture. "In too many years to be exact, an evil will arise like none the world had seen before. It will be intent on ridding the world of all living life and is planning on nullifying Magic to do it." Magic's touch still burned as it shifted against her but there wasn't the fury that had seared her before. It was almost like Magic wasn't sure if it should believe her or not. "Please, Magic. Let me try and save you and everyone that I can from the great evil that is coming." She shuddered against Magic's shifting, her hand falling back to the sheets. Her eyes were closed but her palm felt raw. She wondered if it was bleeding. "Please."

It took what felt like eternity for her to receive a response from Magic. When she did get it, it was through the press of healing magic. No matter how gentle Magic was with the healing magic, the touch still burned and very little was healed. Still, she smiled weakly. "Thank you, Magic."

She woke up to the smell of warm summer air. The curtains on the windows were open just as wide as the windows themselves. The breeze that drifted through held the sounds of the surrounding fauna. She felt far too heavy to look around at the sound of footfall but Zephyr was at the edge of the bed before she decided whether she needed to press through the exhaustion or not.

"Welcome back, Missus," Zephyr greeted with a soft smile.

"How long was I out?"

Zephyr arched an eyebrow. "Collectively? Five days. Since you spoke with Magic? Only two."

"And the results from the other locations?"

"There are two properties that I believe fit what you had initially wanted. Both are within Muggle areas."

"Good." She pushed herself upright, accepting Zephyr's aid to sit back against the pillows. "Did you find out when we are?"

"The Tom for which you are looking for has not been born yet. His due date is not for another five months."

Surprise rushed through her. "We made it back that far?"

"It would seem so."

She sank into the pillows, letting out a sigh. "Then we have time." She sat up a bit straighter. "Zephyr, eight years from now, I want to go pick up Tom. Will you help me to remember?"

"Of course, Missus."

"Good. Thank you." She sank back into the pillows as a thoughtful expression crossed her face. "I hope it’s enough time before he has to attend Durvins."

Zephyr offered her an amused smile. "I am quite confident it will be plenty of time, Missus. You can be quite potent that, any longer and he may still become the person you are working to keep him from becoming."

She chuckled weakly. "I'll have to trust your word on that." She sighed, expression heavy. "Then the current challenge is IPPA." She leaned her head back, closing her eyes. "I don't know if I can manage it."

"You will," Zephyr assured her. "And if not, there are plenty of other things you can do instead."

She wasn't able to take the comfort from those words.

The summer heat was missing as the sun started edging over the horizon. The world – most of which had slept through the night – started to slowly wake but in among the human habitants, there were those already up and moving.

From one instance to the next, a pair of adults appeared walking down the sidewalk of some quiet street. There was no one to see them appear and no one to notice their passing till they stepped out onto a busier street an hour later.

The taller of the two pointed down the street, guiding the shorter's attention to their destination. Barely feeling the hour walk, the pair continued on with sights set on one of the older buildings down a side street a block up.

Whoal's Orphanage loomed over them in a sort of depressing way and the pair came to a stop just before the door.

"Missus, he's too young to know what this means..." the taller offered as if it would sooth any hesitation.

Rachel's expression twisted, not believing the taller. "I just hope we're not too late."

With a steady hand, she knocked on the door.

There was a stretch of silence that was expected. She had timed their departure and walk to place them there near the tail end of breakfast at the very edge of the orphanage's open hours.

A severe woman opened the door and glared at them. "Can I help you?" she asked politely enough.

"Good morning," she replied cordially. "We were wondering if the orphanage was open for adoptions."

The severe woman arched an eyebrow. "The children are still at breakfast. If you came back in an hour-"

"I don't mind them being occupied," she quickly cut in. "We want to see them from a distance first before overwhelming ourselves with meeting every child."

The severe woman scoffed. "If you so wish."

She stepped back and gestured inward. She offered the woman a soft smile and stepped in, Zephyr stepping in behind her. The elf's glamour was holding splendidly as the woman closed the door without batting an eye in the elf's direction, informing them, "I will walk you to the meal hall. If you would please follow me?"

Zephyr fell into step and for anyone else, it would look like she had followed as well. But those with the right perception could see she stayed standing in the entrance watching the severe woman and Zephyr wander deeper into the orphanage. It wasn't till they slipped around a corner did she moved.

