A Trip to Silver

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To say that he was eccentric would be an insult to the most eccentric souls mother nature had ever created. Put plainly, Silver, the Rrist that Baker believed could help me find the other Rabbits, was weird--and somewhat unsettling.

I waited for an agonizing couple of minutes as Baker attended to a few other customers and closed up his stall, promising them with a smile that he would be back soon. What guilt I would have felt by making him leave his business so early in the day was subdued by the urgency of the situation. Where were Wise, Amber, and the others and, more importantly, were they okay? I gulped and pushed down the worst of the possible outcomes my mind thought of in reply. I was walking side by side with Baker in the opposite direction of the recently ruined Palace, and with such a few amount of people out during such a lovely morning, the streets were unusually quiet. Did anything happen? Or is something about to happen? I opened my mouth to ask Baker what he thought before I realized that he was already talking to me.

"... It's jus' he means goode buh can't really- uh how do the Irrian say it? Can't stop digging in caves, hoping teh find copper."

"I'm sorry Baker but what?"

"Eye messed thuh saying up, didn' eye?" Replied Baker with a sigh. " What I'm tryin' teh say is he's got a bit of a wondering soul. Quite literally actually." He chuckled a little as if he'd made some sort of joke.

"Who?"

"Silver o'course." He glanced down at me, " who d'yer thin' we've been talkin' about for the past couple o' minutes?"

"I-uh..."

"Yer weren't listening to me, were yer?"

"I'm sorry Baker." I replied, looking away towards a cart across from us. A lady had her hands full haggling with the cart vendor while also trying to keep her young sons from running off. Judging from the deepening frown on her face, it didn't seem like she was having much luck with either.

"It's alright eye guess. Yer worried about yer friends after all. Eye was jus' trying teh give you a couple o' warnings about Silver." We turned at a junction, heading towards the Slumms, one of the poorest parts of Irre. "Jus' comes down teh a few things. Numbuh one is teh not make any sudden, loud sounds. It'd have been much faster to hire a cart buh the sound o' the horses would send him into shock, especially if he's on one o' his journeys, which he probably is." Baker chuckled again. "Honestly, with the amount of time he spends out, I wonder how he gets anything done. One time though—"

"Uh, Baker." We had crossed the boundary between Centre Irre and the Slumms with a nod to the street kids patrolling the area. Technically, we were just like them and so we wouldn't get hastled—much. "How do you know this Rrist? Isn't he... Well... You know?"

"Dangerous?"

I nodded. "He is a Rrist after all."

"Ah yes. Y'know at times Eye forget? Silver was my friend long before he figured out what his Crux was and even longer before he joined their ranks. He's like a brother to me that one, Rrizz or whatever yer wanna call him. Oh yeah he's dangerous—they don't call him a Rrizz fer nothing—but I think his harm is o' a different sort. Not as straight forward as yer regular destroyer. As long as yet follow ma lead yer should be fine." Baker smacked his forhead suddenly. "Which reminds me o' the secon' thin': do not allow him to show yer. He can find em, he can show em to yer, an'—" Baker hesitated before continuing. "Only let him look for em himself. If given the chance, he might mess with yer a little if yer allow him ter show yer."

"I-I don't undertand... What do you mean 'show me'?"

"Well It's sorta like-"

"Bakerrrrrr!" We turned to see a group of kids bounding towards us, most of them with huge grins on their faces. "Bakerrrr! Baker!"

"Well if it isn't Rascal." Baker said with a smile, bending down to pat the head of the lead boy. A short, scrawny kid a few years younger than I was who wore a faded jokey's cap over brown hair and had similarly coloured patches on his cheeks. He grinned at Baker then looked up at me with a much different expression.

"Who's she? And what's she doing on our turf?" The rest of Rascal's group eyed me and I couldn't help smiling at their attempt at intimidation.

"Look mob boss, I'm not here for your 'turf'." I said with my hand up defensively. Rascal and his friends reminded me of couple of Rabbits at the Burrow. Jay looked a little older than Rascal and was less skinny, but they had the gang leader attitude, the crew, and a mark of their leadership in common. For Jay, it was a blue bandana which he tied on different parts of his body depending on his mood. I was guessing that the grey cap was Rascal's. Rule number one was to never insult that mark so I paused then said, "But that cap of yours is pretty cool. Where can I get one?"

"Wh-huh." Not sure how to take that, Rascal scowled, his cheeks turning a slight scarlet. Baker's laughter boomed.

"Fear not Trouble gang. She's a Rabbit like me. Ma run isn' fer a couple o' days so right now we're here teh visit a friend." A few of the smiles dropped at the sound of that; clearly they expected Baker to be with food of some sort. "Buh," he continued, "yer can accompany us part o' the way if yer'd like. That's if yer leader decides it okay."

