“Miles!” Westly smiled and then at everyone’s befuddled looks, he explained, “Everyone, this is my brother, Miles.”
The taller, but barely so, man gave a distracted smile to them before looking back to Westly. Westly stood up, and looked at his brother. “So, what do you propose we do? We need to go somewhere they won’t find us, at least until we can think something up.” Westly asked Miles, who had visibly calmed down and started to think rationally.
“Well, we can’t go to a Room, that would just be stupid until we can get them off our trail, so the best place would be…Canada?” He said making a few people’s eyebrows rise at his randomness. He looked to Westly, “It’s where I came before I was here so – wait, that’s where they’ll be, let’s go to Chile. I put a spell on the place I was in Canada, and it’ll grow stronger before fading, they’ll think I’m going to be there for a while. They won’t even know you’re in Chile, at least not for a few hours, is that enough time?” Miles’ rapid thought left a few of them behind, and some of his words weren’t even intelligible as he spoke, except for the last ones at which Westly nodded.
“Ok, I need everyone touching another person. It usually isn’t necessary, but I don’t want to leave anyone behind at this point.” He looked over them all, and put a hand on Miles’ shoulder.
Traveling in reality was much more different from traveling from the Rooms. The very air seemed to freeze, before heating, and then melting around them, molding and shifting from the interior of a tent to a cloudy sky, and the breeze that was once dry and warm became salty and moist – at this point, Ael heard a muffled noise, a sort of thump, and tried to see what it was, but she couldn’t move. Then, the process before seemed to happen in reverse, the air got cold again, colors stopped running together and froze in place, and suddenly, they were in Chile.
Ael looked around, the land was fertile up to a point, and then it became rocky and black. In the distance the blue of the ocean blended with the horizon, before going to sky, a few random trees dotted the landscape.
Along with the others, Ael turned as Westly cursed. His blue eyes were angry, mirroring the stormy sky. To make matters worse, it began to sprinkle lightly. Ael wasn’t sure what was wrong, until she saw with her own eyes: Rob wasn’t with them.
“Dammit!” Weslty spouted off again. Ramona went over to him, and began whispering in urgent tones.
Ael heard her name once or twice, and then Miles’. She frowned, raising her eyebrows in question as her mother looked at her before speaking.
“Okay, we’re going to have to go get Rob. There’s no way we’re going to leave him behind. This is why you don’t move when we Travel. Jason, you and Ael are going to get him. I know, you have no clue how, but we’re going to tell you a little bit of it. Wes and Miles are going to go distract the Moore’s, who are still on our trail, and I’m going to stay with the rest.” Miles took this opportunity to disappear before Ramona kept talking. “Ok, Ael, you know what the Rooms are, right? And you know how to get into one. To get out, think of something sad, and where you want to go. Jason can help you out a little, he knows something of them. To bring someone with you, for now, just touch them. I don’t have enough time to explain the other way now…” She tensed suddenly, looking expectantly to the other two adults as Miles reappeared and nodded to Ramona.
“He’s gone,” were his only words.
Ael hadn’t noticed anything, and then suddenly people showed up, Michael and Julie Moore took a few steps towards them, grins upon their faces. “Ah, what have we found here? Lost puppies?” Julie’s voice dripped sarcasm and she made a light motion with her hand, a flick, and there was a sound like a sharp clap, and a blue spark of power ran between the two groups of people, making the kids jump.
Ael looked around to see what had caused the sound. Ramona’s complete calm was almost unnerving. She was leaning her weight on one foot, arms loosely crossed in front of her, her brown eyes under raised eyebrows looking toward Julie. “You’re not taking anybody anywhere.” Her voice was almost conversational.
Julie visibly had to steady herself, openly astonished at Ramona. It was now that Ael could feel the power almost radiating from her mother – who didn’t even seem aware of it.
“Will you leave now?” Her mother’s voice was calm and cool.
Julie’s on the other hand was nasty. “No. We came here to get something. We aren’t leaving without it.”
“Ok, I’ll make a bargain then. I’ll give you Wes and Miles, okay? No complaints? Good.” Something in Ramona’s voice left things unknown.
Michael looked like he was about to say something, but didn’t – or couldn’t. Something wasn’t right, but Ael couldn’t put her finger on it. She was almost positive Julie and Michael couldn’t care less about Westly and Miles. As the thought ran through her head, the two walked deliberately, right up to the two, each placing a hand on one of their shoulders.
Westly turned and waved, and Miles called a sarcastic, “Cheerio!” and then, they were gone.