Reaching into the collar of her coat, Rachel pulled out a snake whose tongue flicked about taking in the new area.

"Find Tom," she guided gently. The snake flicked its tongue at her before darting down a hallway as soon as their scales touched the floor.

She straightened with a sigh before slowly following after the snake. The hallway she entered was surprisingly populated by children despite the severe woman's comment about the children being at breakfast. The children paid her no attention and she easily passed after the equally ignored snake.

"Found you."

It was soft but she was far too familiar with it to have missed it. A soft smile graced her lips as she approached the open door the little voice had come from.

"Found me?" She paused just before the door, her expression twisting against the wave of emotions. The new voice was far too young to be of any real balm against the loss she still felt but it still held familiarity in it. "Why were you looking for me?"

"Because the Mastdrem asked to find you."

"Mastdrem?"

She stepped into the doorway, gaining both pairs of eyes. The snake bobbed its head in a nod towards her, informing the boy sitting on the bed, "Mastdrem."

The brown eyes that bore into her were not tinged red and she felt both parts sorrow and joy at it. Masking the turmoil in her heart, she offered the boy a soft smile.

The boy's face – still young, still learning – twisted for the briefest of moments into distaste and faint fear before becoming expressionless. "Who're you?"

"My name is Rachel," she answered. "And yourself?"

The boy turned his gaze back to the snake, doing a very good job of scoffing at her. "Why should I tell a stranger my name?"

"Because I sent Neranaga looking for a boy named Tom who smells of familiar magic."

Those brown eyes snapped to her again as she calmly watched him. That fear she had briefly glimpsed was now at the forefront of the boy's expression, though he was trying to mask it with a sort of fury fueled indignation. "What are you talking about, lady?"

Rachel gestured towards the boy's bed on which the boy himself was perched. "May I join you first?"

He didn't trust her. Even at such a young age, his magic rolled up against her with his need to shove her away. But nothing came of the suppressed urge and he shifted over, though not by much. It was his way of retaining control in the situation, in a sense.

She closed the door and asked Magic to very visibly sound proof the room. Magic bubbled visibly, collecting against the door and walls till not even the boards creaking beneath her feet could be heard.

"What did you do?"

Horror was written on Tom's face, though there was a flicker of awestruck curiosity so faint, she wasn't sure if it even existed. She didn't move from the door. Instead, she pressed back against it, willing the flare of pain to ease some.

She had gotten used to Magic's constant burning but sometimes it got beyond even her limits.

"I asked Magic to sound proof the room."

"Why?"

It was sharp, it was demanding, and it reminded her too much of the men and women she had left behind. She closed her eyes against the surge of sorrow, answering plainly, "The only other magic user in the building is my companion and it is against several laws in every magical society to let non-magics know of the existence of Magic in any form."

"Magic isn't real?"

She opened her eyes, meeting his gaze. Disbelief was quickly replacing the horror on his face. The curiosity was still there and growing.

"Isn't it?" She nodded towards Neranaga. "You know Serpent Speech, though I don't know if you are aware of how it sounds to non-speakers quite yet."

"Hissing," the boy cut in like her comment had offended him.

She smiled but it didn't stay. "I'm impressed. I have only met two that were born with the ability to speak Serpent Speech and while the older never told me if he was aware there was a different for non-speakers, the younger said he hadn't realized it sounded different to others till he was twelve. He said it sounded like English to him."

"It does," the boy grumbled.

She smiled, letting the boy have those words to himself. "So can you really say Magic doesn't exist?"

"How do I know you're telling the truth? How do I know you're not lying and pulling a prank?" he challenged.

"How would you like me to prove it then?" she countered willingly, opening her arms to him.

The boy's gaze wandered from her as he contemplated his options. She watched as those brown eyes followed a stream of magic as it ebbed and flowed around the walls, curling in areas and spreading out, never stagnant like many presumed it did. Then, as if inspired, he snapped his gaze to her and decreed, "If you can find what is not mine, I'll believe you."

Surprise flashed through her and she was certain it showed on her face. She wondered if he knew it was because she hadn't been expecting such a simple challenge or if he saw it as a show of overwhelm for a task he believed difficult. "In this room alone?" she clarified, already feeling Magic itching to do as requested.

He shook his head. "But you can't just make them magically appear. You have to physically get them and then take me to the others."