"So can we go, Rasc?" Asked one of the other kids when Rascal failed to answer after a few moments of silence. He'd been looking down at his bare feet, much like most of the kids in the Slumms. It made me feel self conscious about the worn out pair of sandals on mine. He scowled up at me again, his cheeks still red, before turning to Baker.

"If you agree to hum our favourite song, the Trouble gang will act as bodyguards for you until the required location is reached."

"Not a problem with me and I'm sure it's no problem with Minervuh here." I nodded in reply as the kids' moods lightened.

The Trouble gang's favourite song was a jovial, energetic jig that sounded foreign and yet still felt uplifting to listen to and soon after Baker started it, I began making attempts at humming along and bobbing my head. The kids were singing a song to the tune but from the way none of their words matched, it was clear that a new song was made up everytime they were with Baker. All the while, I kept catching Rascal's scowled glances as we continued to Silver's house. Since it was too poor to have cobblestone roads, we had walk for a couple of minutes through the muddy streets of the Slumms, trying our best to dodge puddles of unknown liquids whenever we had to. Before the fire, I was completely oblivious to the Slumm's existence and while this wasn't my first visit, it was still a bit unsettling. Our party happily walked past clustered shacks in varying shades of rust, each with their windows shut. What were they hiding from?

Splash! I paused as the realization of what just happened dawned on me, the luke warm water surrounding my left ankle sending a chill up my spine. "Yer really gotta watch where yer goin', Minervuh." Taking a deep breath to steady myself, I pulled my foot out of the water, carefully avoiding the glance down that would tell me what I'd just stepped in. A girl from Rascal's group giggled and that seemed to set all of them off. I looked up at the laughing kids and noted that even Baker had a smile on his face. Rascal didn't though; he still held that scowl firmly where a grin should have been. Fruitlessly, I made an attempt at shaking my foot dry before shrugging and continuing with the rest of the group.

After a few more minutes of walking (which I did with a bit more care), Baker turned to the Trouble gang, declaring that was where they had to part ways. "Nothin' against yer group, Rascal buh can't have Silver shook off. Too many souls."

Rascal seemed to understand. "You should have just said you were visiting that kook-" One of the kids behind gave him a shove. "Okay okay sorry Baker, you should have told us you were going to Silver's. We'll get out of your hair- or what's left of it." He shook Baker's hand and gave me one last scowl, his group laughing as they left.

Baker chuckled. "Yer crazy kid. Don't let tha' mouth o' yers get yer into too much trouble."

Rascal waved as he ran after his group."Why not?" He called back, "I am the leader of the Trouble gang after all!"

Baker chuckled again, waving back.

"They really like you, don't they?" I asked, watching as Rascal caught up to his gang.

Baker shook his head, a smile on his face. " It's the bread they like. Me? I'm just a means to an end for em." He turned to the shack in front of us. This one seemed older than the others, most of the front was a rusted brown and the cob webs, weeds, and scraps of paper around it gave it an abandoned feeling. Did someone really live in here? Baker sighed through his nose.

"One o' these days someone is goin' to move in here, thinkin' it's empty. Well, here goes." Baker reached out and gave a tentative knock on the shack, a small, almost silent tap on the metal. "Now don't be disappointed if he doesn't come out immediately. Most times it takes a couple tries befor-"

The door swung inward with a sharp creak. The tall, skinny, long limbed man on the other side yawned, scratching his long, rough goatee. He nodded at Baker then gestured at me with his head of long, black hair.

"Ah. This is Minerva." Baker's voice was almost a whisper. " She's a rabbit just like me. I need yer to find a couple o' her friends for me. Really important."

Silver looked down at me, his tired looking brown eyes seemed bored. "It's no wonder there were two. Don't knock so loud next time." His voice was even more of a whisper than Baker's and yet strangely I heard every word, almost like he wasn't speaking to my ears but to something deeper. The man had a strange air about him that didn't seem as intense or dangerous as Rrists were usually discribed; those faded blue and white pyjamas certainly didn't help matters.

