They approached the small blue carriage where the two guards still stayed unmoving. Up close, Jon saw that the bottom of their faces was covered with masks so that only their eyes were revealed.

“Can he come with me?” Mercy asked them.“To the border?”

The two figures looked at each other.

“Thanks,” she said. “Come on, Jon.”

She opened it and climbed in. Jon climbed in after her.

The carriage shut behind them.

“Well.” She turned to him in the seat.

The carriage started to move forward.

Jon grimaced. He knew the carriage was a ticking clock, but he wasn’t able to find the words he needed to say.

“Whatever it is you want to say to me,” Mercy said, “you can say it. it doesn’t have to be special.”

“I… don’t know,” Jon said.

Mercy must have seen Jon’s disappointment, and she chuckled.

“You don’t have to say anything at all,” Mercy said. “Just being here is nice.”

She and Jon turned to the front of the carriage. Jon could see up ahead that there was a lush forest they were approaching, and that there were mountains beyond that.

“Trees,” Jon said.

Mercy laughed.

“Yeah. Trees. They provide lots of shadows-”

She changed subjects suddenly. “Jon, you really need to see the rest of the clans! To show you where I live.”

She grabbed his hands. “It would be so cool, just… I know that now’s not the best time…”

Jon nodded.

“It will be,” he said.

She smiled.

They stared into each other’s eyes as the carriage crept forward to the oncoming forest.

“You know,” Mercy said, “I didn’t know that I would ever go on a journey like this.”

“Leaving home?” Jon asked.

“No… going back...”

She sighed.

“I thought I was just running away. I thought I was just trying to give myself some breathing room. I mean, I was… but I never thought…”

She looked down at her chest. “The journey needed… it wasn’t out in the towns, or the fighting, or the people. It was on the inside. It was about how I thought about myself, and how I let myself be defined by others…”

If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

She looked at Jon. “I thought I was the only one who saw myself as unique. I thought that I was special in a way that others didn’t understand. Now, I realize that people do recognize e as different, but in a way where they twist and contort the truth, ways in which they demean me and make me seem less of a person. And I…”

She took a breath. “I thought that by isolating myself, I could keep others out of danger and that I could protect myself from everything. By being by myself, I was being the best version of myself… and now I know the truth. There’s so much more for me to know. So much more for me to do, and understand, and learn and grow and give and…"

Another breath. Jon waited patiently for her to continue, which she eventually did.

“I have to stop running away from life, Jon,” she said. “And I need to take ahold of everything that's mine. Starting with my legacy.”

Jon decided it was a good time to respond. He put his hand on top of hers.

“We’ll be here,” he said.

Jon wanted to say something more substantial than that. He wanted to explain that he was waiting to wait for Mercy until she decided that she wanted to come back or that she needed more help, but then he didn’t know how to explain that she might have to run away from all of the bad things that were chasing her around before, and so he flubbed on is words and only got those three out. He wondered how Mallory functioned for so long.

“And I’ll be here…” Mercy put her other hand on top of his.

The carriage stopped.

“We’re at the border,” Mercy said.

Jon nodded. He turned to leave.

“Wait!”

Jon stopped.

“Sorry, Jon. I’m… scared.”

Jon raised his eyebrow.

“I’m scared for you,” she said. “I know I shouldn’t be, but-”

“I’ll be alright,” Jon said. “I’ve got… family…”

Mercy suddenly reached forward and hugged him.

“You have people that love you for who you are,” she said. “And that makes me happy.”

“You do too…” Jon hugged Mercy back.

“Before we go,” Mercy said, “I-”

There was knocking on the carriage door.

“Hold on!” Mercy called. “I-”

More knocking.

Mercy turned around, furious.

“I said hold-”

“Mercy.” The voice was calm, and yet, it demanded immediacy.

“Dad?” Mercy’s voice lost its anger.

“We must get back soon. It is dangerous for you and your friend. I will go up ahead.”

No more instruction came through the door after that.

Mercy turned to Jon with a frown.

“I guess… this is it…”

Jon nodded.

“What are you gonna do?” Mercy asked.

“Go with Hector.”

Jon saw by Mercy’s face that she expected another answer.

“Join the King’s Guard,” Jon added.

“Be careful,” she said.

Jon nodded grimly.

“It’ll probably be a while before I can send a long-range message… but as soon as I can, I’ll send one to the King’s Guard, okay?”

Jon nodded again.

She hugged him once more.

“Be good to yourself,” she said.

Jon wanted to hug Mercy more, but he knew that Mercy had to leave.

When Mercy dutifully let him go, Jon pushed open the carriage door on his side and stepped down.

“Jon!” Mercy leaned out of the carriage and grabbed onto his hand.

The carriage started to move forward.

“We’ll see each other again!” Mercy said as their hands started to pull apart. “I promise!”

The carriage moved onto the forest path, and Jon watched as it went on ahead.

Mercy leaned back inside the carriage and closed the door.

Jon was debating if he should leave or not when Mercy slipped out of the carriage opening and flipped herself onto the roof, where she sat facing Jon cross-legged.

She waved.

Jon waved as well.

He waited as long as he could so that he could watch the carriage disappear into the distance.