Jonah laughed. “Actually…”

  I elbowed him and shook my head. I wanted them to find out from the oracle. It was more valid that way. He glanced at me, and I shook my head again, wishing for Sympathy’s power again.

  He shrugged and hoisted me higher in his arms, then turned and returned to where we first appeared. The lake. It was, by now, evening. I remembered some fish in that lake, and wondered if they were edible.

  The others followed us and cheered up considerably as we came to the valley. They were the ones who had fought the big battle in these woods. I wanted to hear more, but with the way they were treating me, I was afraid to ask any of them for specifics.

  Jonah blatantly ignored them all, especially his sister. I felt bad for breaking the twins up. They had been close the last time we were here. I felt like a homewrecker! I was also worried about the guards we had left behind. They had seemed too busy with the aftermath to care for escaping prisoners.

  I looked behind me, at the trail of blood I was leaving. I felt lightheaded. Not a good sign! All because Nero didn’t trust me anymore. Jonah set me down on the riverbank and kneeled beside me, undoing the blood-soaked bandages and checking the wounds.

  “You hurt yourself while swinging, Dancer,” he said, taking my wrists and pouring water on them.

  “I had to get to Isma and his mom,” I said, shrugging.

  “They aren’t bleeding anymore, still hold your wrists above your heart level while I get the stuff,” Jonah said, taking off my scarf and chanting. The dimensional pocket emerged and he ruffled around searching for my first aid kit. He found it and closed the dimensional pocket, opening the first aid kit and pulling out more bandages and a large container of antibacterial soap.

  It would sting to clean up my cuts, but it wouldn’t hurt me like rubbing alcohol would. That was for infections mostly. Jonah opened the cap and poured the soap on a damp bandage before slowly passing it through my wounds.

  The blades stopped short of my veins. They made a crescent, stopping at where my veins were most prominent. It looked like Nero didn’t want to kill me, just detain me like some common criminal...or crazy person.

  I whimpered when Jonah cleaned deep inside the wounds.

  “Sorry, My, but you know I have to do this,” he said.

  “I know,” I replied and winced as he did my right wrist. The one I had injured the most. I hissed and bit my lip at the pain.

  “Can’t take a little pain?” sneered Datha as she came closer to us.

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  “Datha, leave,” Jonah said as he shot an Ether shot at the bandages to cut them.

  “She is so weak. I doubt she could have freed the slaves before.”

  “Yet she did and more. She freed you, so zip it and leave before things get real ugly between us,” Jonah said, wrapping clean bandages around my wrists.

  “I came to say that we caught some dinner. You’re welcome to join us.”

  Jonah sighed. “And Myra?”

  “It was unanimously voted that she find her own sustenance. We don’t want to catch whatever she has,” Datha said, smirking.

  My shoulders slumped. “Fine, but you can’t catch a mental illness. You are born with one, and if I had to guess, you show signs of having a personality one,” I muttered, staggering to my legs.

  Jonah grabbed my arm. “Where do you think you’re going?” he asked, one eyebrow raised.

  “I’m hungry. I’m going to find some food, hopefully, there are some Kens nearby,” I said.

  He stood. “You are injured. You won’t be able to catch a thing. I’ll do it. You stay here and start a fire.”

  I nodded and opened the dimensional pocket, searching for the camping gear and preparing a fire. I began a small blaze, but it was promptly blown out by a breeze. I shrugged and got out my lighter and lit the kindling on fire, again and again, but a breeze kept blowing it out. I sighed and turned to Datha.

  “Being a bully isn’t going to get you anywhere in life. I may be mentally ill, but I’m not stupid. Leave me alone,” I said, as I lit the kindling again.

  This time, when a breeze came by, I angled the kindling so the breeze helped the fire grow instead, using the wind’s weakness against fire.

  Maryanne: Take that!

  Strength: Who’s the boss!

  Mark: Mmhm

  Jack: We are, man!

  I smirked. Datha scowled and aimed a blast of wind at me. A shield of violet encased me and I turned to find a ticked-off Jonah holding a catch of Kens' skinned and ready to cook.

  “I leave for a minute, and the vultures move in. I swear you’re a bully magnet My,” he said before aiming a blast at Datha, who dodged, surprised. He walked over to me and settled the Kens on the metal spit.

  “This is why I wanted to travel apart,” he muttered, aiming another blast at his sister, who yelped.

  I laughed. It would be kind of comical to see the twins battle it out on this journey, even if Datha was becoming a real pain. We set up the tent and sleeping bags after cleaning up our meal.

  I was ready to sleep, but the rapturous laughter of the others was difficult to ignore. Once I would have been part of that, but now I was worse than a stranger to them. I sniffled and turned my back to the noise.

  My shuffling caught Jonah’s attention, who was working on a rune array. He stopped mid-stroke and put the brush aside before setting his work aside too.

  “Myra...I don’t...I mean...I wish…”

  “I know, but I knew this might happen one day, just not so...like it did. I thought they might accept me but I was wrong as always. I’m always wrong.”

  “You weren’t wrong about me.”

  I laughed. “Yes, I was. I thought you couldn’t change.”

  “Well, you weren’t wrong. I haven’t changed,” he said, grinning.

  I smiled. “Yes, you have. You might not see it, but you have changed,” I said, remembering the Ice Palace and the way he treated Mige. He truly had pulled a one-eighty in some ways.

  In others...well, I guess being a bully ran in his family blood since Datha was a pretty big one right now. I couldn’t fault him for being one straight back, could I? Especially when it was all due to me.

  My mood took a dip again.

  “Didn’t you miss Datha?” I asked.

  He sighed. “I did, but she’s acting like freaking Katilia! Or worse, Arianna! I came to help you and I intend to be a good sidekick,” he said, winking.

  I smiled and rolled over. “Night, sidekick.”

  “Night,” he muttered.

  I never found out if he went back to rune making or went to sleep since I finally drifted.