“Where have you been?” Tanner hissed as Mina came into view at the inn’s stable.
The boy was in a tense standoff with the inn’s employee, who glared down at Tanner with a pitchfork. The employee whirled around at Tanner’s exclamation and yelled, “Oh great, there are two of you now?!”
“Um, hi,” Grandma said as Mina suddenly lurched back into hiding. “What’s going on here?”
“You snuck in here and slept in the stables last night, didn’t you!” the inn’s stableboy growled in accusation.
“Yes? Is that a problem?” Grandma approached warily, hands out and palms open to show she was harmless.
“You–!” the boy spluttered, stabbing the pitchfork at Grandma. “Yes! That’s a big problem!”
“You were asleep when we arrived. Shouldn’t you have been awake to greet us, take our coin, and help bed down our horse?” Grandma advanced grimly, a terrifying smile on her face. “How is your dereliction of duty our problem?”
“Der– what?” The boy paused in sudden confusion.
“It means,” Grandma said as she grabbed the pitchfork and held its sharp tines to one side. “That you failed to do your job.” Continuing to advance, she pushed the hapless stableboy until he was pressed up against a stall wall. “But I’m willing to overlook your rudeness.” She pulled out a thin copper coin and pressed it to his chest. “Just forget we were ever here, and you can keep this coin all to yourself.” Her grin widened, showing an uncomfortable amount of teeth. “You can do that much, right?”
The boy looked between the manically grinning girl with messy blue hair and the coin she pressed against him, then sagged in defeat. “Fine, fine. I won’t tell if you won’t tell.”
“Not even if the Duke’s soldiers come?” Grandma leaned in closer, until they were almost nose to nose.
“Y-you were never here!” the boy turned away, face turning an alarming shade of red.
“What a good lad you are,” Grandma chuckled as she released him.
“What a scary girl you are,” Tanner muttered as he shuffled around, collecting their possessions. “Hey, where can we get more horse feed?” he asked the other stableboy.
“If you have more coppers, I can top you up,” the other boy grumbled.
“Fill’er up,” Grandma said as she flipped another coin at him. [Ah, I miss saying that,] she laughed.
[Saying what?]
[Fill’er up! I used to say it when I went to, oh, hm, get fuel for my carriage.] Grandma wondered how she should explain cars to the villainess Mina. She pictured the vehicle in her mind, a silver mound of metal that moved with the mystical power of combustion, sharing what she knew of its internal working with Mina.
[What magic is this?!] Mina asked in awe and alarm.
[Eh, it's a machine, there's hardly any magic to it at all.] Honestly, Grandma preferred trains. Driving was a huge pain, even when she switched to an electric car. [For now, horses and carriages are good enough.]
The inn’s stableboy filled up one of their saddlebags with horse feed and Grandma passed another coin to the boy in payment. “Remember, you never saw us. Especially not me.” She winked as she and Tanner saddled up Chestnut and slipped out of the yard.
The kids didn't linger in the town, quickly buying a few more camping supplies, some dried meats and fruits, and a pair of belts for their knives. When they finished their business, Grandma turned their horse to the east, putting more distance between them and the Duke's estate, then nudged Chestnut into a canter.
They traveled until late in the afternoon, when Mina suddenly perked up in Grandma's mind.
[What is it, dear?] Grandma asked, slowing Chestnut with a gentle hand on the reins.
“What's going on?” Tanner asked too, as they slowed.
[There's something in the forest,] Mina said, looking vaguely southward into the trees.
[Do you want to take charge?] Grandma yielded the body back to the girl.
“There's something over there,” Mina told Tanner. “Give me a minute.”
The girl took a deep breath, focusing on the flow of energy all around her. Like what she felt in the mausoleum, there was a dense knot of power writhing in the woods. Several streams of energy flowed into it, forming a thick lump of throbbing power.
“I think there's a dungeon over there.”
[Could be fun,] Grandma said. [We should definitely take a look.] This dungeon hadn't been in her granddaughter's story, so Grandma knew nothing about it. That made her even more curious. What did a naturally occurring dungeon, something not entangled in some fantastical plot, look like in this world?
“That sounds dangerous.” Tanner started to turn Chestnut away and urge her back into motion.