Content enough with his rules, she crossed to the wardrobe to Magic's disappointment. She soothed it, promising that it can take part in a moment.

Opening the doors, she reached in between the clothes and pulled out a shoe box. With it still in hand, she reached with her other hand up into the eaves of the piece and pulled down a hidden trinket that Magic assured her did not belong to him. She set it down on the bed with the shoebox before offering her hand to the wide-eyed boy. That distrust was on his face again but it masked his fear of her. Or was it the fear of her seemingly lack of limits? "Shall we?" she asked, though it was rather rhetorical. With a dazed look, the boy took her hand.

The world around them melted away far slower than she would have normally let it. She knew, though, that the boy wanted to see what Magic did and the best way to do that - for the traveling at least - was to slow the process down a margin.

The cave was damp but warm, oddly enough. She could smell the sea on the cold wind that curled in from the entrance. Magic illuminated the space by its own biding, creating streams of light as it made itself visible to them both. The boy's expression was still dazed as she led him deeper into the cave till they reached the back wall.

There, on a naturally occurring shelf, sat a stuffed rabbit, a book, and a wooden train. "These are the last of them," she offered, looking down at him.

He had yet to let go of her hand.

"How did you find them?"

"I asked Magic to help."

At her words, the stream of Magic on the stream of magic on the ceiling dropped down coiling around the smaller first before the both of them. She caught sight of the boy reaching out and passing his fingers through the stream. She watched it parted like water only to gather again behind his fingers undisturbed by his touch.

The shudder that went through him traveled up into her hand.

"Could I make it do things too?"

Magic recoiled at the tone of his question, vanishing and leaving them in absolute darkness. His body bumped against hers as his grip turned painful. She placed their joined hands on his shoulder as she knelt. While Magic had left them blind, she could still see it playing off of Tom's form and she touched his other arm with her free hand. "You can't force Magic to do anything. In fact, if you fight it and force it, the consequences could be worse than death."

She knew he was sneering at her. It was only natural for him to do so, what with her knowing who he was from years yet to come. But unlike his future self, Tom's voice quaked in fear. "What's worse than death?"

"Many things," she answered cryptically. "For some, it's the loss of Magic completely."

A breath. "That can happen?" he whispered softly.

"Absolutely." She stood up, still holding onto his hand. "And for many who have lived with Magic's touch and the weight of their own magic, it is worse than any death could have been. At least with Death, there's no more living, but without magic, one can still live and it can be a hard life after so much ease."

The cave melted away slowly at her request. She didn't want to blind Tom with the abrupt scene change. When Tom's room was solid around them, she watched his gaze go to the bed as his hand slipped from hers. The stuffed rabbit, the book, and the wooden train were resting with the shoebox and the other item she had grabbed from his closet. Neranaga was snoozing on the shoebox in the stream of sunlight from the window, not even waking for the arrival of new items.

"Why are you here, lady?" Tom asked, his voice heavy in a way she hadn't thought she would ever hear till the boy was years older.

"I want to bring you into my family."

His eyes made their way up to her and she saw the distrust was back. "Why?"

She knelt beside him. "Because I made a promise to someone dear to me to come and get you when I had a place ready for you." That only made the distrust worse and she offered him a soft smile. "How about this, you come home with me and if you find yourself wanting to keep the family I'm offering when you become legal and are able to move out, I'll answer every question that you have about my reason for picking you specifically. What do you say?"

He studied her. She knew she wasn't winning any favors but it was clear she had peaked his interest enough for him to agree.

"When I come of age, you'll answer everything?"

She nodded, smiling. "You can even write them down as the years go by. I'll buy you a journal or a pocket book you can keep with you at all times, if you would like."

His eyes lit up at that. "That's all mine?"

She nodded. "That you can do whatever you want with." She tapped his nose. "Just no starting fires in the house if you can manage it. I'd rather mitigate the amount of damage control I'll have to deal with over the next handful of years."

He swatted at her hand, barking at her for her insolence, but the happy gleam in his eyes told her she had the visit had been a surprising success. Her gaze wandered to the items on the bed as Tom turned to scoop up Neranaga, going on about something in Serpent Speech.

Once more she hoped she hadn't made the mistake of waiting so long to come and get him.

Only time would tell.