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crystalninjaphoenix · 9 days ago

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The Lingering Scars

Fantasy Masks AU: Chapter Forty-Eight

A JSE Fanfic

I'm pretty sure that this series will end at Chapter 50 or 51, if all goes well and I nail the pacing XD Which is just CRAZY to think about. My Inverted series will have more chapters, but that went on for a shorter period of time, cause I published it twice per week in the beginning. It's going to be wild to not post this anymore. But! We have not reached that point yet. The guys and the other Masked Phantoms are still working out what to do, now that Jack isn't possessed anymore. How is the kingdom going to recover from the spirit's reign? And also, how is JACK going to recover from the spirit? It's going to be difficult, especially since some people can't help but remember what the spirit did... Heheh. Enjoy the chapter! :D

Previous Part | | From the Start | More AU | Read on AO3: CrystalNinjaPhoenix

Taglist: @brokentimewatch

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It only took them about a day to get the camp on the cliffs back to functional order, but it took another two days after that for things to be fully repaired and back to a relative normal. The Phantoms had to arrange sleeping quarters for the newly freed warriors, after all. That first night was awkward, as everyone had to double up on tents or crowd together in the nearby Serpent’s Wake. But slowly, everyone started to get used to each other. There was a lot of talking in these first couple days, as the warriors and Phantoms swapped stories about what it was like for them under the spirit’s reign.

Chase reunited with his kids as quickly as he could. His worry about them didn’t fade until he actually saw Amabel and Quentin’s faces right in front of him. And then the two of them immediately tackled him in a hug. He didn’t want to let them out of his sight after that. And he didn’t have to for a while, as they all spent the night on the ship. After that, once camp was set up again, they all shared the same tent near the center.

Jackie and the other injured stayed on the ship for a while longer before being moved back to the shore. Though Jackie insisted he was fine and able to work again, Henrik firmly told him to rest. “Doctor’s orders,” he said. “The rest of us can take care of any problems that might arise.” Jackie protested, but eventually relented—though he seemed restless whenever Chase and the others came to visit him. He kept asking what was going on, and the others assured him that everything was handled.

Everything was being handled, but it was... difficult. Though the Phantoms knew the warriors had been mind controlled, and the warriors knew the Phantoms were just defending themselves, some tension lingered between the two groups. It was hard to forget the wounds that had been inflicted—quite literally. Several fights broke out over the next couple days, though luckily none of them had involved drawn weapons. The most intense one involved some shoving. Marvin had stopped that one, conjuring up a shield between the two participants. That seemed to shock them to their senses.

The main point of debate was Jack. Chase and the others had explained to everyone that Jack had been possessed and the spirit, Aneirin, had been banished. After a brief debate, everyone agreed that Jack didn’t need to be tied down or anything (particularly because he was still having trouble walking under his own power) and gave him a small tent to stay in. But they still kept an eye on him. A Phantom was posted near the tent at all hours, and would follow him around if he ever left (which he didn’t.)

Most people didn’t seem to fully trust Jack, but Jack clearly didn’t blame them. He was quiet, but polite to everyone, spending most of his time on his own trying to remember how to move his body. Chase stopped by at least once a day, usually more, to check on him and chat. “Nobody’s bothering you or anything, right?” Chase asked one day, sitting on the floor inside the tent.

“O-oh, no, not at all,” Jack assured him. “They’re just... they’re very...” He paused. “They’re very vigilant. But everyone is kind, don’t worry.” He then returned his attention to the bowl and spoon he was holding, adjusting his grip on both as they’d started to shake a bit.

“Nobody has... said anything?” Chase asked. “Or... looked at you strangely?”

“They’ve looked, but it’s not a problem, really,” Jack said. “I understand it.” He went quiet, eyes becoming shadowed.

Chase tilted his head. He could tell this all bothered Jack. Why wouldn’t it? The whole camp was treating him like he would snap and attack someone at any moment. And not because of something he did himself, but something that was forced onto him. Even though Jack was being very understanding about all this, it must have still stung. “Well... you know you can always tell me if you need anything,” Chase said.

“Thanks, Chase. I know. And I’m glad.” Jack smiled at him. “Just... don’t wear yourself too thin. You’re probably really busy lately.”

“It’s not a problem, really,” Chase said. “I want... I-I want to make sure you’re alright. I can always make time for that.”

They chatted for a bit longer, then Chase got up and left the tent. It was getting late in the day—though it was summer so there was still plenty of light. He planned to drop off Jack’s dishes at the cooking fire so that whoever was in charge of washing could clean them. Then he would go back to his tent to spend some time with Amabel and Quentin. But those plans were interrupted by someone waiting outside the tent for him. Hello Chase, Jameson said, waving.

