Rami

Chapter 17

"Um, alright."

I step into the carriage, my legs weak, my pack threatening to throw me off balance.  When I shut the door behind me, it slams in the wind.

I feel their eyes on me.  "Um, can I sit down?"

"If you like," the blonde girl says.

I collapse onto a narrow wooden bench pressed against the wall.  The carriage is plain and dreary.  Cobwebs dangle above our heads and the window is obscured by a thick layer of dust.  Pipework covers the ceiling, strewn with rust and hissing valves.

We sit there for a moment, tense.  I don't want to look at these strangers.  I'm not brave enough to break the silence.

Minutes tick past, then:

"Um, hello lady," says one of the small children, a boy with a lisp.  He has filthy hair and there's blood on his upper lip.  "I'm Keit, and I'm turning six.  What's your name?"

I almost laugh.  "It's Rami and... I'm fourteen."

Keit grins and jabs his finger at the other little kid.  "Her name's Abi.  We're twins."

"Okay."

The blonde girl snorts a laugh.  "I'm Ellie Black, if we're giving names.  I'm nineteen."

She extends her hand.  I shake it.  Her grip almost breaks my fingers.

"Nice to meet you," I mutter.

"You too.  The old bat's called Arah, by the way."

I look at the old woman for the first time.  Her skin is the colour of dark amber, gaunt and deeply wrinkled.  Her back is hunched and her breath shallow.  Our gazes lock, and for just a moment, understanding flickers between us.  Those eyes have seen too many sorrows and braved too many hardships of any mortal to endure; it's almost as if Arah is waiting to die.  A shiver passes through me.  I'm forced to look away.

"She came from Rea," Ellie adds, "I lived in Jahl until I was ten, before I met her.  The twins are probably Quaryn, but they don't remember much about their pasts."

"Why's that?"

"Dunno.  They were too young, I guess."  She leans forward and scrutinizes me.  "You look Quaryn.  Are you?"

"Yes.  I am."

"Why are you going to Myrag?"

"I, um, someone... told me to?"  The silence lengthens.  I shrug, face burning.  

"Alright,"  Ellie says, "Whatever.  It doesn't matter to us, anyway."

I sigh and close my eyes.  The rocking of the train calms me. 

There's a scuffling noise in my pack.  I fumble for the straps and open the main compartment.  The baherst is curled up, its head raised.  It watches me with yellow eyes.  Its whiskers twitch.  A smile creeps across my face.

I scoop it up in my lap and try to bury my relief, to pretend I wasn't scared that the creature would never wake again.  The baherst shivers in my arms; I can barely even feel its heartbeat.  Its wings are still twisted and caked with blood.

How would I cope if it died?  The question enters my mind unbidden.  I feel so drained, so desperate, so hollow with loneliness.  I don't know if I'd even be able to cry.

I feel the others' eyes on me, and my hands stiffen.  For a moment, Ellie's look is almost hostile.  Fear crosses the twins' faces.

"A baherst?" Ellie says.  "I'm surprised.  Who are you?"