Not My Pyre (A Pearl-Centric Double Life FanFic)

Chapter Twenty: The Importance of Family Part II

Pearl tugged the piece of paper that was nailed to the door down.

It read:

We, the Astris, were among the last families in the town. We have now left for the revolution.

If you know where to find us, you know where to find us.

They'd found several different notes like that around the town.

"Pearl, I don't think anyone's left here," Gem - another skilled fighter who had joined them - gestured to the empty streets. "They've cleaned out and left."

"Probably, but... I still think we should check."

"Alright," Gem nodded. "Then let's go."

Pearl and the others knocked on a couple of doors to no response before, finally:

"Who's there?"

It sounded like a young man's voice.

"Pearl Moon." There was no point in trying to keep her identity a secret - anyone would recognise her face in seconds.

"You're here! Finally. Come in, come in. I can't come to the door right now, but come in."

Pearl reached out to grasp the doorknob, but Gem grabbed her shoulder.

"Don't you think this is really suspicious?" She whispered.

"What? Of course. But I can and will stab anyone who tries to fight me. And martyring me is inadvisable for the Lords." Pearl opened the door. "Hello, boys. And girls. And non-binary people." She smiled politely at the guards wearing the insignia of the Lords - a purple rectangle with two opposing corners separated from the rest of it. "Before you try to kill me, take a look at your surroundings."

"What are you-"

Pearl cut off the guard. "Four or five people probably lived in this tiny space. I'm going to assume some of you have protected the rich folk of this country. You've seen the size of their houses. That's for so few people. And you know how little you're paid compared to what they could pay - and you can't ask for more, 'cause then they won't let you get the job, and you aren't getting sums like that anywhere else. They are hoarding that money. With even a tiny percentile - less than point-one - anyone could afford a home with plumbing. Do you know how nice plumbing is? And electricity! They spend the money we need to survive on chocolate fountains and crystal chandeliers, sending it right back to other rich people. Help us change it. Please."

"She's right," one of the guards said.

"What? Amoir, are you crazy? She wants us to turn against the Lords. They will kill us. At least this way, we live to fight again tomorrow," one of her companions said.

Amoir scoffed. "And then one day we catch some sickness and can't afford treatment. Then we can't make money and our kids starve and we die without having meant anything in our lives. I have two little girls at home, and I want them to have a life."

"If our employers find out you betrayed them, they'll hire a hitman and kill your kids."

"At least that'll be quick! They won't die a slow death strangled by this system. They'll die still believing there's good in the world. Or, we'll succeed and they'll live their dreams. My oldest wants to cure the illnesses killing people. She wants to help."

"Amoir's right, Itu." A couple of the guards were nodding.

Pearl watched as the guards split into roughly equal factions: those who feared the Lords too much to fight, like Itu, and those who didn't, like Amoir.