“Oh! Elders, Jameson, you scared me a bit.” Chase let out a breath. “Wh-what is it?”

Just wanted to ask you if you were coming to the meeting tonight? Jameson asked.

“The meeti—oh!” Chase winced. “Right. I-I forgot about that. Sorry, I’ve been... I was thinking about other stuff. Yes, of course I’m coming. When is it starting?”

Jameson smiled wryly. In a few minutes.

“What?!” Chase gasped. “Shit—uh—o-okay, I’ll just drop these off really fast, then stop by my tent on the way.” He hurried across the camp, footsteps landing solidly on the bare dirt. None of the grass had grown back from the fire yet.

Jameson ran after him. Are you sure you can come? It seems like you had plans.

“N-no, I—this is important,” Chase said. “Th-thanks for reminding me. How, uh... how long were you waiting outside the tent?”

For ten minutes or so, Jameson said.

“Ten minutes?! You know you could have ducked in to remind me, then left. Then you also wouldn’t be running the risk of being late.”

Something flashed across Jameson’s face. He shook his head. No, I was fine with waiting.

Chase nodded. “Right. Of course.” He knew that Jameson had been particularly keen on avoiding Jack. He hadn’t once stepped foot in his tent, or even glanced Jack’s way on the rare occasion he was sitting outside. The reasons were obvious. And Chase wasn’t about to force Jameson to interact with Jack. But... this avoidance couldn’t last forever, could it? Out of all of the Phantoms, Jameson and Marvin were the ones most likely to interact with the King again. They were nobles—and Jameson was the last of his line. He needed royal help to get his claim back. Eventually, he would have to talk to him. They could only hope that went well when the time came.

I’ll see you in a few minutes at the meeting tent, Jameson said, snapping Chase out of his thoughts.

“Right.” Chase nodded. “See you then.”

Chase quickly dropped off the dirty dishes, then swung by his tent to tell Quentin and Amabel that he couldn’t stay like he wanted to. This meeting was probably their most important one yet, he had to make it there. Amabel tried to insist on coming so that they could still spend some time together, but Chase pointed out that she would probably be bored and overwhelmed by all the strangers talking about things she didn’t know. So she reluctantly agreed and told Chase to “Be back soon, cause we need one of your bedtime stories, cause it’s been ages since we heard one!” Chase laughed and promised to be back before nightfall, then left and hurried towards the meeting tent.

The tent wasn’t actually a full tent, but more like cloth propped up to form a roof. They were still dealing with limited supplies, and so they’d decided that the central meeting tent was probably not too important anymore, and could afford to be open to the air. That way, the canvas for the sides could be used to make other tents for people to actually live and sleep in. Even so, they kept calling it a tent out of habit.

It looked like everyone else was already there by the time Chase arrived. Even Jackie, who had insisted on being present for this one. Henrik and Nemet were there to make sure he was not about to open up his wound again. “Sorry,” Chase said, panting as he ran up to the others. “I, uh... forgot.”

“Don’t worry, Jair already told us you were busy,” Marvin said.

“Hey Chase.” Jackie waved from the corner, where he was sitting on a wooden box. “Can you believe they’ve made me sit down?”

“Yes, I can believe it a lot, actually,” Chase said. Henrik laughed at that, and Jackie looked back over his shoulder to make a face at him.

“Alright, so... this is everyone?” That question came from a new face—Lydia, tall and thin with chin-length blonde hair. One of three warriors standing in a huddle, all of them here to represent the warriors as a whole. She’d taken charge from the beginning, and the other two had been chosen by the rest of the warriors because they were popular or smart or something. Chase didn’t know the details.

“Yes, this is everyone,” Marvin said, looking around. Obviously, Marvin, Henrik, and Jackie were the leaders of the Masked Phantoms, so they had to be here. Chase was here because the part he’d played in defeating the King had pushed him to equal status. Jameson was here not because of his oracle status, for once, but because he’d really taken charge in organizing things during the camp rebuilding. Anna said that he was better at this than even her, and even told Chase yesterday that they should consider giving Jameson a leadership role (Anna was also here right now, though). The other local leaders—Lukas, Holly, Tripp, and Nemet—were standing in a cluster to the side, while Vsevna stood next to Henrik with his arms folded behind his back. As captain of a ship, he’d sort of fallen into being important enough to be here.

