My Turn

It was harder than I thought it would have been to fall asleep last night. I was sure that it was because I knew there were people in cages below me, probably missing their own beds and wishing they were home. I am not sure why I hadn't ever considered the possibility that my father had prisoners below. And did he use them for slaves? Were there some random fire, air, and earth benders roaming the castle, doing chores so they won't get killed? And then I had come up with something to stop it from happening again; something that would give peace to everyone…if it worked.

Jiang had woken me and I found out she is my new assigned Meraud. She had come in pretty early and requested that I get up so she could bathe me for breakfast. As like everything else I did in this castle, I needed an assistant. Even bathing Pelagius made me have someone around; just to make sure I was safe. Not that I didn't appreciate his very large protection over me, but I sometimes just wanted to do things on my own, be independent.

Jiang helped me into the warm bathe water that was in the large bathing basin in the room connected to my bedroom. I sighed as the water surrounded me, it's power of love surging through me. I had always loved when you first get into the bathtub, and all of the water forms to the way your body is shaped, making you feel like you are encased in something safe and gentle.

Jiang plunged a bucket into the water and poured it over my head. She did look as though she was happy that she had been assigned to me. I guess I really couldn't blame her because I knew right now that I was never going to let her tag along with me, and I would always ditch her some place so I could do my own thing. When I did this, the marauds always got blamed and they were the ones that would get into trouble, not me.

Not expecting this, I inhaled some of the water, choking slightly. I coughed for a minute, trying to get the water out of my lungs as Jiang rubbed my back with the soap she bought at the market yesterday. The bath was silent, but it was making me uncomfortable. Jiang was usually talkative and wouldn't stop asking me questions about life. Today she seemed stand-offish and almost upset about something.

But I too was not in the mood to talk. I had this one thought in mind ever since I woke this morning, and it was really starting to get to me. It was a plan that must have been forming as I had rested the night before. The plan may help everyone. I had screwed everything up and I really needed to fix it all so I kept thinking about it, perfecting every little detail so nothing would go wrong. But so many things could go wrong if I didn't do it right. I would need everything perfect otherwise I may never come home.

Once I had finished, Jiang helped me out of the tub and wrapped a towel around my body. After that, she left the room so I could change into the dress she had placed on the table in front of me. The bathing room wasn't anything to get excited over. A table stood in front of a large basin that was used as a bathtub, the toilet only a smaller basin that had pipes that led down past the dungeons and into the ground below the castle. It was standard.

The plain blue dress fit nicely around my body, just like all the others I had. Slipper-shoes were placed next to the door leading to my bedroom, telling me I had to put them on. When I opened the door to exit the bathroom, Jiang was already in my face, pushing me back into the room. She grabbed a new towel from the table and started to run it through my hair, trying to get all of the wetness out. When she got as much out as possible, she grabbed a thing string and tied my hair up in a nice bun to keep it out of my eyes.

When Jiang was finished, she helped me out of the room and led me down a series of twist and turns till we came to the dining room. My father and mother were already seated at either end of the long table, Conway and little Lynn on one side. Lynn was my younger sister, and she had just turned five. She and I looked almost identical, getting compliments all the time.

Yuuna, Ila, Terra, and Gaia were seated on the other side of the table. As I came through the door and took my place next to Conway. Gaia followed me with her eyes. I wasn't sure what it was for but it was starting to scare me how intent her stare was.

Yuuna smiled sweetly at me, and placed her napkin on her lap as the rest of us did along with her. I smiled back, glad to have at least one friendly face staring at me. Looking around, I could tell that almost everyone agreed that I had failed everyone again and I was going to be the cause of the war.

The guilt swirled around inside my stomach, making my appetite vanish in an instant. Along with the guilt, another bothered me; Kendall had just entered the room apologizing for her tardiness. She sat down next to Asherah and placed her napkin on her lap before looking up to glare at me with such hatred, a shiver ran up my spine.

It usually wouldn't have bothered me so much that she was so hostile towards me, but today seemed different. I was use to all of the others along with Kendall, being angry at me for one thing or another, but today seemed like they were mad at just about anything.

