When Ama and Bobbi get tired of doing whatever they chose to do while Klef and I were sitting on the floor reading, they inform us we should probably head out to the meeting rooms to talk about precautions after the morning’s…event. Klef winds up dragging me by the arm down the halls Ama and Bobbi are leading us through. “Treble, slow down,” I warn, alarm bells ringing in my head.697Please respect copyright.PENANA2WZgnnYxAb
Klef stops abruptly and I crash into him, sending us sprawling on the floor. Did I do something wrong? I backtrack over the past day and can’t find anything other than our normal banter. Did I strike a nerve? Or is it the fact that everything has been normal that bugs Klef? Is he expecting something by now that’s not a kiss? “Treble, did I do something?”697Please respect copyright.PENANACJ4wDPQJqB
“What? C’mon, Ride, ‘course you didn’t do anything wrong! I want to make sure you’re all right, is all.” Klef grunts and stands up, dusting himself off.697Please respect copyright.PENANAUqzBkKumNf
I stand up too, but my shoulders are more drawn inward, and my hands won’t stop twitching and wanting to move, reaching for a bow and arrow I left behind because I thought this trip would be short and peaceful. “Well, yeah. But you usually aren’t this worked up about it.”697Please respect copyright.PENANAbLYbgjRXTw
Klef takes a deep breath. Oh boy, here it comes. “Ride, have you ever dreamed…about us?” he asks. “I don’t mean just a regular dream, either. And us as a thing, not as you and me, partners in crime.”697Please respect copyright.PENANARpgpOfPY4h
I pause. “Uh…yeah, sort of. I mean the whole partners in crime thing is there, but…there’s other things too. Romantic things, domestic things, little glimpses into a possible future.”697Please respect copyright.PENANANXBkXNjRSP
“But are there…kids?” Klef asks.697Please respect copyright.PENANAv61RuDJeol
I want to say yes, to lie, to have an excuse for what I said. But the truth is I have none. “…No. No kids. Not where I can see to, anyway.”697Please respect copyright.PENANAWtKMdtcU2a
“So…when you say kids…you mean…?”697Please respect copyright.PENANAiaytFj7jcp
“I mean I can see us adopting as a couple, but not in the real way Sight lets me. Just as a stupid fantasy,” I admit, blushing. “I-I know we haven’t been together that long, but…”697Please respect copyright.PENANAQh9o2s7yFz
Klef grins, which doesn’t help my anxiety. “You like me.”697Please respect copyright.PENANA9GrmnDfd3N
“Oh, shut up!” I snap.697Please respect copyright.PENANAAEsNEwESye
Klef shakes his head and laughs. “Iridescence,” he whispers. “I’ve loved you for a long, long time. Nothing you can say would weird me out. And kids? Kids sound good to me, too.”697Please respect copyright.PENANAN4UlUF7dcE
Bobbi giggles from 20 feet in front of us. “You lovebirds done whispering over there?” they ask.697Please respect copyright.PENANA4F3kwEqm9w
Ama ribs them. “Careful, or I’ll send a fluffle of bunnies at you!”697Please respect copyright.PENANAEfZuLhxJ2Y
Bobbi grins innocently and jogs to a stone door down the hall and opens it up with a flourish. I blink. It blended in so well with the walls I couldn’t see it until it was opened. A perfect secret room in a not-so-secret base. When we go in, I see Dad, Hibiscus A, and Flo, but no Rythe. “Rythe isn’t here?” I ask.697Please respect copyright.PENANAukUdrZQEWB
“Well, someone has to distract the others,” Flo says with a shrug. “And that’s actually one of Rythe’s specialties.”697Please respect copyright.PENANA6YTyNTdBga
“Who knew they had them?” Dad gripes.697Please respect copyright.PENANAr0ML9NZny3
“You may be the Alpha, sir, but that doesn’t mean I’ll drop Rythe to join you.” Flo crosses her arms. “They’re nice, sir, and I love them.”697Please respect copyright.PENANAphyhGVyQoM
“Something about them makes my fur stand on end,” Dad dismisses. “But if you say so…”697Please respect copyright.PENANAKv535g7KdF
“I definitely say so,” Flo says with a smile.697Please respect copyright.PENANAuWAZd11J7w
“Then I’ll allow him a backseat pass,” Dad sighs. “But that doesn’t mean that I’ll like it.”697Please respect copyright.PENANAbxKdlQNd8t