“Alright, so let’s get started.” Jackie clapped his hands together. “It’s about time we had this conversation. We... need to figure out the future of the kingdom. I mean, from their perspective, the King has been gone for weeks. We can’t just walk into the capital and announce that an evil spirit was controlling him for years. So many misunderstandings could come from that.”

“The spirit was surely smart enough to put a regent in charge while he was gone,” Henrik said.

“He did,” Lydia confirmed. “That... wizard noblewoman. Thalia Tinechroí.”

Marvin’s lip curled. “Oh. I see.” He sighed. “It’ll be hard to convince her to step down. I... agree with Jackie. If we go in with a blunt, unbelievable explanation, she’ll take it badly. We’d be lucky if we could escape the city.”

“Surely all the enchantments the King cast wore off when the spirit was banished,” Nemet said. “The warriors here shook off the spell immediately.” Lydia and the other two warriors shift uneasily.

“Yes, that’s probably what happened,” Marvin said. “The enchantment power might’ve been Jack’s—um, King Aodhán’s. But it was used by the spirit’s will. Once that will was gone, all enchantments it had cast would’ve dispelled. And I don’t think Jack would have recast them.”

“Or even could have,” Tripp added. “The King is powerful. But I don’ think he’s able to cast spells halfway across the kingdom. That was only possible because that spirit was multiplying his power with its own.”

“Yes, thank you, Tripp,” Marvin said, nodding.

Do we even... WANT the King to retake the throne? Jameson asked slowly. Once people wake up from their enchantments, they’ll realize what he did, and... well, he won’t be very popular.

“Besides, the man’s been through a lot.” Holly folded her arms. “I hear being King is very stressful.”

“Jack... wants to take the throne back,” Chase said slowly.

“Did he... tell you that?” asked one of the warriors.

“Y-yeah.” Chase remembered it distinctly. It was the day after they’d set up camp, when they gave Jack his tent. Chase had shown him the tent, said that it was his space, and Jack had asked Chase to stay for a bit now that they had privacy. There, he told Chase, still stammering slightly over his words, that he wanted to be the King again. “He said that he wanted to try and right the wrongs Aneirin did. He wanted... to make everyone happy.”

“‘Make them happy’ in what way, though?” Lukas asked. “Through magic?”

“Lukas!” Holly gasped.

“I trust Chase’s judgement in this,” Lukas quickly added. “If he says King Aodhán is a good man, then he is. Most likely. But not everyone will think the same way. They’ll be suspicious... and scared. They won’t want the man who enchanted them to be put in the position to do the same thing.”

Henrik sighed, and ran a hand through his hair. “I think we have to deal with the spirit’s allies before we deal with the everyday folk. Not everyone helped him because they were enchanted. Some of them were... rotten eggs, shall we say.”

“Hm... I think they have a point, sova,” Vsevna said. “We do not want a fight on two sides, yes? We should make sure that most people know the circumstances around your king’s sudden shift in personality. Then we can deal with the bastards.”

“I repeat, we’ll need to deal with Thalia first,” Marvin said. “Even if the King tells her to stand down, she’ll do everything she can to claw her way back. So will the other Tinechroís.”

Jameson looked at him. Perhaps... if we find noble allies, they’ll be able to help keep them back. We’ll have to do a lot of talking to people. A lot of persuasion.

Marvin groaned slightly. “Great. My favorite.”

“We can help with that, I think.” Lydia raised her hand. “Us warriors. We... were high-up in the ranks. We command respect.”

That would be much appreciated, Jameson said. But remember, you’re under no obligation. You’ve been through a lot, you can go home to your families if you want.

Lydia looked at him. “We all know. Trust me, I think we’ve all decided what we want to do.”

Jameson nodded. In that case, thank you for your help.

“If the King tells Thalia Tinechroí to leave her position as regent, she would, right?” Chase asked slowly. “She’s not... she’ll still listen to him, right?”

Marvin bit his lip. “I think so. But she’ll grumble about it, and scheme, and try to get back into whatever important position she had before. We need to be prepared for that.”

“Well, if she will listen to the order, at least, then that is not so bad,” Nemet said. “We must therefore focus on making sure the people of the kingdom know that King Jack will not be like the spirit was.”

“And we also need to focus on weeding out the people who took advantage of the situation for power,” Henrik added. “Not to mention, help everyone who was under an enchantment recover from its impact on them.”

“Maybe... we can do all of this?” Chase asked hesitantly. “The Masked Phantoms already have this whole organization, uh, structure in place. We can just... tweak it a little.”