Kendall seemed almost loathing when she said, "Lovely tea party yesterday mother, I must say."

Even though she was talking to Asherah, her eyes never left mine, almost staring in a gloating sense.

Asherah glanced at me quickly, then looked down at her empty plate before answering. "Yes it was. Thank you for saying so, I gladly appreciate it."

The merauds came through the large door at the end of the hallway, carrying the trays of food. They set them down and started to place the variety of food onto our plates, making sure everyone had enough food so we wouldn't have to get seconds.

I watched at the small women that was one of the cooks, pile all of the delicious smelling food onto my plate. The smell didn't even diminish the curl of my stomach, not even the sight of it. I wanted to eat all of it and enjoy every bit like I usually did when I was upset, but this time it was just too much.

Even though I wanted to, I couldn't leave the table and excuse myself because it wasn't polite to do so until all of our guests were done with their meal. They were to be the first to leave the table and I didn't want to get into more trouble than I was already in. I picked up my fork and began slowly chewing my food, making sure to stay in my proper pose as I chewed.

No one spoke for awhile, all unable to think of anything to say to anyone. Finally, Pelagius spoke, but it wasn't to the table at large, it was to me. He cleared his throat and set down his fork, folding his hands in front of him on the table. "What are your plans for today, Maya?"

I swallowed the rest of my food and dabbed at my mouth with my napkin, then placed it back on my lap before answering. I really didn't know why he was asking. He never had before…

"I think Alton will be over today and I was planning on being with him for the majority of the day." It was hard to look Pelagius in the eye, but I held my eye contact firm to make sure I didn't give away the ideas running through my mind at that moment.

He nodded like he approved, but moved on to Conway and Kendall. "How about you Conway?"

Conway shook his head, and shoveled some more food into his mouth. We had to wait for him to chew and swallow before he continued. "Nothing planned yet. Maybe I will just wonder around the shops."

Pelagius nodded again. "Kendall?"

Kendall smiled devilishly at me as she answered. "I was hoping to sit in the throne room with you today father. Maybe I could help out with some plans for the Miletus?"

I'm sure my face turned red at this. I couldn't help it! Usually I wouldn't have cared that she was being more useful than I was, but it almost made me want to explode today. It was just not my day. What I was planning on doing didn't help make me think that I wasn't cut out to be a princess.

"Good idea Kendall, I am glad you want to help the kingdom out. Maybe having two women there will help the people feel more at ease." Pelagius said, sitting back in his seat. He picked up his silverware to start eating again. Then stopped and looked up at me.

I had been staring at him, hatred almost melting my eyes in their sockets. I hadn't meant it for him, well, most of the anger wasn't for him. But he almost seemed to hate me now, not really caring about what I was doing or where I went. The new plan was forming inside my mind. I was going to show everyone that I could do more, be more, than what I was. I was going to prove that I was more than just a princess that screwed up all the time.

"Something wrong Maya?" Asherah asked, concern plastered on her face.

"Nothing." I offered, focusing on my food. I could tell everyone was watching, but didn't look up from my plate for the next hour. Their stares stayed strong, their voices quiet as we all ate our large breakfast. My jaw began to hurt from the pressure I was putting on it, and I tried to relax, but nothing I tried to do for it worked. It was even hard to open my mouth too eat.

In the corner of my eye, I saw that Kendall was staring at me most of the time, a slight gleam to her eye as if she knew that I was headed someplace she had just wanted me to go for a very long time.

Finally, after what felt like hours, Yuuna stood from the table and her daughters followed. "I do believe that our carriage should be here soon so we shall gather our things and be out of your way in less than an hour's time. Please excuse us from your table."

Pelagius nodded, and Asherah left with them, taking Lynn in her arms and carrying her through the doors. Conway got up from the table and pushed in his chair. "May I be excused?" he asked.

Pelagius nodded at Conway, then at Kendall before she could ask. They both left together, looking over their shoulders at me. Kendall had a smirk on her face and Conway looked concerned. I didn't want to stay here with Pelagius alone so I got up from my seat about ready to ask to be excused when Pelagius stood up before I could even stand straight. "Sit down Maya." He ordered.

