In Exchange for Magic

"Just be quiet," the boy soothed frantically. "Calm down and be quiet!"
"We're going to die, we're going to die!" I gasped, trying to cling to the sleeves of the boy's tunic. He swatted my hands away and scowled as he tried to calm me down without touching me.
"They're just bugs!"
"Are all bugs like that here?" I shrieked.
"For Jude's sake, no!" he snarled. "Now stop being stupid, they can hear you!"
"Not over the sound of the beating wings of the giant beetles, they can't!"

I suddenly felt a sharp, hot pain on the left side of my face. The boy had slapped me.

"What's your name?" he demanded, taking me forcefully by the shoulders. "Tell me your name."
Momentarily dazed out of my horror, I breathed an answer. "R-Rose. Rose Collins"
"Listen to me, Rose Collins," he growled, giving my shoulders a shake. "You've got to be quiet, alright?"
I couldn't answer him.
"Alright?" he pressed. "The Shades can't detect you right now, but that doesn't mean we're safe. Do you understand me, Rose?"
I nodded.

His eyebrows knitted together as he slowly released my shoulders, pursing his lips into a frown.

"I need you calm, okay? You're only putting yourself in danger by panicking. Got that?"
I nodded again.
"Good girl."

He turned away from me and sank into a coiled crouch, pressing his weight into his toes. Slowly, he parted the lower branches of the boughs of the trees in front of us and looked out into the clearing, hidden entirely by shadows. I moved to look over his shoulder, forcing myself to breathe calmly and silently as about a dozen giant beetles landed mere yards away from me.

Horribly human-like creatures dismounted off the beetle creatures and slid agilely to the ground, immediately bending their knees into a battle-stance. Their blood-red eyes were clearly visible through slits in their dull metal helmets, the whites stained a sickening parchment-yellow. Each one held a curved sword, exactly like the rusted one in the strange boy's belt. I wondered if he had stolen it.

A tall, broad-shouldered Shade strode forward, walking taller than the rest. He reached up and removed his helmet, stretching his neck from side to side. His skin was the color of deep, red-stained mahogany. He pushed his wiry, sweat-matted auburn hair out of his eyes and walked a slow circle around the clearing. He looked furious and confused, his nose in the air, as if he could sniff me out.

"Bane..." one of the Shades called in a raspy voice. "Whatever it was, it's gone... I don't - "
"But it was here," Bane, apparently the leader, hissed, causing his gang to jump in fright. He scowled. "It felt like a human."
"Human... But, Bane, it's been over - "
"I'm aware of how long it's been!" Bane shouted at his subordinate. "Wherever the human is, we can be sure it's with the boy..."

Next to me, I could feel the boy tense. He was digging his fingernails into the palms of his hands, his knuckles stark white.

"But how could it have have just disappeared like that?" another Shade asked.
"The boy is hiding it somewhere. Somewhere close..." Bane straightened, a thought occurring to him. "Don't speak in English!"
"But... if the human isn't - "
"Don't speak in English!" Bane roared, drawing his sword.

The offending Shade hung his head and spoke in a sinister, hissing language.

"Apology accepted," Bane sneered.

Then, addressing the clearing, he turned to a cluster of trees directly to the right of us and spoke in a soft, menacing voice.

"We know you have the human, you young abomination. Rest assured, we will find it. And when we do, you will be killed with it. The King will have your head at last."

The boy's eyes widened. He looked vaguely sick at being directly addressed by the Shade.

With a grunt and a few words spoken in the Shade's native tongue, Bane sheathed his sword and mounted his beetle creature (the largest of the pack). His crew followed and the beetles began to unfurl their giant wings, preparing for take off. The boy darted a quick look over his shoulder, checking to make sure I wasn't freaking out and then, seeing that I was remaining determinedly still, he turned back to watch the Shades take off, flying toward the horizon.

The sounds of the beetles' wings drifted into silence, and still he didn't move. His advanced ears could still hear them, I realized. It was a long moment or two before he finally relaxed and let out a huge breath, collapsing on the forest floor in relief.