“Yes, I agree, Chase!” Jackie pointed at him. “I have experience in the royal warriors, I can help with anything in there. We have doctors who care about people’s wellbeing, and we have magic-wielders who can... I don’t know, scry for things we need.” He sighed. “I know that a lot of the Phantoms will want to go back to their families. A-and we’re not going to stop them, of course. Everyone deserves a rest.” He looked at Chase in particular as he said that. “But the ones who want to stay and help... we’ll find a place for them. And for others who want to help as well.”

“And... we’re sure we’re putting Jack back on the throne?” Marvin looked around. “Nobody has any problems with that?”

“Do you have problems with that?” Henrik asked.

“Well... uh... n-no?” Marvin shifted on his feet awkwardly. “Jack wants to be King, and... I-I’m sure he’ll be a good one. At the very least, he won’t be as bad as Aneirin.”

Chase laughed. “That’s a pretty low bar to jump over, but yes. I... think he’ll be a good one, too.”

The meeting continued on, getting into the particulars of what they will be doing and how they will be doing it. They knew that Jack had to return to Suilthair to establish himself again, but when was a good time to do that? And how would they do it? Just walk right in? The warriors confirmed that the King was seen leaving with the squads of royal warriors he took, so it would probably be a good idea for him to return with as many of them as he could. Then perhaps there could be Phantoms interspersed throughout the group. Oh, and they needed to send instructions to the other Masked Phantom camps across the kingdom! Anna had already sent all her messenger birds with the news of the King’s defeat, asking the Phantoms to await further instructions. But now it was time to give them those instructions. Were they going to gather everyone up somewhere? Tell everyone to pack up their camps? Or tell them to hold fast, and let people who wanted to go home leave?

Once it started getting dark, though, Chase excused himself. He felt like he didn’t have much more to contribute, as he didn’t have any knowledge of how the Phantoms worked, nor any knowledge of nobles and royal warriors. The others waved him off, and Henrik assured him that he would tell him all the relevant details later.

Chase hurried across camp back to his tent, stopping to grab some rolls from their food stores. Most of the food had been destroyed in the fire, so the Serpent’s Wake provided some provisions. The rest was made up with thorough hunting and gathering. Chase himself hadn’t gone hunting yet, being too busy with all the business that comes with defeating the King. He sort of missed it. At the very least, it would probably be easier than all that organization they were doing in the meeting.

“Hey pumpkins.” Chase ducked through the entrance of his tent, grinning. “I got us some snacks. These rolls have honey on them! Or... they did once, it might be gone now.”

“Dad!” Quentin waved wildly. “Hi!”

“Oh, you’re lying in bed, I see.” Chase sat down next to Quentin’s bedroll. Amabel was also sitting next to it, though on the other side. “Do you feel alright?”

“I’m just a little tired, I’m good!” Quentin said cheerfully.

“Alright. Let me know if you start feeling sick. They have a lot of doctors here.” Chase handed Quentin one of the rolls, and Amabel the other. “What have you guys been doing while you were waiting?”

“Not much.” Amabel shrugged. “Quentin fell asleep for a little bit so I practiced stringing your bow.”

“My bow? My big bow?” Chase looked to the side, where his spare bow was sitting on the ground. “You didn’t smack yourself with the wood part, did you?”

“No! I know better than that now!” Amabel said. “But, uh, I didn’t get very far in the... stringing thing.”

“Well of course, you know it’s too big for you,” Chase said. “Why’d you try that?”

“I don’t know. I was bored.”

“You could have asked Philip for a book,” Chase suggested, naming the Phantom who slept in the tent across from them. He had a handful of storybooks that he’d managed to salvage from the flames.

“But what if I was reading it when you got back? And I had to stop in the middle of a thing?” Amabel asked.

“Hah, that’s fair, I guess.” Chase chuckled. “We have to get you a bag of marbles to play with or something. Maybe some dice or cards.”

“That’d be nice,” Amabel said. She folded her legs. “But right now. Story?”

“Story!” Quentin grinned, sitting up a bit straighter.

Chase laughed. “Yea, time for a story, huh? Get in bed, Amy.” As Amabel scrambled over to her bedroll, Chase leaned back, thinking. “What story do you want to hear today? Another one about Miarch the hero? Or what about one about the Fair Folk? Do you still like Clever Clara, or are you too old now?”

“Do you have any fun stories about being in the Phantoms?” Amabel asked.

“Yea, I want to know what it was like in the Wyldwood!” Quentin nodded.