I sat quickly, my heart beating wildly.

"Maya…" he began, walking towards me. My breathing stopped all together as he inched closer, his voice rising. "…I need to talk to you about yesterday. I'm sure your mother hasn't said anything, so it is up to me." His hand rested on my shoulder, making me flinch slightly but he took no notice. "I'm sure I have said this more than once to you Maya, and I really hope I don't have to say this ever again."

I stared at the doors to leave as he talked, not wanting to see his face. He wouldn't have to say this to me again, never in his life. Everyone would soon be happy; Kendall would have the throne, Lynn would miss me, but she is young so she will be fine, and Conway wouldn't really mind. Asherah would be sad like Lynn and Pelagius, but they would get over it and forget about me; they had to get over it. That was the only way I could do this.

"The tea parties we have and the sword fights we compete in…those are for our own benefit. If we mess up those certain affairs and we ruin our reputation, we will surely lose the battle that is now going to come. The tea party yesterday was our last hope to have peace with the fire and air nation. Even the Earth Nation seems to be disapproving."

"I'm sorry to say this but you are the one who said comments that were not necessary and completely embarrassed our whole Nation. Now for that, I'm sure they are all against us. Even Yuuna and her husband will be against us. I don't want to blame you for this, but there is a large part of it that is your fault."

I bowed my head, not able to hear what he thought of me any longer. Not that I hadn't heard it before, but one person could only take so much.

Pelagius sighed, and pulled on my shoulder to turn my body to face him. I did not resist, but kept my head down low, my eyes closed.

"I don't want to tell you this but someone must. I must seem like the bad guy here, but really, I'm not. I am trying to help you."

"Yes." Was all I could say.

His hand released its pressure from my shoulder and fell to his side. "You know I am not trying to hurt you in any way. You just need to learn how to control yourself. You are disappointing me in a lot of ways and I need you to start acting like the queen you are soon going to be. If you don't…" His voice trailed off in what seemed like a threat.

"You are excused Maya."

I got up, and without looking anywhere in his direction, exited the dining room and started down the hall. Right as I passed the throne room door, a hand reached out toward me. I knew that my eyes were swarming with tears, and I didn't want anyone to see me like this. I kept on walking, my head down low so I could hide my face.

"Maya?" Alton said behind me. Hearing his voice didn't make anything better as it should of. Last night and just now I had made up my decision and I needed to tell Alton so he could help me in the long run. But now, I didn't really want to talk about it with him. I knew he was going to give me a lecture about how wrong it was for me to leave and how immature it was to run away from my problems. But I wasn't running from them; I was following them.

"Maya?" Alton asked again, a little louder this time. I heard his shoes on the stone as he followed me.

I did not slow my pace as I went down the long hallways and finally came to my bedroom door. I went inside and left the door open for Alton. His footsteps stopped at the door, not coming any closer to me. I sat on the bed and buried my face in my pillow, my dress tangled in my legs.

I forced my shoulders to stay still and my sobs to be silent as I lay on my bed, but that didn't last long. I didn't want to do what I had to do, but I also wanted to do it more than anything in the world. I didn't want to leave my family and maybe never see them again, but I had to do it. I had to do what I could to help the Nation that I had destroyed.

I am not sure how long I had my face in my pillow, but when I lifted my head up, my whole pillow had a large wet stain from all of my tears. The tears had ceased, but my eyes were still red and puffy. I starred at the wall for a moment, trying to rid my face of any sadness before I said, "Alton?"

"Here." He said, sounding a ways away.

I glanced at the door and couldn't see him. "Alton?' I said again.

His hand waved at me from the left side of the door. I got up from the bed and went to the door, looking left. He was sitting on the floor outside of the bedroom, his head resting on the wall. He did not look at my face as he said, "I thought I should wait."

Wiping my eyes one last time, I spoke low and deliberately. "I'm leaving Alton, tonight. I can't take it anymore. I need to fix what I have done."