“So,” Bobbi says, walking further in the room and looking around the dimly lit space. “Who forgot to turn on the overhead light again? Come on, guys, it’s not like anyone will see this room is occupied out in the hall if we turn it on, the creepy going-against-the-law look is just overkill in a situation this serious.”697Please respect copyright.PENANAnrEvDilQaH
I burst out laughing as they go to the wall and flip a light switch. They grin as they return to the table everyone is huddled around and sit in a chair, propping their feet up on it. “Glad I could shed some light on the situation,” Bobbi laughs, looking up at me. “They’re always this dramatic, I’m afraid.”697Please respect copyright.PENANA5a0tcAcknH
“Oh, believe me, I’m used to it,” I say. “I deal with my dear boyfriend Klef all day, every day.”697Please respect copyright.PENANAudq7BwWrqI
“Hey!” Klef exclaims. “That’s just rude!”697Please respect copyright.PENANAtZkwfFAbna
I shrug. “Haters gonna hate, my dear boyfriend. Just let me be mean once in a while, since I do the same to you, sound good?”697Please respect copyright.PENANAlyf7B8ftmA
“No! And when am I rude?”697Please respect copyright.PENANAIpdkpfqB3W
“Just about every time that you talk with your mouth full,” I quip. “Can we move on? There’s someone out there who wants to kill us, you know.”697Please respect copyright.PENANA6tGywXw1WO
Klef rolls his eyes and playfully nudges me. “Okay. Do we know anything about who was trying to kill us? Are there any witnesses? Anything unusual?”697Please respect copyright.PENANAwBsN5ZxiWp
Dad shakes his head. “Nothing, unfortunately. The hallway was conveniently deserted at the time of the attack. We don’t know who did this, or why. Though this isn’t the first time unusual occurrences have popped up around the base.”697Please respect copyright.PENANABUzUJpRNBm
“Unusual how?” I ask.697Please respect copyright.PENANAEyBO0NzFn3
Hibiscus A clears their throat. “Well, several times over the years we have had reports of stolen items from several different reverse engineering rooms. It’s never things that are finished, though. It’s always the half-baked ideas and things that don’t seem to go with anything else that gets stolen, along with any notes on what the piece appeared to do, or what it could be attached to. We have no idea who’s behind it. The running theory was that it was some kids who wanted to be like their parents and grabbed the notes and pieces and simply forgot to put it back, or chose not to. But there were never any witnesses to that either, so I’m thinking that these two things are connected somehow.”697Please respect copyright.PENANAuCqagJk4dU
“Yeah, it’s a bit of an out-there theory, though,” Flo points out. “Just because no one thought twice about someone picking up a piece of tech doesn’t mean they wouldn’t look twice at someone stealing a weapon. Someone had to notice that grenade went missing, wouldn’t they?”697Please respect copyright.PENANAyU6uk0JxET
Hibiscus shrugs. “What if they simply weren’t around? We all know there are people in the Crusaders who are good at crowd management. That’s why they’re here, we recruited them to distract the masses during huge heists. We could have several rats scurrying around right under our noses, and no one would be the wiser!”697Please respect copyright.PENANA9pWYj2y1Db
“I know, I just don’t like the thought of one of our own going against the cause,” Flo says, wringing her hands.697Please respect copyright.PENANALi5u3oZimb
“I don’t either,” Ama interjects. “But Hibiscus is right, we have to entertain the possibility.”697Please respect copyright.PENANAA5TnlhA68a
Flo pulls a face and nods. “I know. Believe me, I know.”697Please respect copyright.PENANAUt1Dest73A
Dad claps his hands together and everyone’s attention snaps back to him. “Look, we have cameras around the weapons areas. We have to. If we’re lucky, the perp set off the tripwire and we’ll have a picture of who walked through there to get weapons this morning. If we’re not, well, we’re still at square 2, where at least we know someone is trying to attack us, right? That’s better than square 1. We’re not oblivious anymore.”697Please respect copyright.PENANA872o3sLMqi