Aside from the scraps of paper, the stacks of crates, and—strangely—shards of glass on the floor, there was a small bed in one corner of Silver's room, a couple of low sitting stools in another, and a mirror about six feet tall leaning against a wall. All in all, it was more furniture than any rabbit could boast. I followed Baker towards the corner with the stools, gingerly stepping around the pieces of glass. "Yer know," Baker spoke up suddenly, his voice still quiet. Although he didn't seem as uncomfortable as I was, there was a look of subdued worry in his eyes. "Yer could clean up the glass once in a while. I'm not saying throw it away." He added defensively. "Jus' pack them into a corner, maybe..." He trailed off and turning my attention to Silver, I saw why. The man was staring intently at the mirror against the wall. An intensely fixated glare, not at his reflection but almost as if there was something else beyond it-or maybe someone. I looked up at Baker for a cue on what to do, his eyes were still on his friend but his head shook slightly. Just wait, he seemed to say. Wait but be silent. I nodded, hoping that my nod wasn't too loud. Silver continued to stare at the mirror and after a couple of minutes, Baker inched his way in front of me as if in anticipation of something. Suddenly, there was a ghost of a grunt followed immediately by a loud shattering sound. "No!" I cried out, followed by a cringe at how loud I was. The Rrist had punched the mirror hard, it's pieces flying across the room, some of them towards where we stood. Most of those hit Baker, who seemed to have known that this exact the thing would happen. "Huh?" Silver turned towards us, snapping out of whatever trance he was in. "Why so loud? I heard you the first time." His voice was soft but spiteful and the hand he'd used to punch the mirror was bleeding. "I'll do something about the glass. Hopefully." He walked over to the small bed, his bare feet walking over the sharp pieces on the floor almost as if they didn't exist. He sat with a thump on the bed and Baker eased up a little, grabbing a stool and gesturing for me to sit. As I did, the wooden bench gave a little creak that would have been harmless in most cases but was incredibly shameful here.

"I didn't know she'd be this noisy or I'd have asked her to stay outside." Silver muttered more to himself than his guests. He looked up at Baker, his face resting on his arm. "It's too bad I owe you or I'd chase both of you out for all this noise." Silver sighed when Baker gave a shrug as his only reply. "Fine. You said you needed my help?"

* * * *

"So," Silver said after we'd finished explaining everything. "You want me to find your friends. Let's say I do-and I'm not saying I will but-what then?"

I gulped. What was I going to do? What could I possibly do? Maybe Naiad was right and there was nothing I could do. No, they were after me initially so if the the others were found, I'd know where Rrists were and then maybe they could be offered a trade of some sort. I had to try.

"I," I started then quickly dropped my voice to match Silver's whisper. "Once I know where they are, I'll find a way to get there and bring them back. I'll find a way. I... I just have to try."

Silver chuckled quietly with a nod at my direction. "Get a load of this one. 'Once I know, I'll find a way to get there.'" Baker looked away uncomfortably. "Oh?" Silver smiled. "Seems like you didn't tell her everything about my Crux, huh Auggy?" He turned back to me. "Well, Minny, there's more to my soul's ability than just finding others." He paused. "I can take you to them."

"But how?"

Silver shrugged. "My soul." He seemed to think that answered all my questions or maybe he didn't care that it didn't.

Baker cleared his throat quietly. "Just find em if yer can. I didn't tell her yer could move 'er cuz I knew yer would mess with her like yer do to others. Like yer did to me."

"That was twelve years ago." Silver's voice had lost all it's mirth." When are you going to let that go? It was an accident and I apologized."

"Was it? What about the others? All those different souls? Were those accidents?"

"They," Silver stopped, stared down at a piece of glass, then picked it up. "I had to do what I had to. I'm one of them."

"No, yer not."

"Yes I am!" Silver's voice, now normal speech volume, was a yell by his standards. "If I'm not then why do I still see them? In the mirrors. I get new ones hoping that one day, the scenes'd stop and they'd leave me alone. But it's just as he said," his voice dropped back to its usual volume. "It's all hopeless."

"It's not."

Silver looked up, his morose eyes focussing on me. I gulped, almost abandoning the sentence mid way. "Well, it's not." I decided to continue instead. "The fact that you still get new mirrors and are frustrated when it doesn't work out shows there's still hope. If it was completely hopeless then you wouldn't even be trying. That's exactly what everything in this world is. It's never hopeless if we don't give up; if we keep trying."

Silver grunted then looked back at the piece still in his hand. My father had once said that there were different kinds of healing and not all of them had to involve my Crux. Sometimes, a lot could be done without really doing anything; by thinking, speaking or a combination of both where actions would only solve the problem temporarily. I don't know whether what I said made as much sense as I'd intended but it was better than doing nothing.

"So," Silver finally spoke after a few moments of silence, his eyes still staring at the broken mirror. What was going on inside that head of his? "You want me to just find them?"

We nodded.

"That's the problem." Silver replied with a sigh. " I have no idea who 'they' are. I've never seen them before and while I could go around searching every cart, waggon, room or otherwise in a twenty kilometre radius until I find a collection of street kid captives, I doubt you have that much time."

Baker opened his mouth to reply but only silence escaped his lips. Silver had a very good point.