Ramona sighed, and the power feeling about them left as well. Ael looked at her, just as she was slipping her ring on her finger, and she began to talk. “Ok, now we really need to get out of here. That piece of magic will have told a lot of people where we are.”
“But I thought Westly and the other – Miles - just took them away?” Briana asked.
Ramona silenced her, turning back to Ael and Jason. “Teach her how to use the doors, remember your relations as well, I think that should be enough to get you by. Jason, take her to your Room, and you two figure it out there, don’t forget about time, now leave, hurry…” She made a quick motion with her hand, and the rest of them disappeared into thin air, leaving Ael and Jason standing there alone.
Ael shivered as the misty rain settled onto her, and Jason looked at her and held out a hand. She took it, and felt a tiny surge of power. Blinking, she opened her eyes to another place.
His Room was obviously that of a teenager. A futon was against one white wall, with black matching metal tables on either side, one had a lamp. Opposite that, was a matching entertainment center, flat screen, stereo, and some kind of gaming system and standing speakers on the side.
Jason sat on the couch, and Ael took a seat in the opposite corner. He looked at her, and she suddenly shifted, feeling uncomfortable as the possibilities of these Rooms came to her. She ducked her head, feeling her cheeks redden.
Jason actually had the nerve to blush. “I wouldn’t do that…” He told her.
“What?” Ael was confused, she hadn’t said anything aloud.
“What you’re thinking.”
It was Ael’s turn to blush, before looking up at him. “How did you know what I was thinking…?”
“You know how the Creator of the Room is in control? Well…they can do that as well, find out what people are thinking. Now if you took your ring off, I wouldn’t be so sure, but leave it on, I don’t want anything bad happening.” He paused for a moment, meeting her eyes and then dropping his, sighing. “What was she talking about when she said, ‘you know where they are?’ Where what, the Rooms?” He asked her.
She nodded. “Yeah, you know the mages’ cells? They’re a Room. The Creator creates the Room, puts a person in it, and leaves. That’s why you can’t do magic in there. Unless you don’t have Jon’s influence on you.” She held up her ring as comprehension dawned on Jason. “What was she telling me about then when she said something about the doors?”
“The doors can only be opened between relationships, marriages, or blood. Sometimes, if two friends are close enough, they can, but that’s not likely. You have to think about that person, and then depending on the strength of your Will, it will open, and only if somebody is in the Room. It won’t open to a blank room.” Jason seemed at a loss, his voice distracted his mind not on what he was saying.
It was only when Ael asked, “What?” that he came out of it, his green eyes puzzled.
“Why did she tell me to remember my relations? I’m guessing we need to go to one of them, but who?” He pushed back his shaggy hair sighing.
Ael knew suddenly. “Jon.” She said softly, making him look at her.
“Oh, how did you…never mind…is that where Rob is then?” He said slowly.
She nodded, standing up. “We need to go get him; we don’t have that much time.”
Jason nodded. “You’re right.” He stood up and snapped softly, and a door cracked open at Ael’s left. She pulled it open, and saw in the splash of white light spilling from a doorway down the narrow corridor.
The ten steps it took to walk its length felt like eternity as she stepped them, glad of Jason’s presence at her back as she cracked open the far door and peered into its depths.
A sudden noise made Ael turn, and look back at the open door into Jason’s Room. “What was that?” she said softly.
Jason shrugged, making his way back down the hall. He peered in the Room, and then softly shut the door. The door slowly melted into black wall, leaving the only light in the narrow corridor coming from the cracked door near Ael. He walked back down the hall, waiting until he was near her to speak in a low voice. “Jessica was in there. She won’t be able to get out now either, not until I send her somewhere. No magic in that Room. Come’on, let’s go get Rob.” He nodded toward the door, and Ael pulled it open.
It was as Ael had remembered, four white walls, the harsh shadowless light. Rob lay flat on his back, the only dark in the room was his hair, like a splash of black paint on the perfect white floor. His skin was pale and he seemed to be sleeping, or unconscious. Ael was frozen in mental turmoil, not wanting to go in the Room, despite why they were there. It was Jason who finally stepped past her, quickly going into the Room and picking up Rob’s decidedly unconscious form. He quickly took it back through the doorway and shut the door as a muffled thump issued from the now-gone door.
At the thump, Jason pulled Ael’s frozen hand, jerking her toward the other door that appeared at his thought at the far end of the hallway. “Hurry up! We have to get through it before he comes!” He half-jogged, pulling Ael along.
As they reached the far end, Jason pushed the door open, shoved Ael inside and then shut it, pressing his ear against it to see if anyone had followed. “I don’t think he followed us…,” he concluded, walking over to the couch, where a slightly startled Jessica sat.
