Ruhya slowly opened her eyes as she awoke from a dreamless sleep.
"Good morning, Ruhya." Came a voice from behind her. Ruhya turned her head and saw Peli who was snuggled up behind her. His arm wrapped around her, pulling her tightly against him.
The two of them were laying in a hammock of some kind hanging from large wooden beams. They swung gently as Ruhya sighed and mumbled out a greeting to Peli.
Gently Ruhya took Peli's arm off of her and climbed out of the hammock. She unwrapped her blindfold from around her wrist and tied it around her eyes. She crouched down and searched around for her shoes, slipping them on her feet once she found them.
"Peli, can you take me up to the deck? I need some fresh air."
"Sure, just let me wake up first." Peli joked as he wrapped the hammock's edges around him. Ruhya smiled as she pulled on the hammock, causing Peli to half fall out. He chuckled as he stood and then grabbed Ruhya's hand.
Slowly Peli led Ruhya up some wooden steps. She could feel the sun on her skin as they emerged from the dark ship hull. The sea breeze ruffled her hair and left a slight chill on her face. Peli placed her hands on the edge of the ship, making sure she had a tight grip.
"Stay here, I'll go get us some breakfast. Don't talk to anyone, the men aboard this ship are not the kind you should associate yourself with." Peli said, more sternly than Ruhya expected. She nodded, not really in the mood to talk to anyone anyways. Peli hummed with satisfaction before walking away.
Ruhya rested her chin on her hands and sighed.
Was she doing the right thing? Was it really okay to just run away? To leave Judar?
She frowned at the thought of Judar. Had he read her note? How did he react? No, she didn't want to think about his reaction.
"I hope you can forgive me, Judar." Ruhya whispered to herself as her lip trembled. Quickly she shook her head and tried to clear her head of any thoughts of Judar, but the more she tried to forget the more she remembered.
She remembered the way his ruby eyes sparkled when he laughed, the silkiness of his dark hair, the warmth of his skin. She remembered his gift of stars and meals they shared. Most of all, she remembered his vulnerability, and the tenderness he kept hidden from the world.
Tears stung her eyes and a painful lump formed in her throat. Maybe she had made a mistake.
"Are you alright, Miss?"
Ruhya turned with surprise. She had gotten so lost in her thoughts that she hadn't heard the man come up to her. His voice was low and slightly hoarse, Ruhya could hear a slight lisp when he spoke.
"Um, yes. I'm fine." Ruhya said cautiously. Peli had warned her about the men on the ship, but she wasn't sure how dangerous they could be. Her fingers tightened their grip as she imagined being pushed over the edge and into the cold unforgiving sea. She kept her face straight, hoping that if the man noticed she didn't turn to him then he would realize that she didn't want to talk.
"If you're thinking of jumping, you should do it quickly. Do it while he's distracted." The stranger quietly said to Ruhya. His words startled her but his tone sounded sincere, as if he was actually trying to help her.
"What do you mean?"
"A short life in the water is ten times better than a long one by his side. Now is the only chance of escape you'll have, he won't give you another."
"Escape by dying? Are you crazy? Who are you even talking about?" Ruhya asked, her anxiety starting to spike.
"The man that arranged for you to leave the palace. His name is-"
The man suddenly stopped talking. Ruhya heard his footsteps quickly go away from her as another pair of footsteps came close behind her. Her heart rate sped up, even without turning around she could sense that the man had run away in fear of the one behind her.
Who was behind her? Was it the man she had been warned about? Slowly Ruhya turned around.
"What was that all about?"
Ruhya let out a sigh of relief, it was just Peli. She rushed forward and wrapped her arms around him, almost knocking over the two plates of food he was holding. Her legs slightly shook as she held on tightly to Peli.
"What happened? Are you okay? I told you not to talk to anyone."
"I know, I'm sorry. I should have listened to you."
"It's okay, but next time do as I say." Peli sighed out as he leaned down and gently rested his chin on Ruhya's head. She hummed in compliance.
"Here, I got you some breakfast. It's ship food, so I don't think it'll be very good, but I managed to sneak away some fruit." Peli said as he pulled away from Ruhya and handed her a plate.
"Thanks."
"Anything for you, my Ruhya."
***
Judar sat on the floor in what used to be Ruhya's room. Her note rested in his lap, water spots covered the paper.
He was all out of tears.
He didn't feel sad anymore, or angry. He didn't feel anything. He was just numb.
His eyes felt swollen and his nose irritated. Judar didn't know how long he had been sitting there. Minutes? Hours? It didn't matter. Nothing mattered anymore.
Get up. Stop being so pathetic! You're such a goddamn loser.
Judar didn't even try to block out the toxic voice in his head as it hissed at him. Why should he? It was right. He was pathetic.
He was so pathetic for opening up to some girl. When did he become such a soft-hearted loser? He tried to be himself around someone and got burned. Ruhya had torn down his walls but now he was going to rebuild them ten feet higher and thicker.
Judar's heart began to harden and grow hot with anger. He crumpled Ruhya's note as he clenched his fists in anger.