"So there's no way you can find them?" My voice sounded more discouraged than I would have liked. After my big declaration in front of Naiad, I couldn't even find them?

"No way that he'd approve of." Silver whispered with a gesture at Baker who still hadn't found his words. Did he know what Silver meant?

"What do you mean?"

"My soul can separate from my body and kind of walk around. That's what my Crux does. An astral projection of the most extreme kinds." He used his hand to mimmick walking as he explained. "Basically I can go anywhere and since that beats staying in this dump all day, I do." He shrugged. "I can observe scenes without being observed since technically I'm never there. My soul is. Now when it comes to finding things, more specifically people there are a few specifics. If I've met you before, then my soul can find you again no matter where you are. Now when it comes to people I've never met before something special's gotta happen. I'd have to make direct physical contact with a person who has met them in order to know anything about them. It-"

"Is riskier than anythin'. Yer would make yer souls meld. Forcing the other one ter go on 'walks' too." Baker spoke up suddenly, his voice irritated. "And sometimes those walks don't go how yer plan." Baker walked to the entrance, brows furrowed and muttering to himself. "I thought yer might be able to find em but we'll have to find another way. Let's go, Minervuh."

Silver shrugged again, reclining on his bed as Baker opened the door.

"How long will that take?" I was on my feet now.

Baker turned sharply at the question.

"How long will it take to find another way? We've spent almost half an hour just to get here and turn back?" I stared at Baker defiantly, not wanting to back down. "This is the only way I could find Wise and the others in time."

"And let's say yer do find em." He replied sadly. "Maybe they're in the midst of Rrizz. What d'ya think would happen then? What could yer possibly do ter prevent yerself from getting captured? Maybe Wise had a plan going inter this but do yer?"

He was right. I was rushing into this situation without any plan whatsoever. What did I plan to do if I actually came face to face with a Rrist? You were planning on using that, weren't you? No, but if I wasn't then... I knew Baker was right but those words created a spark of determination. What could yer possibly do? Naiad had said the same. What could you possibly do? And while they were right to doubt me, I couldn't pretend that I wasn't infuriated. I'm not that same helpless little girl. I just have to prove it to the world. It's not hopeless if there's still a chance to try.

I turned to Silver and nodded my head. "I'll do it. " Baker gasped under his breath.

"Miner-"

"They're my friends. The only thing resembling a family that I have left." I said more to myself than Baker. "Even if my going there just means I get captured too, I'd rather be captured and be with them than to be free without them. I'll do it."

Silver sat up, shooting me a curious look. "Okay then. A couple of things you need to know. Firstly, it doesn't matter how small the contact is for it to work. Secondly, try to keep focused on who you're trying to find. While I'm moving with your soul, if it's already preoccupied by enough burdens, a wondering mind can affect the outcome. Thirdly, I'll try and find them first before sending you over. Deposit your soul where they are, sever the link to mine, and it kind of drags your body to it's location. But it's important I make sure it's the right place and time before depositing." He stuck out his hand. "Trust me, I've seen what happens when it's done wrong." What does he mean 'place and time'?

I took a deep breath to steady myself and walked over to where he sat, carefully avoiding the glass. Yes Silver was a Rrist, but he seemed different. Almost remorseful. If Baker had trusted him enough to bring me here then I could too. I grabbed a hold of his hand and as our palms touched, his eyes turned bright silver, pupils and all, the surprise almost throwing me off my feet. Silver's mouth opened next, leaking tong tendrils of similarly coloured smoke. I turned to look at Baker, who had taken a seat on one of the stools. He nodded sadly to me as the room filled with the smoke. Then everything went black.

It felt as if I was falling upwards. My body tried reflexively flailing it's arms before it discovered it didn't have arms. I didn't have a body in this dark void of a space. Where was I? No, Focus. Focus on Wise, Amber, Jay, and the others. If not, Silver wouldn't be able to find them and teleport me. Was it really teleportation? That's what it sounded like. Wise, Amber, and the others.

Teleportation.

Wise and the others.

Kind of reminds me of her. What her soul could do.

Wise and

Nia could teleport stuff too, couldn't she?

Wise

At least, that's the way mom and dad explained it back then.

Suddenly there was a blinding light. And I found myself seated in a cozy, oddly familiar dining room. The window was open, rays of sun warming up the area. Someone called my name. There was no way that was who I thought it was. A moment later, I got up, turned around and sure enough my mother was beaming down at me, her lush bronze hair gleaming in the day's light. "Are you sure you're full?" She asked, bending down to clean my lips with a light stroke of her thin finger and a kind smile on her smooth face. Somehow, I was seeing my mother again. Somehow, she was alive.