“But it could have delicious things in it, or monsters with parts worth selling.” Mina grabbed Tanner’s hands and guided Chestnut around, facing the forest. “Don't you want to see what's in it?” With Grandma egging her on, Mina tapped her heels against Chestnut’s flank and rode into the woods off the road.
They had to dismount and lead the horse almost as soon as they entered the forest. The small game trail they followed was overgrown with low hanging branches that forced them to duck. Mina walked at the front, Tanner following and leading Chestnut, as they picked their way deeper into the woods.
After an interminable hike, they came to a clearing dominated by a single enormous tree. The trunk was so large, it looked like a small cottage could fit inside it. The crown sprawled overhead, thick and lush with foliage gleaming in the light of the setting sun. Power thrummed in the air, pulsing with the rhythm of life as the tree’s limbs swayed in the gentle breeze.
“Whoa,” Tanner breathed in awe. “That's a big tree.”
“It’s getting late. Should we camp out here and then go into the dungeon tomorrow?” Mina looked up at the tree, tipping her head back until she was dizzy. She clutched the back of the saddle for balance, gazing up at the interlacing branches, the leaves glowing with life. Was it a trick of the light? It looked as if power thrummed through each leaf waving in the breeze.
[That seems fine. If anything happens, you can always open the dungeon and we can hide inside it.] Grandma sounded excited to visit the dungeon.
[You’re always so eager to explore, Grandma.] Mina smiled.
[When you’ve been alive as long as I have, it’s rare to see something completely new. This is very exciting for me, you know?] Grandma laughed. [Besides, being able to walk around again is such a thrill. It’s been years since I was able to do that. It’s nice to have a body that moves the way I want it to, without pain or stiffness.]
Mina thought back to the beatings she had received, when her body ached with every breath. [Yeah, it’s nice to be able to move freely.]
Tanner slid off Chestnut, complaining loudly about Mina spacing out and acting weird, but he diligently unpacked their camping supplies and started picking up fallen branches for a fire. Mina scrambled off the horse as well, and together they unsaddled Chestnut, gave her a brushing, and picketed her to graze and rest as she liked. Mina practiced making water with mana, sharing the refreshing liquid with Tanner and Chestnut before filling their waterskin.
The kids made short work of building a fire, using the fire stone and a knife to strike sparks. Soon, they had warm water to drink from their newly purchased metal cups, in between bites of tough chewy monster jerky. They split the last of the apples between the three of them, and Mina was sad to have run out of them. For all Tanner’s complaints about them being for horses, the apples had been sweet and tart, crunchy and juicy under the thick skin.
After their meal, the kids cleaned up and packed everything away. They dragged their blankets into a nook between two protruding tree roots and laid down side by side. Grandma decided there was no real point to setting a watch, since both children were exhausted and would likely fall asleep anyway. Better to let them rest as much as possible, and keep an ear out in their stead.
Grandma released her hold of Mina’s body, and let it drift to sleep along with Mina’s consciousness. In the dark stillness, Grandma explored the confines of her existence. She could hear through the sleeping child’s ears, and smell through the steady breathing. Naturally, she couldn’t see, since Mina’s eyes were closed. Grandma felt the subtle lumps of the earth beneath her as Mina lay on the ground. An itch now and again irritated her as the horse blanket scratched her skin. When Grandma let go of Mina’s body, Mina’s mind filled the gaps, naturally regaining control of her own body. Grandma could feel the emotions flickering through the villainess as she dreamed, flashes of terror and pain as nightmares dogged her sleep. Grandma reached out with her mind, a touch of warmth soothing the bad dream away, and Mina’s spirit settled down once more.
The girl had already been through so much even though she was not even a teenager yet. Whatever plot the rest of the world had for its other characters, Grandma didn’t care, but this one girl, she was determined to protect. She remembered her granddaughter’s face, sweet and sad as she exclaimed over the unfairness of the villainess Mina’s fate. Abused, manipulated, sacrificed, and ultimately killed and forgotten, the Mina of the story lived and died pathetically, never having had the chance to truly become her own person. Grandma stroked Mina’s spirit gently, and promised to give this child the chance to live her own life.
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