“Who?” Ael asked.
“Jon. Move.” He directed the last word to Jessica none too lightly. “He can’t follow us unless the door wasn’t shut by the time he got in the hall.” He seemed thoughtful for a moment, “Or if he remembers I’m related to him…”
Jason put Rob down on the couch, and left a hand on his forehead, closing his own green eyes momentarily. He was obviously Healing him. Rob seemed to relax a little, as Jason took his hand away, shaking his head. “I wish I could do more than that. I’m not that great at Healing. At least he won’t be in so much pain anymore…” Jason shrugged, and then turned to Jessica. “So what are you doing here?”
Jessica gave him an ugly look. “None of your business.” She retorted, half-turned, crossing her arms over her chest stubbornly.
Jason just shrugged, “Suit yourself. You get to stay here until Rob wakes up. Go sit in the corner.” He snapped, and a hard, straight-backed wooden chair appeared in the far corner. Jessica didn’t move, her fair complexion stubbornly refusing to move. Jason sighed exasperatedly. “Move, or I’ll move you for you.” He said shortly, rolling his eyes.
Jessica rolled her own eyes in return, and stalked over to the chair and turned it so that it faced the wall and sat huffily in it, crossing her legs.
Jason shook his head and turned back to Rob, putting a hand on his forehead, his eyebrows creased. “He should wake pretty soon…He’s not unconscious anymore, just dreaming.” He made a nudging motion with his hand, and the futon-couch stretched farther sideways, creating room for them to sit at Rob’s head.
Ael curled up against the metal armrest and closed her eyes…what she would give right now for a night’s sleep…
She woke a few minutes later, as something hit her shoulder. Blinking she turned her head to see Jason’s dirty blonde head leaned against her shoulder. Evidently, he’d fallen asleep as well.
Ael smiled, and stood up, letting him slide down on the couch in what looked like a terribly uncomfortable position. She yawned, turning when she heard Jason’s voice.
“Good morning,” Jason yawned himself and sat up, before looking at Rob, and putting a hand on his forehead. He nodded to himself, and then shook Rob’s shoulder in attempt to wake him up.
Rob blinked, his blue eyes wide, and his body tensed before he relaxed, realizing where he was, and he sighed, closing his eyes again. “God I hurt.” He said to himself. He attempted to sit up, but didn’t quite make it all the way, and fell back, and hand going up to rub his eyes. “How long’ve I been here?”
“About twenty minutes in my Room. I don’t know about the cell though. If you want to be Healed, tell me how, and I will.” Jason told him, shifting from where he sat on the couch. His movement caused Rob to look over, and see Ael as well.
Rob attempted to sit up again, and this time made it all the way. He gave a half smile to Ael, as he looked around the rest of the Room.
She smiled a greeting, not sure of what to say. Rob’s hair stuck upon one side, and when he smiled back at her, she had to remind herself he was her cousin.
“Why is my sister here?” he asked, slightly incredulous.
Jason shrugged. “She hitched a ride in. She won’t talk, what do you propose we do with her? I mean…she is your sister…” Jason asked him, watching Jessica’s back where she sat in the chair.
Rob managed to get up, walked haltingly over to her, and stared at her despondent figure before sighing. “I don’t know, it’s not my choice. Ask Ramona, or Westly.” He turned around again, arms across his chest, his blue eyes troubled. Jessica didn’t make the slightest notion that he was there.
Jason shrugged. “Alright, but you’re going to have to spell her when we leave here. They won’t notice it as much.”
Ael, who had been silent through all of this, spoke up, “Where are we going?”
Jason looked at her, slightly abashed, “-er, I don’t know…They didn’t sat where to meet them, did they?”
Ael shook her head, trying not to grin at his folly. “Nope…do you want to try and go into my Room, and then my mom or dad’s?” How funny it felt to be saying that.
Jason nodded, “Can you take us all to your Room?”
Ael nodded, “You might have to tell me how again though. And I have to be touching everybody.”
“Alright, Jessica!” Jason beckoned her over, and she gave a resigned sigh, but was forced to give up when the chair blinked threateningly under her. “Over here.” Her eyes held a slightly glazed look as she came over, obviously Rob had already spelled her, and his face was tight as well.
“Okay, let’s go.” Ael wished on a happy thought, to a safe place, and in the blink of an eye, they were in her Room.
Rob’s voice was just past normal as he spoke, “Can I let her go? I can’t hold her much longer…” His face was partially pale again.
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