Remnants

Fake Smiles and Real Ones Too

As soon as their little caravan pulled out of the village, hours later than Evan and Jack had hoped to, Anya's fake smile had instantly departed from her face. All of the laughter, the joking, the friendliness, it was all a cleverly crafted cover. One that she had practiced for months. One that had, until her small breakdown with the bear the day before, gone unnoticed by anybody.

It was exhausting to play nice in such a public way. So many people touching her, inspecting the products she modeled with her own appearance, shaking her hand, patting her back, hugging her. It all felt sickening but she was committed to do her job well. Even if it meant faking smiles to the point that her face hurt.

She had been mostly silent on the trip, her only words being the bare minimum required to appropriately respond to her travel companions, primarily Liza. Because she wasn't deeply involved in any kind of conversation during their afternoon ride before making camp, she was able to see just how strangely Jack and Evan were acting.

Both men rode in the front of the small column and whatever had gotten them so bothered had Jack talking more than Anya had ever seen. They had been whispering back and forth all morning in raspy, hushed tones that she was unable to understand over the rumbling cart and rattling merchandise. Both men repeatedly gestured back at the cart as well, as if something Liza's wagon held was of importance for whatever this new problem was. And Anya was sure they were keeping it a secret to protect her.

After her slight struggle with connecting to the bear, probably just because of all of the travel and excitement combined with being forced into the awful dress she now wore, she was sure that everybody in the group saw her as fragile. And that thought disgusted her. She had not trained for the last several months for no reason, nor had she worked so hard to smile, joke, and be a productive member of the village community just to be seen as a weak link now that she finally had a real mission.

The ride throughout the rest of the day was pleasantly uneventful, giving Anya the chance to avoid talking to any new people at all. There were a few farms that they passed but, as they drew closer to the old cities, those who lived more solitary lives were especially wary of travelers and they stayed locked in their small compounds and watched until they felt confident that the caravan was a peaceful one.

They found the right spot to camp just before dusk. It was an old abandoned barn, one that had probably gone unused since before the Separation. Jack and his magical elbow were convinced that it would rain during the night and so the sextet of travelers needed to find a more secure roof over their heads. So after being meticulously cleared by the Journeymen and Leo, they made their camp on the floor of the main room. A village inn was out of the question because Jack and Evan wanted privacy so they could continue whatever secret discussion they were having.

Jase and Leo seemed unbothered by the secrecy but Anya could tell that Liza was just as suspicious as she was, even though they had not talked about it. The alchemist seemed to never be fully invested in whatever she was saying and lost track of what she was talking about several times, eyes always looking forward at the two masters who led the caravan.

Although Anya trusted that the two men were keeping the secret with good intent, her innate curiosity kept her from thinking of anything else. She sincerely hoped that she would be let in on the secret. But, as her self doubt crept in more throughout the day, she especially hoped that the reason she had not been let in on the secret yet was not because they saw her as a weak link.

After having been given the night off the previous night in camp for reasons that she did not understand, Anya was now tasked with collecting water for the night. Jase was sent along with her, both to continue the illusion for anyone that might be watching that she needed protection, and for extra hands to carry more water.

"I guess this is about as good as we're going to find," Jase said, looking at a full water troth of murky, bug infested water.

"I really miss running water. Jack has it at the inn and you really get used to it," Anya said with a sigh.

Jase dipped a collapsible bucket into the stagnant water, "At least we can use a water purification spell. Or somebody can. I haven't quite figured that one out yet."

"Oh really? Mister 'I can do all things magic?' I thought you'd already have that down?" Anya asked, rolling her eyes as she scooped out a bucket full of water.

Jase laughed, filling two more collapsible buckets and sliding them onto a sturdy pole he had brought to carry more water, "Yes, Miss Cranky Pants, I have had trouble with that spell and other ones too!"

Anya's eyes snapped to Jase as he scooped out another bucket full of water. He did not notice until he shouldered his pole of buckets and looked at her, ready to leave. She tried to bore a hole into his eyes with her blazing green eyes. Her glare was met with the young man's smirk, dimple showing yet again.

"Does Miss Cranky Pants not like to play the nickname game?" he asked, not withering under her fierce gaze.

"No. I don't," she said, filling her second bucket and beginning her annoyingly long walk back to the barn.

They walked in silence for a little while before Jase spoke up again. "You know, you did really well in that village today. You seem like you're a born salesperson."

She rolled her eyes again as she responded, "Really? Because I hated just about every second of it."

"You were moving product like a pro, though. You made Liza a lot of money," he said with a shrug.

Their buckets were the same size and, though she normally felt like she was fairly strong, she struggled with the full buckets while he carried twice as many as she did with comfortable ease. She had been impressed by the way his arms felt during their first meeting, before he got annoying. Clearly the muscles were not only for show.

"I guess I did," she replied. She kept her answers short, trying to end the conversation.

"They all really liked your makeup. And your hair too. I saw that girl digging through it like a monkey looking for bugs. Not saying that you have bugs in your hair." He quickly added his last statement as if he was afraid she might actually attack him.

She scoffed, "Yeah, no bugs here."

"I didn't realize that wasn't your natural color. Until monkey girl started her investigation," he said, laughing at the newest nickname of his invention.

"The eyebrows didn't tip you off," she asked, turning and looking at him while raising an eyebrow that was still its natural brown color.

"I guess not. I just didn't take you for the type to want to magically dye your hair," he said, shrugging his broad shoulders again.

"I'm not. It's from my last time going undercover. Liza forgot to mention that it won't go back without the reversal potion. She's lucky I like it or I'd be pretty mad at her," Anya said, the beginning of a smile taking shape on her face at the thought of the complete panic Liza had when she realized she had forgotten to change Anya's hair back to normal.

"Oh she wouldn't want that," Jase said, smirk no longer present on his face.

"Want what?" Anya asked, looking at Jase in confusion.

"You to be mad at her. It's pretty terrifying," he said, looking at her as he forcefully held a smile back.

The surprise of his complete and abrupt honesty shocked her. At first, she wanted to be mad. He was mocking her. But there was something about the goofy look on his face. Something about the way he was actually mocking himself and his own stupidity. Anya couldn't help but let a quick sputter of laughter come out. She couldn't stop a smile from forming on her face. One that felt natural. One that didn't make her cheeks hurt from forcing it. She shook her head and let the smile stay for a moment as she looked at him.

"Don't you forget it either, Bucket Boy," she said, struggling to an embarrassing degree to lift one of her buckets up and place it onto his pole, nearly causing him to lose his balance. She laughed again at his newfound struggle as she now strode on more easily back to their home for the night.