Errant

The day of our trip into the city finally arrives. Arlette allows us a few extra hours of rest, but my stomach wakes me long before she opens the door. I roll off my hammock quietly, stuffing my locket down my shirt as I get dressed in the dark. I spend the next several hours perched in the common room, my stomach growling viciously. I might even doze periodically, because Arlette's arrival happens before I expect it to.

We line up together in the common room, waiting for the order to move out. A still sleepy Claire waves at me as I file into place behind her blonde curls. Quinn is restless with nerves, his bright green eyes darting towards the entrance constantly. He probably half-expects Morran to appear. We all do.

But Morran's arm still fares no better, and Arlette has apparently ordered him to stay underground, an order I am sure he is grossly upset about. It makes me feel slightly better that Arlette will be the one escorting us on this trip.

I even see Rowan tagging along as we file down the hallway and start to climb the never ending set of staircases leading up to the surface. A sword adorns his belt, and a crossbow is slung over his back.

Having Rowan and Arlette both with us brightens my day slightly. I even allow myself to be hopeful for once. With no Morran, the speckled bruises over my arms are finally healing over, and my head aches less with each passing day. Even my hand is beginning to heal, with new pink skin showing through the ruined layer on my palm. I wonder if today might not add to the growing list of injuries for once.

We climb to the surface as a group, and I settle comfortably into the rhythm of the staircases. Quinn and Claire argue over a bet Quinn had with Mara a few days ago. Mara doesn't even pretend to ignore their argument, a wicked grin on her face. She shoves poor Ryker— our youngest trainee— out of the way, and runs up to join her group of friends.

Arlette finally stops us outside a dented metal door. I can smell the tang of the outdoor air and see sunlight seeping through the cracks.

"We're splitting into groups," she tells us. Her voice is just loud enough to reach us, but if anyone were listening on the other side of the doorway, I doubt they would hear anything. Arlette continues to speak as she organizes us into rough groups of four or five, mostly based on who we happen to be standing by. This puts me in a group with Quinn, Claire, and Ryker, who Mara happened to shove towards us at the last minute.

"Your job is to split off and draw as little attention as possible," she says. "You're school kids on a holiday. Look like you're having fun. Laugh, joke." Her own face remains cold as she says this, and I repress my own laughter. "We'll be entering the main street through this alleyway ahead," she says, jabbing a thumb at the door. "Head right down that main street, and stay on it. Shop, mingle, loiter— just don't look like you're making a beeline for the end of it. There will be a green hedge when the street branches off. That surrounds the greenhouses, and that's where we're going. Any questions?" Murmurs of 'no'. A few shakes of heads. Arlette smiles slightly. "Good," she says. "Good luck."

She allows us to file through the door a few at a time, always double checking the alleyway for anything unexpected, her eyes sharp. Rowan practically evaporates, slipping out of the door so smoothly that I wonder if he isn't made of mist.

Our group is the last to go. Arlette raises an eyebrow at me before letting us through the door. She peeks around the doorway again, and then returns to scowl at me.