He did not move as I said this, only closed his eyes and scowled.

I waited for him to respond in any other way, but he did not. Sliding down the wall on the other side of him, I closed my eyes as well. I just had to last till midnight tonight; that was it, midnight. I opened my eyes slightly to see Alton, and found that he was watching me.

"What do you need me to do?" he asked.

I didn't answer, wondering if he was serious. This was not the kind of response I was expecting. Where was the lecture? Where was the disapproval I had prepared for? Where was the real Alton?

"What do you need to me do?" he asked again, turning his body to face me, still sitting in the hallway. "You can't do this by yourself, I'm sure you need me for something."

We stood up together, but didn't move from the hallway, our conversation still out in the open for anyone to hear and tell who ever they wished. I wanted to pull Alton inside my room and shut the door so we could talk, but I couldn't seem to move. There were two possibilities that Alton had been thinking. One, he already knew that I was going to do this and had prepared himself for it; or two, he knew I was doing this to help out everyone in return…even if it killed me.

Suddenly, I jumped toward Alton and threw my arms around his neck gathering him in a hug. He seemed a bit awkward as I held him to me, so I let go, stepping back from him. He didn't react at first, just stood there, his arms slightly raised as if he was hugging thin air. I grabbed his arm and pushed him back, making him lose his balance and fall into my bedroom. Closing the door behind me, I went over to my closet and grabbed my bag that I usually used for going to the other nations.

I started to grab various clothes from my closet and started to stuffing them inside my bag while saying, "I think I am going to need some food for at least three days, maybe four. And it would really help to have your pants." I said to Alton, smiling slightly at how it sounded. For my own humor, I did not explain myself, I just waited for him to ask. And it didn't take long.

"My. Pants." He said from the same place I had pushed him. He had never been in my room before so he must have felt a little awkward and out of place.

I couldn't help but laugh no matter what the circumstances were. "Not the ones you are wearing, some other pair. Maybe two of them. Noelani says they are comfortable. And they have to be easier to ride and walk than what I have." I grabbed my dark blue cloak and threw it onto the bed, throwing my bag back into the closet with the clothes now stuffed inside.

Alton looked at the cloak, then at me. "When are you leaving?"

"Midnight." I answered confidently. After my—break down—I became more confident in my plan, knowing that I needed to do it in order to save everyone and everything we have.

Alton started toward the door. "I'll get you your things and then…"

I cut him off because I didn't want him to leave my side just yet. "I'll come with you." I grabbed my cloak and brought it over my head. I kept the hood down. There was no harm in being out today during the daylight. After all, it was Saturday and no one worked on today so they would either be inside their homes or outside with their friends.

Alton followed without another word, obviously in deep thought. As I traveled down the hallways, I turned into one I had not traveled before, but knew it led to one of the back doors of the castle. The door was down a very narrow hallway, almost too narrow to walk down. The hallway led to a flight of stairs that led to the small landing that held the door.

I pushed hard on the metal, and it squeaked open in protest. Stepping outside into the harsh day seemed so right. The sun was shining, but the wind was fierce, reminding us that it was autumn. My dress whipped around my ankles, my feet being exposed.

Alton grabbed my hand, ducking his head, and started to run. I ran along side him, my mind wandering to what was going to be coming. We didn't talk or look at each other as we ran through Nanami and toward Takumi; neither knowing what to say to the other person.

People stared as we ran, wondering what we were up to. We passed Hai and Marnius outside their homes, and as we passed in front of them, they started to make kissing noises, and laughed. We both ignored them, used to it after all these years. We also passed Meredith who saw our faces and started to run with us, not really knowing what was going on.

Finally, after what felt like hours, we came to Alton's home, his little sister sitting in the front window watching the birds out front.

Alton's home looked like the rest of the others surrounding it, made of wood and looked homier than the castle ever has. When you walked inside, some type of cooking always greeted you; this time it was fresh bread. The kitchen and living room were just one room, taking up the main part of the house. When you turned left once inside the door, there were three bedrooms, all of them occupied by Alton, his mother, and his little sister Mira.

