Scout Stories: Caged Curses

The Caged Boy

Miach stared as she passed the men guarding the gate and into the town. She wasn't used to waiting for someone's permission to enter through a gate. There had been about twenty families in the village she came from. Mac Tíre had told her that this place had hundreds of people. Better yet, one of them was an Aedly like her.

She tried to look at everyone as she wandered passed the fields on the inside of the walls. There weren't many fields inside because the town was growing too big. Some farmers had started to plant crops outside the walls. This had made Mac Tire mutter in annoyance. Miach was too busy watching people to listen to him. She didn't watch where she was going, and stumbled.

Mac Tíre laughed at her.

Laughing suited him. The smile lit up his eyes, which were Islander blue instead of the green of the inland people. His skin was more tanned than many of the people they passed and his hair was dark and curly. The warrior beads and braids in his hair were surprising given that he wasn't tall or muscular. If someone were to get a close look at the beads intertwined in the plaits, like Miach had, they would see that some were from the wars.

Many did try to get a close look at him as they walked. Mac Tíre was attractive and exotic. He stood out everywhere that they went. Only the bravest of flirts approached him. Only the cowards approached Miach to ask about him. A somewhat plain girl, tall and awkwardly growing, she was much more approachable.

Who was he? They wanted to know. How were they related? Was he courting anyone? Was he promised to anyone?

Miach usually found it fun to come up with different lies to tell people. She would tell them that he was her brother, or her foster father or that he promised to marry to her mother or sister. When she felt like being important, she would tell them that he was her body-guard or servant. Sometimes she pretended he was a milk-child, traded between families to secure a bond. That her real brother was out on the Islands.

Mac Tíre never seemed to mind her lying. He always went along with what she said. Maybe it was his way of rewarding her for never telling anyone the truth; that he was a Council Scout. That one of the monstrous Aed had touched her and given a mysterious power. She had no desire to scare people or to be set on fire.

Miach walked slow as they went forward. Mac Tíre walked at his normal pace and stopped to let her catch up.

"How do you know there's one here?" she asked.

"It's my job to know," he told her.

"Yeah, but how?"

"Well, the first step for us is to find a place to stay."

Miach was usually annoyed when he was vague and mysterious on purpose. Yet the idea of sleeping inside was much too appealing to ignore.

"Stay close now, Mist-dancer," he said as when they walked into a street. Miach had seen roads before, but none so small or that had buildings built so close to one another. The buildings were strange to her as well. In the village only the Hall, the great meeting place, had two stories.

Walking along the road led them to a large square that only had one building in the centre of it. Before it were cages built for men. In one was a boy, about Miach's age. He was standing, rocking back and front in the small space and holding his head with both his hands.

"Ah," said Mac Tíre.

"What?"

Mac Tire pointed at the boy.

"That's him," he said.

Note: Wooot! New story time! Some of the same characters will be appearing in this one. Except Cuno. Take it as he's making his way back to his home during the course of these stories. We do have a brand new character by the name of Nola, who will be in the fourth story. 

I won't be able to upload these as fast as the other volume because of other commitments but I'm hoping to get at least a part or two a week up.

Anyway, you know how much I love getting comments-good or bad. I don't mind being told off so long as it helps me to improve.

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Thanks for reading!