Royal's Way

Chapter 9

I woke up to Ruth gently shaking my shoulder, a small smile on her face. "Good morning."

I groaned, rolling to look at her. "Your mother went away," she explained, "Now is the perfect time." She stood, exiting my view.
I sighed, slowly sitting up and rubbing my still tired eyes. The sun hadn't even completely risen yet. "For what?" I blinked. "Wait. I have to go to school." "No, you don't." I rose a brow, grabbing my sweatpants from the end of the bed and pulling them on under my blankets. "What?" "It's Saturday," she replied, looking at me over her shoulder. "You do not have school on that day, correct?"

I scowled. "How'd you know that?" "I read Ian's schedule on his wall." She cocked her head in the direction of the hall. "Come. Miriam is already up."

I watched her leave.
It took me a moment to realize she had reached over to the side of the doorway, gripping her hand around the shepherd's hook of her lantern.

I hesitated, before quickly standing, grabbing my glasses and hoodie, then asking, "What else did you do while I was gone?"

I was relieved to see the sun after what felt like a million years of rain.

Miriam was impatiently waiting at the end of the backyard, obviously confused and even irritated. "Okay, what are we doing?" "Despite what we wish," Ruth explained, sitting on the edge of a picnic table near the back right of the backyard, "This isn't going to end after we rescue Ian. It's more like the beginning of a long war."
I swallowed, joining Miriam's side. She kept on giving me the side eye. I knew she still didn't completely trust me; she was still in denial.

She sighed. "Originally, I wanted to do this on my own, keep you two out of the way. But, I realize now, that isn't possible. I cannot do this alone." "You're asking for our help?" Miriam asked. Ruth shrugged. "Sort of. But we cannot afford you two losing control in a random, dangerous situation." "'Losing control'?" Miriam sneered. She almost sounded worried. Ruth grimaced. "You two aren't any different than I. I want to help you. Human weapons will not do any effect on your attackers." "No kidding," I muttered, thinking of that knife sticking out of Lily's chest.

Ruth sighed. "I know this is going to be hard for you. Living in a world with no magic. I cannot imagine. But you are unable to move on without learning something. Unable to survive." "You want us to learn how to do..." "To do magic?" I finished for Miriam. Ruth took in a breath. "Yes." Miriam scoffed, rubbing her eyes. "Yeah... sure." "What are we able to... do, exactly?" I asked.
Ruth paused. "I'm unsure."

I scowled. Miriam and I exchanged nervous looks. "What does that mean?" Miriam asked quietly. Ruth swallowed. "Everyone is born differently. Every person with magic has a different shape, different color. Another type of magic hooks on to that. I don't know what that type is. We'll only have to find out." "Is that..." Miriam pursed her lips. "...safe?" "You can't hurt yourself unless you really wanted to."

A pause.
Miriam shook her head. "I...I can't. Look; I can't get involved. I have my dad to take care of. I have to get a job soon to help take care of him and the house. I can't just go off and do... magic tricks, or something."
"If you wish to protect your father, then you will have to do 'magic tricks.' This isn't something to ignore."

A silence fell. Miriam leaned on her hip, rubbing her eyes and muttering something I couldn't hear.
I scowled. "I'll do it. I want to do it."

Ruth's expression softened. She turned to Miriam. "Miriam?"

A pause.

Miriam scowled. "I..." She sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose. "This is so stupid," she says, shrugging before saying louder, "Alright, fine."