Alton's father had been a Miletus commander, but had been killed by an earth warrior. That was the only reason I found that explained his hatred for that Nation. Now Alton was the man of the house and was almost forced into being a Miletus, but he did not put up a fight. Even though he had not told me, I knew he was trying to prove himself to his father. Show him that his father did a wonderful job when he was here. Other than that, his family was perfectly normal.

Meredith was huffing and puffing like I was, but Alton seemed unfazed. "What—are—you—running—from?" Meredith gasped, trying to get air back into her lungs.

"We aren't running from anything." Alton said. He sounded a little irritated, but was trying to hide it. "We are running to something if you must know."

He went inside his house, the door hanging open, leaving Meredith and I in the doorway. I just gave her a sad look, and went inside to help out with whatever needed to be done inside.

Nereida came over to me, the same apron on as last night wrapped around her waist, and put her arms around me, hugging me tightly. I hugged back, knowing I wouldn't get one of those hugs for awhile. "Well this is sure a big surprise." She said, letting go of me. "I thought Alton was going over to Nanami for the day."

I looked over her shoulder to where Alton was chewing a piece of bread vigorously. His face was stone as he thought through what ever he was battling in his mind.

Mira was suddenly at my side, tugging on my dress. "Maya want bread?" she asked in her small squeaky voice.

I picked her up in my arms, touching my nose to hers so our faces were so close, my eyes crossed. "Of course I'll have some bread. Did you help your mama make it?"

She just gave me a shy smile in response, her eyes sparkling blue in the daylight. Her smile made one of my own crept onto my face and I couldn't help but kiss her on the cheek. Setting her down, I glanced at Alton who was watching me. He had always wondered why Mira loved me so much, and I was sure he envied me for it.

Meredith was watching me too, seeming to be just as sucked in as Alton was. I didn't get what it was that fascinated them so much about children and I. They usually just liked me no matter if I have met them before or not.

Mira came wobbling back to me holding a piece of warm fresh out-of-the-oven bread to me. I took it from her, bent down to her level, and took a large bite, slowly chewing it. I raised my eyebrows and made a bunch of noises as I chewed, making Mira laugh at me.

She grabbed the bread from me carefully and grabbed a small piece off of it, putting it into my mouth instead of hers like I thought she was going to do. "Thank you." I patted her head and motioned for Alton and Meredith to come with me to the back bedroom.

Mira tried to follow, but Alton held her back, telling her that she needed to make more bread for Meredith and me to eat. Mira liked this idea and went to go and help Nereida in the kitchen.
Meredith stopped Alton in the hall, whispering something in his ear. He listened intently, staring at me as we all were still in the hall. He finally nodded and Meredith's eyebrows furrowed in either confusion, or hurt, I couldn't really tell.

I just decided to walk on and go into Alton's room without them. I could get the things I needed without him; I knew where they were.

Alton's room was a little small for a bedroom, but it worked for what it was used for. The dresser was on the farthest wall, the bed lying horizontally in front of the door. Going over to the dresser, I grabbed two pairs of pants out of the top drawer, and opened the second drawer. Grabbing two shirts, I started to close the drawer, but something caught my eye.

A small brown case could be seen at the bottom of the drawer, the tip just visible. I shifted the shirts on top of it around so I could pick it up. It wasn't as heavy as I thought it would have been, but it was also smaller than I thought.

I could tell by the shape of it that is was some type of dagger, probably for fighting. The handle was smooth and a dark blue, a name carved into it lightly, but was still easily seen. Alton Thanh Sr. was across the handle of the knife in perfect handwriting.

My eyebrows came together in confusion. I hadn't known Alton's dad before, because he was never home and always off fighting wars in different worlds, but sent letters that he use to show me. When Alton hadn't gotten a letter for over a month, they all started to worry, even I started to get a little upset, feeling like I knew him just as much as Alton had.

I didn't even know his name now that I thought about it, but if it was Alton Sr., then Alton was actually Alton Jr. How could I have not known that? But once we found out Alton's father had been killed, Alton changed.

