Fanfare

Limitless Horizon

Flames crackle so loudly that they overwhelm her senses. The sound is familiar from her days of sitting by the perimeter, imagining she can stare through it. In her mind, she sees the whip, the sway of the flames as the hungry mouths search for fuel, finding none but burning on nonetheless.

Pierce's arm tenses around her; he is frozen in shock. The flames are not what have shocked him, though, or Kieran, who sits as still as a statue in his chair. Trenna is simply amazed, startled, disbelieving of everything. They are like this, not because of the perimeter, the wall that locks them in. But because, for the first time, they find themselves on the other side of it.

Trenna goes to take a step forward, but Pierce holds her back. She shrugs him off and falls to her knees in the lushest, greenest grass she's ever seen. In her life, she hasn't seen much grass, just the stringy surviving strands that animals attempted to graze on. But this... this is heaven. She lies down, flat on her stomach in the grass, letting the sweet scent of it soak into her whole body. She rolls onto her back and sits up to see Pierce and Kieran watching her, slight smiles on their faces. She ignores their amusement and looks behind them. There sits the opening to their cave, to their city. And above them roars the wall, a crackling maelstrom of fury, wailing at their escape. She turns and sees another sight, simultaneously terrifying and beautiful in its magnificence.

A city sits in the distance. It is a glimmering sparkle of metal and glass. But this city is whole, not ruined and in decay like hers. And the buildings are strange and sharp instead of friendly and block-like, as if, were she to get too close, they would cut her. It's an icy marvel, with a beauty that she imagines matches its inhabitants. And, like the young girl and boy, it has a harsh malevolence which she does not wish to face. All the same, it offers a tempting fascination that threatens to draw her in, like the magic of the market. She shudders and looks away. Far in the distance, she sees flames, rising into the sky. She doesn't even want to imagine what it means as she turns to Pierce, questioning. He's seen it, too. His eyes meet hers as she walks closer, stands before him. Pierce's eyes flicker to Kieran, watching them. They both say nothing.

Trenna turns to the old man and takes a deep breath of the air. "It smells different out here, old man, doesn't it?" she says.

Kieran looks at her for a moment before smiling slightly, his eyes crinkling at the corners. "Never thought freedom would smell so sweet," he says, using his magic to coax a blade of grass from the ground and into his hand. He twirls it speculatively between his fingers before turning back towards the tunnel and making his way inside.

"Where're you going?" Trenna asks, confused.

He looks back for a moment, pausing. "It's a bit much for an old man such as myself," there's a wry humour in his tone, and Trenna smiles.

"Kieran," Pierce says, walking over to the older man and placing a hand on the back of his chair.

Kieran cuts him off with a noise not unlike a growl. "I won't let anyone hear of this, boy. Don't worry yourself."

Pierce shuts his mouth and steps back. "Do you need help getting back?" Trenna asks, looking after him, a little anxious for his safety.

He laughs, then wheezes, and then takes a deep breath, lifting a rock from his lap and holding it in the air in answer; its glow is faint this close to the perimeter and in daylight. He rolls into the tunnels, and Trenna turns his magic back on as he goes, thoughtfully looking at the stem of vibrant grass in his hand.

Trenna sighs and sinks to the ground, crossing her legs in the grass, the heat of the flames at her back and the heat of the sun on her face. Her lungs take in as much air as possible, as if previously starved of oxygen, expanding slowly until she feels as if they'll burst before letting the air out with leisure. It's the best feeling she's experienced in her life.

Pierce settles in the grass beside her as she stares at the limitless horizon, wondering at how big the world is. Inevitably, her eyes stray to the telltale wisp of fire, licking at the blue, cloud-spotted sky in the far distance. She doesn't have to look at Pierce to know he's staring at the same thing. "Do you think..." She trails off, not wanting to finish the sentence.

"It's another city?" Pierce asks, finishing her sentence. She nods reluctantly, and he shrugs. "There's only one way to be sure."

"So we'll go with a team and have a look before we bring everyone out?" she asks.

She can feel him looking at her like she can feel the flames at her back and the air on her skin. He doesn't even try to fight her on the fact that she included herself in the team. "That seems like the best thing to do."

It's quiet but for the roar of the flames. Trenna runs her hands through the cool blades of grass that stretch, unnaturally close, all the way up to the flames. Magic must keep it alive. It's grass that's been manipulated, changed, forced into growth by the Outsiders. But she's never felt anything like it, and she can't help but love it and hope that the rest of the world is the same; lush and green and full of hope and fresh air.

She blinks her eyes closed and tilts her head back, arms holding her up, soaking the sunlight into every inch of exposed skin. She is glad she didn't wear her jacket today. She can feel the sun warming her neck, face, arms, hair and eyelashes. Her eyelids feel moth-wing thin, and she can see the glow of the sky through them.

"Pierce," she says, her voice made slow with the heat infusing her body. She can still feel his eyes on her; they never left.

"Yes," he says, and voice is made slow, too.

"When are you going to stop being an idiot and kiss me?" she asks, the words dripping like honey from her lips.

Pierce laughs his choked laugh, and she blinks open her eyes to see him looking down at her, propped up on one arm. He brings his hand to the back of her neck, running his fingers through her hair, the strands glowing and made from boring to extraordinary in the light as he cups her head in his palm. "How unconventional," he says, sounding amused. Sounding like Pierce.

"Conventions are boring," she tells him. And then she takes her hands off the ground, relying on him to hold her up, and laces her fingers through his hair as she brings his head down to meet hers. Their lips meet and a searing heat suffuses her body, different to the heat of the sun but just as welcome. His mouth is gentle on hers, soft and teasing, and she fists her hands in his hair as he pulls away, smiling. He takes her hands from his hair and pulls her down into the grass, his arm cushioning her head. "You're boring," she says to him, irritated. But, when he takes her hand and presses his lips to her pulse, it's frantic.

"Your heart's beating fast again," he murmurs, lips moving against her skin.

She rests her hand against his chest, where his heart beats furiously against her palm. "So is yours," she says, her voice tainted by amusement at the repetitive words. His face is completely serious as he carefully pulls his arm from beneath her head and sits up, leaning over her. Her hand still rests against his chest and his heart beats impossibly faster as he leans down. Closer. Closer. Closer. And stops. "Don't be a tease," she whispers.

And a smile curves her lips as he kisses her slowly, sweet and gentle beneath a free sky, the bright green grass cushioning their bodies.