But who was he angry at, Ruhya or himself?
Judar shot up from the ground. It didn't matter who he was angry at, as long as he felt something. Even the burning anger was better than the cold numbness. He wiped his face roughly, trying to erase any trace of his tears.
"I'm a goddam Magi, Magis don't cry. Get over it." Judar hissed to himself. That's right, he was a Magi, an all powerful sorcerer of creation, a chooser of kings and destroyer of countries. He didn't need anyone, especially not some two-faced circus rat that couldn't even control her own magic.
"Screw you, Ruhya! I don't need you! In fact, I'm glad you're gone. Worthless bi..." Judar trailed off as his voice grew quiet, unable to finish. He couldn't bring himself to finish the curse that was burning on his tongue.
A deep scowl marred Judar's face as he stormed out of the empty room. A storm brewed in his mind as he fought between being angry at Ruhya for leaving him and being angry at himself for letting her get so close.
He was so focused on his own thoughts that he didn't even notice Kougyoku until he accidentally bumped into her. She grunted in surprise as she jerked back. His arm reached out to push her to the ground before he stopped himself. It wouldn't be fair to take out his anger on one of his only friends.
"Judar..." Kougyoku breathed out before rushing towards him and burying her face in his chest. Judar was going to snark out an insult when he realized Kougyoku was trembling. Her hands clutched his shirt tightly as she inhaled quickly, as if she was fighting back tears.
"What's wrong?" Judar asked. Kougyoku looked up at him, her pink eyes obscured with unshed tears. She forced a smile and tried to hide the cracks in her voice as she spoke.
"I'm getting married."
***
The man known as Boss leaned on the railing of the ship, the ocean water slightly misting his face. The setting sun made his blonde hair seem brighter. Everything was going perfectly, he finally possessed the Moondancer.
There was just one minor problem he had to take care of.
"You wanted to see me?" Asked a voice from behind him, a lisp slightly distorting the words.
"Are you deaf?"
"Excuse me?"
"I know your mouth is all messed up, but what about your ears?" Boss asked as he continued to look out into the smooth sea.
"I-"
"Because I specifically remember telling everyone that they were not to talk or even look at my Moondancer!" Boss snarked as he suddenly turned to face the man, his eyes ablaze with anger.
"I won't do it again." The man said meekly, avoiding Boss' eyes.
"I should throw you over the side of the ship..."
"Please, no!"
"However, I'm feeling generous."
"Thank you." The man sighed with relief.
"Open your mouth, I'll cure you of your lisp."
"W-what?"
"By cutting out the tongue that dared speak to my Moondancer, you'll never have such an unbecoming lisp again."
Before the man could react, Boss lept forward and forced the man's mouth open. A quick flash of a dagger and a muffled scream later, the mutilated man fell to the floor. He covered mouth as blood spilled out and coated his hands.
"Careful, don't try to swallow the blood or you'll choke." Boss said with a smile as he crouched down. He wiped his bloody blade on the man's back before sheathing it. He stood up as a group of men ran over, worried by the screams of their comrade.
"What have you done to Gazeem? You monster!" Accused Sa'id, the leader of the men, as he crouched down to comfort the bleeding man. Another ripped some cloth from his tunic and stuffed it into Gazeem's mouth to help stop the bleeding. Gazeem squealed in pain from the cloth roughly touching his severed tongue.
"I have simply executed punishment on a man who dared go against my commands." Boss said as he nonchalantly tossed a bloody lump of flesh over the edge of the ship and into the foamy sea below.
"His tongue..." Mumbled out the group of men in horror. Gazeem cried out again in fear and pain from amongst their feet.
"I'll cut out the tongue of any other man who dares speak to my Moondancer. I'll even pluck out the eyes of any man who even looks in her direction." Boss threatened with a sneer. His eyes held no fear as the group of men glared at him with hatred.
"Even if you're our boss' brother, you won't get away with this!" Sa'id hissed with boiling anger. He clenched his fists until they turned white.
"He will not hear of this. Gazeem simply had an awful accident, or even better, the Kou palace guards mutilated the poor man while we made our escape." Boss explained with a voice filled with fake sympathy as his eyes blazed with a barely controlled rage.
The group of men shivered as the unspoken threat loomed over them. They all knew that if they didn't go along with the story, the man who cut out Gazeem's tongue would kill them all. The fear they felt for their own lives slowly outweighed the anger they felt on Gazeem's behalf.
"Have you no shame? Do you feel nothing when threatening to kill your own countrymen?" Sa'id exclaimed with horror. He could not believe the cruelty of the man before him.
Boss scanned the men before him, it seemed like none would oppose him. He smiled with satisfaction as he made his way through the men. Sa'id stood, partially in Boss' way. Boss pushed past him, their shoulders collided but neither males flinched.
"She'll leave you once." Sa'id called out. Boss stopped walking but didn't look back.
"As long she trusts Peli, I won't have to worry about a thing." Boss replied as he resumed walking away. His voice sounded confident, but a deep scowl marred his face.
"