"What are you doing?" Alton asked quietly, standing so close to me I should have felt him there before now.

I was so startled; I dropped everything I had in my hands including the dagger. "Oh! Sorry…I…" I began, reaching down to grab all of things I dropped at our feet.

He grabbed them all up in one sweep, holding them out to me, but keeping the dagger close to his chest. "Here."

"Thanks." I mumbled, looking down at my feet.

I saw in the corner of my eye, Alton, placing the dagger very gently back into his shirt drawer, and closed it. Turning to me, he said, "Meredith went home to get you something, she'll be back in a minute."

I sat down on the edge of his bed and started to refold the shirts and pants I had in my hands, unable to stand still. Keeping my hands busy made me feel more comfortable at this moment. I had never been caught snooping around someone's personal belongings before and I didn't know how to react.

Alton just stood there, fidgeting with his hands, and swaying back and forth. He was the first one to finally speak after a long stretched silence. "That use to be my dad's dagger from when he was a Miletus. All of the generals had one just in case of emergencies. It was shipped over to me when he…he just wanted me to have it."

I looked up when he finished, wondering why he suddenly wanted to share this information. He was never the sharing type, always cooped up inside himself.

"You don't need to tell me anything you know." That didn't feel like enough so I added, "I'll see you again." Even though I said it, I didn't know if it was true. I was going to be doing something very dangerous and didn't know how exactly I was going to be able to do this.

He just shrugged.

Mira came waddling in the room, a bowl in her hands, a spoon sticking out of the steaming liquid. "Soup." She said and clumsily plopped the bowl down on my lap, a small amount of the watery soup spilling on my cover dress.

Mira used all of her strength to climb onto the bed and sit next to me on the covers. She dipped one of her pudgy fingers in the warm liquid, licking it clean from the delicious tasty soup. "Good soup for Maya." She said lightly, jumping down from the bed and going over to Alton.

She held her arms out to him and he gladly scooped her into his arms. She laid her head on his shoulder and patted his chest at that same time saying, "It's okay Altey. S' okay."

Like all little children, she could tell the mood of the adults around her, making her more vulnerable to have the same feelings they were having. For some reason, it was easy for her to pick up Alton's feelings from far away. As she lay on Alton's shoulder, his hand rubbing her back, I got the sense that he always took comfort in having Mira there with him.

It was nice to see him close his eyes for the briefest moment and take a deep breath, calmed by her presence.

Meredith walked, almost ran, into the room holding a basket of things. Her chest heaved as she took in the scene in front of her. Alton's clothes were on my lap, Mira in Alton's arms, and Alton rocked back and fourth on his heels to relax him and Mira at the same time.

"Here you are." She wheezed callapsing on the bed next to me. One of her hands reached out and placed something very small on my lap. It was wrapped in a red fabric and seemed hard. I gently unwrapped it and found myself looking at a ribon with some sort of medallion. It was made of some silver metal and it had an inscription on it. I couldn't read it because it was in a different language.

Meredith offered. "It has been passed down in my family for generations. The inscription says 'Only water has the power to heal.'" She sat up and smiled. "I thought it would be appropriate."

"Thanks," I mumbled as I gazed down at the small medallion. There was also a small picture above the letters. I couldn't see it very well and brought it up to my eyes to inspect it further. The picture was of four things, more like four mini pictures. An ocean wave, a fire torch, a tree, and three lines that I assumed meant wind. All representing the symbols of the elements were combined to make a circle, perfectly round and never ending.

There was an awkward silence as we all stayed still except for Alton slightly rocking back and forth on the balls of his feet.

Meredith stood up and was so close to me that I her in the eyes. "I expect you to bring that back to me when you are done using it." Her voice was stern and sounded like a mother scolding her child.

"Mer--"

She was suddenly down on her knees, her eyes pleading with me. "You have to bring it back to me. You have to come back. You need to come back home."

I just stared at her sad eyes, wondering what I could possibly say to that. I didn't even know what I was getting myself into, and didn't know if what I was doing what right, let alone know if I was going to survive through the whole thing. And I couldn't tell Meredith that or she would surely break down into tears.

