I've always liked watching the clouds. Just something about seeing them slip on by. Even back in the day, I enjoyed it. I almost enjoyed flying, too, back then. It was almost like I was flying with them.
But then there was the rope and the chain and the guards, and deep in my heart, I was convinced that the only day I'd get to soar with the clouds was the day I died.
Vika twitched slightly in her sleep, slowly opening her eyes. What had woken her up? The room Duke Indaia isolated for her use contained only the straw mattress she used as a bed. She couldn't hear anything that wasn't dismissible as the normal noises of the house. Maybe she was imagining things; laying her head down, she tried to return to sleep.
A loud bang caused her to sit bolt upright instantly. Scrambling to her feet, Vika approached the locked door and pressed her ear to the crack.
There were noises outside; voices she hadn't heard before. It was the noise of a fight, but different. So, so similar to the violent games the noble's tigers were forced to play with one another . . . and yet so different.
"Get him! Get the tiger! Damn it!"
Yes, that was it. That was what was wrong. It sounded like the humans were fighting the tiger . . . but that was impossible. The Duke made sure to securely lock all of his tigers away. What he feared most of all was that they might escape their cell and murder him in his sleep. He called it murder when he spoke of it. Vika called it justice.
Something else was wrong, too. She pressed her ear closer to the door to make out more sounds, more voices.
"Little one, look out!"
That was probably the tiger. Oddly, she didn't recognise the growl of his transformed voice. Perhaps he was a new addition to the Duke's collection. But who was he talking to?
"Muarim! No! Get away from him . . . ELFIRE!"
Vika was so surprised she leaped away from the door and stared at as though it was the being that had cast the spell.
The one who had spoken was a human. A human child. Vika knew instantly; the duke had many children, although slightly younger than that age. She liked them better younger. Better, but still not a lot. And he was a mage! What was a child doing fighting in the Duke's house?
Curious, she approached the door again to listen.
"Little one, I can't keep this up much longer . . ."
"Alright, we're getting out of here . . . the laguz are free?"
"Yes, but we're not. They've cut off our escape."
"We'll find a way through, Muarim. Our work isn't over yet."
"I know, Little One."
Finally, it dawned on Vika. The one who the strange tiger was talking to, the being he referred to so affectionately as "Little One" . . .
It was the child. The human child. And the child was talking about them, the laguz, about their freedom.
What was going on? What was happening? A human child and a tiger? What?
Footsteps sounded in the corridor to her cell and Vika stepped backwards, terrified. She had heard, from the other slaves, frightening tales of laguz who had gone mad in captivity, of laguz who sought to free their brothers and sisters from this life and send them into death's tender arms. True, no human children had been mentioned before, but there were variations to everything, weren't there? That was why the Duke preferred her to his other slaves. He liked to stroke the black raven's wings, to watch them fly in his tiny courtyard.
Her thoughts were interrupted as the door crashed off its hinges and the tiger burst in, green fur rippling with the movement of his muscles. Behind him was the human child - the mage. He looked an odd character, being so small and so brightly dressed, but nonetheless Vika backed away with a cry of fright. All laguz knew of magic. Magic was a dangerous human weapon that could be used to destroy them completely; they had little defence against quickly-cast spells. Vika had never seen magic performed, but she had heard tales from slaves who had - it was the Duke's favourite form of punishment. One spell - just one - was enough to cause the laguz absolute agony and weakened them to the point where they could no longer move.
So Vika backed away, oblivious to the sympathetic - although worried - expression on the boy's face. She backed away, but in the tiny room, there wasn't much space to back into, and he advanced slowly - cautiously, she thought.
"Don't," she screamed at him, "Don't come closer! Please don't hurt me!"
"I'm not going to hurt you," the boy assured her. Vika was not comforted. She shook her head and pressed further against the wall. The boy stopped, much to her relief.
"Little One," a voice said. The tiger. Except, whilst she was distracted, he had shifted back. "We have to get out of here now. They'll find us soon."
"But . . ." He looked back at Vika, biting his lip.
"I will talk to her. She's scared."
"I . . . okay. I'll try to find another way out."
The boy disappeared through the door; Vika sensed he was still close by, but still she relaxed now that the room was missing his presence.
"Don't be scared of Tormod. He's a beorc, but he's different."
It was the tiger. Tormod . . . that must be the human boy's name. Vika wanted to trust the tiger at his word, but she couldn't bring herself to. Not yet.
"Who are you?" she whispered.
"The Laguz Emancipation Army."
"Laguz . . . emancipation . . . ?"
The green tiger smiled. "Would you like to be free, sister?"
"Free?" Even the word made her feel happier; now that it was being offered to her, she felt like she was floating even though her feet were still stuck to the floor.
As the tiger extended his hand, she almost forgot about the human boy. He didn't seem so important now, anyway. And the tiger obviously trusted him.
Freedom.
Vika took the tiger's hand. "I'm Vika."
"Muarim. Welcome to freedom, Vika."
Turns out that Boss really wasn't that bad after all. He taught me that there are good hu-- beorc. He and Muarim gave me my freedom, and best of all, they let me give that gift to others. I'm free now; free to fly, to soar. But I'll always be tied to the earth.
After all, the clouds might be free . . . but I bet they're lonely, too.