Beyond The Bridge [ONC 2023] // Longlisted

Chapter Two

I stare at him, listening to the gentle sound of the water beneath us and the birds in the nearby trees. He raises an eyebrow at me and I know he genuinely wants me to answer the question. There is something unfolding behind his eyes, a harebrained scheme that he hasn't thought through.

"What on earth do you mean?"

"If you were given the choice and the time, what is something you would do right now?"

I shrug. "I have never thought about it. There isn't any time to daydream or come up with a wild adventure, at least not for me."

"After all these years, you have truly never had something you have wanted to do?"

Levi looks at me, his dark hair moving in the breeze. In truth, I have thought about what I would rather be doing were it not for my work in service. From the moment I opened my eyes, service was all I had in front of me and it won't change because of Levi Edgeworth. There is nothing he can do that would change my life, not unless he is willing to hand over the money Mother and I need to remain in our cottage so we don't have to work.

I lean forward and drop my hands into my lap. My nails are cracked and dirt clings to every line of my fingers. They are the hands of someone who must work in order to survive, work in order to keep food on the table. Levi's fingers are the opposite. His fingernails are pristine and free of dirt, and his hands are smooth and unblemished. He lives a life I can only dream of.

When we were children, long before I would help Mother with the work, I used to wish I had a life like his. Freedom to run through the fields that surround us, to not have to watch Mother work her fingers to the bone day in and day out to please someone else. He had all the toys he could ever dream of whilst I played with a cloth doll Mother had made me for whilst I was still in her belly.

To this day, I still have the doll. I love it with all my heart, but I wanted more. I wanted what he had.

We used to play games, and daydream about our futures where Levi would be the ringmaster of a circus. He would use a different voice, introduce the lions or the clowns, and talk about a life travelling through the country, making people smile. My dreams were always simple.

I wanted to follow the stream.

"Well?"

"You are going to laugh at me." I shuffle backwards, pulling my stockings onto my feet.

"I wouldn't. This is me you're talking to Grace. I used to think I could fly if I jumped out of my bedroom window."

"Yes, and you practised from the ground floor."

"I had to start somewhere." He grins. "Just tell me, I won't laugh. I promise."

I look at him as I pull on my shoes, lacing up my boots as the water continues to move beneath us. "I always wanted to see where the stream went. Mother used to say that it went on forever, but I never believed her. There has to be something at the end of it."

"Why don't we go and find out?"

I shook my head, standing up and brushing off the back of my skirt. "It isn't that easy, Levi."

"Is it not?"

"No! I cannot just abandon my work because you want to go on an adventure. Mother and I need the money."

Levi stares at me. I can almost see his mind trying to figure it all out, trying to find a way for us to go on his adventure, even though he has never thought about it before. Even after all these years, he never plans for anything. He has always been someone who acts on a whim and makes a split-second decision without thinking about it first. More often than not, it leads to him being in some sort of trouble.

For Levi, it's easy to abandon his obligations because he doesn't rely on the money would make from those obligations. His family has more money than they could ever need. Mother and I do not have that luxury, nor would we. That, and I would not leave her to follow Levi Edgeworth into the great unknown.

"Perhaps there is a way," he frowns.

"There isn't, Levi." I sigh. "I have to go. I have chores."

I scramble to my feet and follow the bridge back to the grass. Behind me, I hear Levi standing up and rushing across the bridge to join me, not taking no for an answer.

"Just hear me out, Grace, please." He grabs hold of my arm and forces me to stop. "All you have to do is tell your mother you have some errands to run in the village. It isn't too far and she won't question you. We will only be gone for a day if that."

"Why?" I ask. "What's in it for you?"

"The pleasure of your company?" Levi smiles the same elfish grin he has had all his life. "You were the one who said you didn't have options. Here I am, offering you one and you won't take it? Live a little, Grace. What's the worst that could happen?"

"With you, anything."

The idea floats around my head. I do need to run errands in the village, and I know Mother wouldn't question me if I excuse myself for the day. Yet I hate lying to her. I try not to do it if I can't help it because I know how much it will hurt her when she finds out the truth. After everything she has done for me, I don't want to let her down.

"How about we flip a coin?"

"A coin?"

Levi pulls a sixpence from his pocket. "Heads, we follow the stream, tails, we stay. Do we have a deal?"

I look at the coin in his hands. Could I really put my faith in a coin? Could I let a small piece of metal decide for me? What would be the harm in seeing where it lands?"

"Alright. Deal."

~~~

Till The Hawk Moth Flies - -dreamsinwords

After her silent vengeance culminates in a violent last battle, Selvali stands amidst the deadly silence of her fathers' desolate empire in Ghonami. Desolate, until a mangled, trembling hand rises from beneath the bodies — and a face looks up. A face of a person who, in just a fleeting few days, would force Selvali to face her past, her pain, and her deepest fears.

The face of Erappuyal, the cursed clairvoyant.

First Published - February 28th, 2023