Runaway Magic

sixteen

"I'm sorry I didn't tell you sooner," Amina rushed, shooting us a nervous look. "Obviously, letting the whole world know my secret isn't exactly safe."

"Then why are you here?" I snapped. I pointed to the wall behind the grave, beyond which I knew Ijinislj lay. "Why not there?"

Ekki and Xia exchanged a glance, but they didn't stop their princess from continuing.

"I'm sort of on the run," Amina began with a wince, tugging at the twisted strands coming loose from her braid. She passed Morning's jewel back and forth between her hands before continuing. "See, I don't have magic."

Beside me, Kenna sucked in a breath. As if she could see the confusion sprawled across my face, Amina quickly explained, "Ever since the Revolution, magic has been passed down in the royal family. So for me to not inherit anything, well, honestly, it's an embarrassment." She waved a dismissive hand at the other two girls. "Ekki and Xia are my bodyguards, so they're theoretically supposed to keep me out of trouble, but I thought it would be better for my family if I left for a bit. Explore the world and all that."

A realization struck me, and the lingering shreds of anger I harbored for the Ijinisljin girl dissipated. "You're going back to Ijinislj just for us," I breathed, nudging Kenna. "Why?"

Amina shrugged, offering us a bittersweet smile. "It's about time I returned home" was all she answered. And that was enough for me. Even though my home was far away, left behind in our village, I felt the same longing as she did. It echoed in my bones like a whispered song, despite all the sorrow I now associated with that place.

So I let Amina, Ekki, and Xia navigate us back out of Morning's grave. Ekki used her magic to reseal the locks and the gates, erasing any trace of our presence. With only a dusting of ashes leftover from Kenna's ring of fire, no one would ever know we were there - except for Crow, but I suspected Amina would deal with him in only a matter of time. He was head-over-heels for her, not that I could fault him for that. I couldn't even blame him for spilling our whereabouts to Mr. Kasumova; he had thought he was protecting Amina, and there had to be something honorable in that.

As we trudged down the long, winding path on which we had entered, the sky began to lighten, stars fading away into nothingness as the sun peeked its glaring head over the horizon. I stared at the massive gate as it swung shut behind us, sealing the entrance to Earnest Morning's grave once again. The lock clicked back into place. The sound held a note of finality.

We had done it. We had fled home, bequeathed our trust to a band of strangers, robbed a dead man's grave, and survived. Now, it was time to cross the border and discover our new home: Ijinislj. But first, we were going to have to buy our passage across.

"You know we don't need this anymore, right?" Amina asked, holding up the jewel. Dawn sunlight glinted off it. I pulled her arm down, glancing around to make sure none of the merchants or other passerby had noticed the precious stone. I had never owned something this valuable in my life, and flaunting it so brazenly rattled me. "If I show the border patrol my identification, they'll let us pass no matter what." She laughed. "I am the princess of Ijinislj, after all. The least they could do is cut us a bargain."

"No," I said, shaking my head firmly despite Kenna's frown. We had gone through so much to get that jewel, to get here; it didn't feel right for the end to be so easy. If I wanted to settle the discomfort cramping my stomach, we were going to cross the way we had intended. Illegally.

So Amina took us to a dilapidated shack on the outskirts of town. Scraggly trees drooped around the structure, their leaves skimming the caved-in roof. For once, I didn't question the dubiousness of our surroundings. I let Amina walk in with the jewel nestled in her palm, the rest of us loitering awkwardly outside, and I let her walk out with a scruffy man and empty hands.

We followed the older man, who hadn't so much as grunted a word since our arrival, to a river obfuscated by a stretch of dense forest. Brushing sagging branches away from my face and disentangling thorns from my sweat-slicked skin, I had never felt prouder. A banged-up boat lay hidden by the riverbed. The man flipped it, pushed it into the water, and shooed us in.

He watched from the shore as Ekki rowed us away, the familiarity of Kenj, of my childhood and my family, fading into the distance. Kenna sniffed a little, resting her head on my shoulder. I smoothed her hair away from her skin, just like Mama used to do, and willed my heart to stop clenching.

Finally, after an eternity of solemn silence, we butted up against the opposite shore. Ekki dug an oar into the sediment, pulling the boat steadily ashore. One by one, we rose unsteadily to our feet and stepped off. I savored the gravelly feel of my shoes on the Ijinsljin ground. We were here. We were truly, finally, actually here.

Xia led us down the river to the nearby border crossing. Since she and Ekki were Amina's royal escorts, none of them would get more than a slap on the rest for bypassing the official port of entry. Kenna and I, however, had more uncertain fates, but Amina assured us we would be protected by our refugee status. I believed her. Besides, she was the freaking princess. As she had said before, if her status didn't award us some form of special protection, I didn't know what could.

As expected, the guards at the border swarmed around us, peppering us with questions. I squeezed Kenna's hand as Amina explained herself, showing her identification card, and pointed to the two of us. Her lips mouthed the words magic and refugee, and the crowd of anticipatory guards dispersed. Only two remained, positioned by Amina's side.

"Princess, we still need to detain and process them," one said. Their hair swooped over their hard-edged features, but I saw nothing unkind in their stony eyes.

Kenna stiffened, but Amina nodded.

"Of course," she said. Turning to us, she muttered, "Don't worry. They just need to corroborate your story. I'll see you soon, I promise."

She, Xia, and even Ekki waved goodbye as the guards escorted us away. I glanced at Kenna and smiled so hard it reached my ears. The sand crunching beneath our feet, the spiral statues springing from the fortress's ground - I loved all of it.

The hard-edged guard from before held open the door to a sprawling building, motioning us inside. As it swung shut behind us, they examined us, offering a fledgling smile. I stood as still as I could, knowing I would want to remember this moment for every day to come.

"Welcome to Ijinislj."