"That was close," he breathed. "I hope you're happy, you nearly got us slaughtered."
"Yeah, yeah," I spat, wiping off my front. "You got a little too close, if you ask me. I've got elf germs on me now."
The boy sighed in annoyance. "I'm not an elf."
"Well, what are you?"
"I'm none of your business, Rose," he replied. "That's what I am."

I squinted in anger, regretting the fact that, in my moment of weakness, I'd told him my name.

"Sorry for asking, Stupid Sully."
"Don't," he warned, clutching the hilt of his curved sword with white knuckles. "That is not my name."
"Well, what's - "
"None of your business."
"Alright... Sully."
He winced. "Don't call me Sully."
"St-"
"Or Stupid Sully!"

"What am I supposed to call you, then?" I sighed. "You already know my name, tell me yours!"
He walked out into the clearing. "Come on, we're going back to camp."
"I'm not moving until you tell me your name!" I sulked, using a technique that had, previously, never failed.
"Fine with me," the boy said brightly. "Sure makes things a whole lot easier."
I blinked in surprise.

The boy looked left, then right. He hesitated, biting at his bottom lip in thought, and then started working his way through the dense trees to the left. I remained rooted to the spot, waiting for him.

"I'm not coming back for you!" he called.
"Yes, you are!"
"Wanna bet?"

I paused, trying to figure out if he was bluffing. The next time he yelled something to me, he was so far away that I couldn't discern anything. I groaned in frustration and headed into the forest after him.

"Wait! Sully, wait for me!"

Within minutes, I could see him again. He could tell I was approaching and sped up, not enough to lose me, but just enough to keep me properly annoyed. Half an hour later, he gave up on his sadistic game and allowed me to catch up to him and punch his arm. I tried to slap him upside the head, but he caught my hand in mid-air. "Enough," he said in a voice so forceful that it was frightening, effectively putting an end to my violence.

About an hour and a half later, we were still trying to work our way back to the boy's camp.

"Hey, Sully?" I asked, trying to antagonize him. "Are you lost?"
"Don't call me Sully."
"I've seen that stump before. I've seen it, I swear."
"We're not lost."
"You sure about that, Sully?"
"Don't call me Sully."

I sighed. "Okay, now I know for a fact that we've been past this spot before. See that mangled plant? You kicked it when you got mad at me for calling you Sully."
"I know where I'm going."
"I'm not sure you do. How long have we been walking again? Five hours? Six?"
"Two."
"Close enough, Sully. Close enough."
"Don't call me Sully!"

I sat down on the ground and tucked the skirt of my dress between my legs. The boy breathed a long sigh and sat across from me, his back against the trunk of a tree.

"You know I don't like being called Sully," he said after a moment, his voice sounding surprisingly like a bullied child.
"I want to know your real name."
"No."
"Why?"
"Because it's dangerous for you to know my name."
"Honestly, how can I be in more danger than I'm already in?" I scoffed. "I'm sort of being hunted right now."
"I've noticed."
"Good. I'd be a little worried right now if you hadn't."

The boy seemed to think about something for a while, rubbing at his forehead in mild frustration. "I'm not going to tell you my name because I... it... would..." he seemed to be choosing his words very carefully. "It would put me at risk."
"And you're not already at risk, human-hider?"
He scowled and picked up a fallen twig, grumpily breaking it into smaller pieces as he tried to counter. "Fine," he said, giving up. He tossed the broken twig to the ground and leaned his head back against the tree he was sitting against. "Ez Sullivan."

I couldn't believe I'd won.

"Ez?" I asked, tasting the name on my tongue.
"Yeah," he pouted, already sort of regretting his descision.
"Ez?" I asked again. "What the hell kind of name is Ez?"
"It's my name," he grunted and stood, stretching his arms behind his back. "Now, if you're all done insulting me, I think we should continue trying - "
"What does Ez stand for?" I questioned curiously.

"Nothing!" he lied, throwing his hands up in the air. "Will you restrain your vocal chords so that we can get home?"

I sighed.

And we walked on in silence.