I nod. “Dad has a point. We’re better than we were, at least. And everyone in this room can be trusted, at any rate, so Klef and I aren’t flying blind like we’ve had to do in the past.”697Please respect copyright.PENANAIXhsWYX1Hp
Klef shudders. “Oh, I remember those times. Those were not fun. We nearly got beheaded on one of those trips!”697Please respect copyright.PENANAQpPEQLiLkA
Dad growls. “You nearly what?!”697Please respect copyright.PENANA6VvFy0aBeh
Klef pales. “Uh, nothing, sir. It’s nothing!”697Please respect copyright.PENANAEh8pm7rCgj
I sigh at their antics. “Will you two ever behave around each other? This is just ridiculous.”697Please respect copyright.PENANAdJEppTKaKy
Dad shrugs but Klef, at least, looks sheepish. “Sorry, Ride. Your dad scares me.”697Please respect copyright.PENANAYsJjm3nOOO
“So I gathered,” I say with a grin. “It’s actually pretty funny, considering he’s a big softie.”697Please respect copyright.PENANA5i3A7cacIa
“No I’m not!” Dad protests. “Stop telling people I am a softie! I am death wrapped in a fur coat!”697Please respect copyright.PENANAoM13S5Fo8b
I giggle. “Sure, Dad. Sure. No one doubts that.”697Please respect copyright.PENANAIMMzWjruiq
“I do,” Flo says quietly with a grin.697Please respect copyright.PENANAFk7URvzuEq
“Eh, I’ve seen him try to intimidate people,” Ama adds, looking around. “I’m not that impressed, to be honest.”697Please respect copyright.PENANAUUD21dxtJz
“You guys are the worst,” Dad gripes.697Please respect copyright.PENANA15hVdMGaF2
I grin. “Isn’t that what family and friends are for, though? I always assumed the point of it was to take someone down a peg or two if needed. Also, less often but no less important: bringing someone a peg up if that’s what needs to happen.”697Please respect copyright.PENANA84NhoxoRjB
“Mm,” Klef hums. “I remember doing that with you, Iri. When you were letting the town's girls get to you.”697Please respect copyright.PENANAW93NveSguY
“You obviously didn’t bring her up enough if she’s settling for you, though,” Dad quips.697Please respect copyright.PENANAJbwVapOmDj
Klef grins. “Well, I couldn’t let her realize she’s far too good for me if I wanted her to be with me, right?”697Please respect copyright.PENANAJgIH47NZCq
I sigh. No matter what I do, if those two are in a room together than they will make life difficult for one another. “So, Hibiscus. If we have no suspects, what’s the course of action for security?” I ask.697Please respect copyright.PENANAnWZW3R6u5t
“That’s up to you,” Hibiscus says. “We could keep you safe around the base, with a stricter protection detail, or you could move somewhere safe, once we’ve established you can’t be taken out by whoever’s travelling with you and where you’re travelling, or we could act like nothing’s happened, and hope we get lucky, find your attacker before they find you… Honestly, Oracle, it’s all up to you.”697Please respect copyright.PENANA6oqzCTGtop
I sigh. “I don’t want to run, much as everyone would love me to do so. After 5 years, if I don’t have more information on my dreams, I’m never going to get it. The most I can do now is fight, like everyone else. And while my fighting is good, I doubt it’s nearly as good as anyone around here who has been doing it if not most of their life, then most of their Deuxlife. My expertise is exhausted. There’s no real point in protecting me any more than there is protecting anyone else. It’s important, yes, but it’s not the end- all be- all of existence, as horrible as that sounds to an outsider.”697Please respect copyright.PENANAdwFropb1Eu
Hibiscus nods. “Well, then, my dear, if escape is not an option, and protection is a waste of resources, what do you propose?”697Please respect copyright.PENANAHLp7O6i4b1
“Nothing much,” I say with a shrug. “Just that if this person is so keen on using weapons against me and Klef when we’re presumably alone, just letting us sit in the library and read, and let whoever is asking know that we’re sitting in the library and reading, could be of great use to us.”697Please respect copyright.PENANAjtUecUKLlC