I settled with, "All I can do is try." I placed the soup bowl on the dresser so I would be doing something.

Mira started to squirm in Alton's arms. "Mira leaving?" she asked in a pouty voice.

I nodded. "I am." I held out my arms to retrieve the squirmish child. Alton gave a reluctant shrug and handed her over to me. Mira buried her face in my neck, my hair not down for her to bury her face in it.

"Mira miss Maya."

Mira reminded me of my little sister Lynn back an Nanami and my throat started to tighten as I held back all of my emotions. "I'll see you again soon."

Alton grabbed the bowl of soup from the dresser and started to head for the door. "You might want to get home so you can get the rest of your things." He said quietly.

"You'll come with, won't you?" I asked Alton and Meredith together.

Meredith nodded, agreeing without question. Alton stopped walking but didn't turn around to look at me. He waited a few beats before saying, "Sure." Then he walked out of the room.

I sighed and handed Mira to Meredith, giving Meredith a stern look to tell her to wait in here for a minute and keep Mira with her. I caught up with Alton in the hallway and stopped with by grabbing his elbow. "What is wrong with you?" I whispered, trying not to alert his mom in the next room.

"Nothing." He didn't look me in my eyes as he said this, he looked at my nose then, my ears, but never my eyes.

"Yes, something is wrong. Why won't you talk to me?"

He yanked his elbow away from me, then started down the hallway again. "Llyr said this would happen." He mumbled. Then he said something about getting back what was lost.

I asked, "What?" sure that I had heard him wrong.

"Nothing." He mumbled.

Meredith came out of the room with Mira in her hands, her face showing she had heard.

"What was that about?" I asked her.

She shrugged and went past me into the kitchen. Mira was looking over her shoulder at me as we walked towards the front door, a small smile on the child's face. It was hard to look at her, knowing that I may be endangering her life.

"We're leaving." Alton said in a loud harsh voice that made me jump. When I reached the front of the house, he was already out the door and walking towards Nanami. Meredith put down Mira and started to push me out the door, but I ran from her and into the kitchen where Nereida was still baking some bread. I wrapped my arms tightly around the small women, and hugged her tight.

"Oomph," came out of her mouth as we collided. Then she laughed and gave me a soft kiss on the top of my head. "I love you too. See you later Maya."

I nodded and headed out of the house with Meredith. I could see that Alton was sprinting to the castle and my muscles suddenly reacted. My legs flew as my arms pumped, trying to catch up with Alton. I hadn't known that I could run so fast, but something inside of me told me to stop Alton and make him tell me what was on his mind.

Meredith was calling my name behind me but it only made me run faster toward him. It was easier than I thought it would have been to catch up to him, and when I did, I used all of my body weight and rammed straight into him, making both of us lose our balance and fall to the ground.

I tried to catch myself with my hands and my palms got scraped by the dirt underneath us, one of my wrists twisting the wrong way. But I didn't care as I flipped Alton onto his back. I sat on his stomach, my breathing raspy.

He just stared at me, his chest moving up and down in fast movements, his cheeks slightly wet from tears that had been falling while he had been running. "What aren't you telling me?" I tried to whisper, but it came out in a scream.

I waited for him to catch his breath so he could talk, but even then he stayed silent, just starring at my face.

"Tell me."

"Llyr…" he sighed, having a hard time breathing with me sitting on his chest. I didn't get up because I didn't think I could.

"Llyr said that…" he tried again, but stopped when Meredith caught up to us.

"Maya what are you--" Meredith said between gasps.

I don't know why I had the feeling that they were keeping something big from me, but the feeling was so strong it was suffocating me. "Tell me!"

"Maya…" Meredith said softly, placing her hand on my shoulder. I ignored it and stared at Alton, waiting for him to tell me.

Finally, his light blue eyes met mine and he spoke in a soft tone, almost like he was trying to soften up the words he was going to say. "Llyr said you were going to leave one of these days, said you needed to get back what was lost for the nation." He took in a long labored breath, then, "And you may never come back…alive."