I Told You Once, And I Told You Twice, I AM Maxwell!

Chapter 4: The Need for Gald

Jude stretched as he walked past the gates into Aladhi Seahaven. He was sore from all of the mopping he had to do, but he saw no reason to be very upset about it. At least it was fun running back and forth for a while.

"Next time, we're buying a ticket." Alvin said as he ran a hand through his hair. Milla nodded in agreement.

"Yeah, let's do that. I don't want to deal with an angry captain again..." She said. Jude was only half listening when he looked around the Seahaven.

"Sooo....where are we again?" he asked, grasping his left wrist with his right arm.

"We're in Aladhi Seahaven in Auj Oule, kid." Alvin said, patting Jude's head. The Lord of Spirits didn't really acknowledge him as something caught his eye.

"Ah! A map!" he said, excitement clear in his voice.

"Huh?"

Jude jogged out of Alvin's reach and stopped in front of a bulletin board with the map of Auj Oule. Milla couldn't help but smile at Jude's childish display of curiosity. He reminded her of herself when she was younger; always curious and excited with the simplest things. But...that was long before she joined the army. She felt a little jealous that Jude was completely fine even though he lost what defined him as Maxwell.

"Well, isn't he the curious one." Alvin said as he stepped up to Milla, keeping an eye on Jude.

"It's still hard to believe that a child as young as him is the Lord of Spirits." Milla said, placing a hand on her sword.

"Yeah, for sure... How old do you think he is?" Alvin asked, now looking at her. Milla blinked for a second before taking a look at Jude, who was tracing a finger over the map.

"Well... I'd say he's about... thirteen? Fourteen? I don't know. His personality makes it a bit hard to figure him out." she answered honestly. Alvin crossed his arms and shifted his weight to one leg.

"You got a point there. Still..." Alvin began, "What made you help him? I mean, you were willing to let them capture you and allow Jude to escape."

Milla stayed silent for a moment, unsure what to say. Why did she help Jude? She only tagging along with him because of what she had seen. A friend of hers died, and she couldn't do anything but watch. Even so, that wasn't much of a solid reason why she had helped him. In fact, she could've turned Jude in like she was ordered to and just fix things from the inside.

And yet, she didn't.

Instead, she lead him through the research faculty and discovered a secret she wasn't supposed to know. It was true that Milla was running away from her sentence, in a sense. Although, she couldn't help but think she was helping Jude for an entirely different reason.

After a long moment, Milla finally answered.

"I don't know. I just felt like I had to. Maybe it was his innocence that he gives. Or maybe it's his determination to keep going." she said, her hand's grip tightening on her sword. "I also feel that there's a reason...or something. I can't really say right now. I think it's just a beginning to something greater..."

"..Or something worse." Alvin said, "You're on the run because of him. Doesn't it make you feel bad for betraying your king?"

"Of course it does." Milla said, closing her eyes for a moment. A few seconds later, she opened them, looking right at him with a small smirk and a sparkle in her eye. "But, if you really know my family's history, then you should know that us Lowell's aren't very set on following laws."

._._._._._.

Jude looked over the map one more time before tracing his finger over the path once more, making sure he knew where he was going. It seemed like a short distance on the map, but in reality, he knew it would take him awhile without the Four's help. He bit his lip. Could he make it? He didn't want to make Milla come with him, but rather out of her own decision. He hated making people do things for him, and he wasn't about to start now.