Dad’s eyes widen. “What?! Iri, no. You can’t use yourself as bait!”697Please respect copyright.PENANAqMejWl0My5
Klef looks over at me, and lightly touches my arm to capture my attention. “I’ll do it, but only if you’re sure.”697Please respect copyright.PENANAL2nZ3DMxh5
“Of course I’m sure,” I say. “I wouldn’t offer the option up if I wasn’t. I wandered a forest with you 5 years ago because I was sure it was a good idea, even if I didn’t remember who you were. I only do things when I’m sure or when I can’t afford to not be.”697Please respect copyright.PENANAHMexQkiqGJ
Klef looks uncertain, but nods. “If you’re confident, then I’m going to be there with you, no matter what.”697Please respect copyright.PENANAtCYJSgqJaC
“No!” Dad barks. “I will not allow it!”697Please respect copyright.PENANAPECZ4f7AXz
“You don’t have a choice, Dad. It’s our lives, and our decision,” I state. “The only choice you have is whether you will support it or not.”697Please respect copyright.PENANAKjgJBfXtcP
Dad growls, and runs a hand down his face. “I can’t support you. Not this time. I’m sorry. But if you’re going to risk your second life when you’ve already pushed your luck once before and nearly died for it, there’s nothing I can do for you. Come talk to me when this is over.” He walks around the table and out the door, closing it behind him with a firm tug.697Please respect copyright.PENANAZbfxkB73Kk
I follow him out with my eyes. Klef’s touch on my arm increases in pressure to a light squeeze. “Hey,” he whispers. “This is your choice, not his. You can talk to him when this is all over.”697Please respect copyright.PENANAayGOqEoBi7
“Yeah,” I breathe. “Yeah, because we’re going to make it out alive, aren’t we?”697Please respect copyright.PENANA9U1Mkr5byO
“You know it, Ride,” Klef says with that small, genuine smile of his that he only brings out when he’s really proud of someone.697Please respect copyright.PENANABSgC1wIK9O
I turn to everyone left in the room. “All right. Where are good places that Klef and I can look alone but you guys can hide for backup?”697Please respect copyright.PENANA7v0kunLs0W
Everyone looks at each other, before all saying at once, “The courtyard.”697Please respect copyright.PENANAamUWituaPL
“Well. That’s settled. Where’s the courtyard, then?” Klef asks.697Please respect copyright.PENANAr0ezbwGRlG
“I’ll show you the way, while everyone else can get weapons if they wind up needing them,” Ama offers. “My magic can do most of my fighting for me, if needed.”697Please respect copyright.PENANA0G98fVqNQL
I nod. “Lead the way,” I say, gesturing to the door.697Please respect copyright.PENANAsm77CeOD1w
Ama grins and nods. “Yes, ma’am,” she says with a little salute.697Please respect copyright.PENANAEoOw0eAEza
Klef snickers and I whack him on the arm as the 3 of us leave the room. He responds by snatching my arm and kissing my knuckles. “You are awful,” I laugh.697Please respect copyright.PENANA0EL7fDQLto
“Yeah,” Klef says with a shrug. “Awfully fond of you.”697Please respect copyright.PENANAamlRsU2pub
I groan. “Get some better pickup lines, Treble, and we’ll talk about flirting openly.”697Please respect copyright.PENANAy0v3csANSX
Klef laughs, and we continue down the seemingly never-ending maze of hallways and rooms until there’s one slightly normal-looking hallway, not made of stone or concrete, but brick. And in the middle of this brick hallway there is one single, solitary door, with glass windows showing just a glimpse of the open expanse outside. Ama opens the door. “Welcome to the courtyard,” she says. “Also known as the place where new dragons come to learn to fly. Make yourselves comfortable, you might be here awhile.”697Please respect copyright.PENANAS9E4RnhQlz
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The Poison Tree's Fruit
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The Poison Tree's Fruit
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shnuffeluv
ISSUE #6
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The Poison Tree's Fruit
Fantasy
Suspense
Last updated: Nov 27, 2016
Total word count: 44,832
Total reading time: 208 Minutes
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