Chase blinked in surprise. A warm feeling spread across his chest, though he wasn’t sure why. “Yea, I guess I could tell you some things that happened there. Hm...” He thought about it. What was something that wouldn’t scare them too much? “There was this time Marvin was woken up by an enfield. Do you know what those are?”

“No, what’s that?” Amabel asked. Quentin leaned forward to listen.

“Well, it’s sort of like a fox,” Chase said. “But with wings. Luckily, they seemed to be friendly...”

Chase continued to tell stories as it became darker outside. Sooner than any of them wanted, the kids fell asleep. Chase blew out the lantern and went to bed himself as well.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“No, I’m being very serious, Jameson, you’re really good at this. I know you’re probably going to stay with the Phantoms in some way, so I think you would be a good fit.”

I really couldn’t take that from you, Anna, Jameson said. He’d been about to head to the cooking fires for lunch when Anna cornered him in the middle of camp to talk about ‘something important.’ You’ve been the head of administration for a long time, I can’t just suddenly swoop in and take it from you.

Anna laughed. “Believe me, I wouldn’t mind. I’m glad I’ve done what I could to help the group, but I want to go home soon. See my family, you know? Last I heard, my sister was making her name known as a tapestry weaver, I want to see how far she’s come.”

Jameson pressed his lips together. Why didn’t you bring this up last night at the meeting?

“Well, I thought you might feel pressured if I brought it up in front of a bunch of people,” Anna explained.

That was fair. He probably would have felt pressured. But still. Jameson turned away. I just don’t know if I’m really the best fit. You don’t have to stay in the Phantoms if you don’t want to, Anna, but why me? I also have business I need to attend to once all this is sorted out.

“I’m not saying you have to take over my position, I just think you’d be a good candidate,” Anna explained. “I know that I probably won’t leave the Phantoms altogether... I might come back and decide that I want to keep doing this anyway. But I doubt it. I think if I come back, I’d want to do something else. Something with a bit less parchment involved.” She chuckled. “Look, I’ve already talked to Marvin and Henrik about this. I would’ve talked to Jackie too, if he wasn’t still hurt. They think you’d be good at this too, but they said they won’t make you. You can talk to them about all this if you want to.”

Yes, I’ll probably do that. Jameson nodded. Thank you for... bringing this to my attention, Anna. I’ll think about it.

Anna smiled. “That’s all I ask you to do!” She patted his shoulder awkwardly. “Sorry to stop you. Go on, I’ll see you later!”

And she hurried off... right in the same direction Jameson was planning to take. Well, he couldn’t follow her, that would be impolite. And worse, it might imply that he wanted to talk more, which he definitely didn’t. Not because Anna wasn’t good company or anything, just because he... had to think about this some more. So, he decided to wander off to the side and take a zigzagging approach to the cooking fires.

Anna really thought he’d do a good job at managing all the Phantoms’ administration and keeping track of all the documents needed for whatever came next. Because if there was one thing that was guaranteed to happen because of all this, it would be a lot of reading and writing things. A lot of sending and receiving letters, a lot of keeping track of money spent, a lot of records and everything. And honestly, Jameson didn’t mind doing all that. He even enjoyed it, on some level. The others would probably be really surprised to hear that—Henrik in particular complained about how boring this stuff was. But it was nice to momentarily lose himself in the words and all the administration duties. It took his mind off of... more complicated matters.

Jameson knew he could definitely take over Masked Phantom administration if he wanted to. He was sort of already qualified, as his rabbit mask told everyone, its forehead marked with the star that the administration usually used. But... if he did that, would he have time to do other things? Would he be required to stay in Suilthair, instead of returning north to the home he hadn’t seen in years?

Getting the Jairsolas claim back in order was going to be a task and a half. He’d done his best to keep an ear out for news of the claim while he was... kept around the King. He knew that it was currently being kept in order by royal advisors and warriors, the people who directly worked for the crown. Jack could call them back to Suilthair easily enough, but... what had they changed in the claim in the years that a Jairsolas hadn’t been watching over them? Had they increased taxes on the towns? Fired all the people who’d worked for Jameson’s family? Had they neglected to provide aid during droughts and famines? The claim was at the base of the Northaven mountains, and traditionally, the Jairsolas family was to oversee the mining operations there. Those had probably gone to shit in some way. Jameson shuddered to think of all the poor workers who suffered during these past few years.

There would be a lot to do. Could he do it by himself? Could he do it while also overseeing the Phantoms’ tasks? Though... since the main fighting part of the Phantoms’ mission was over, maybe the two things were more related now than they would be in the past. The Phantoms would now be doing their best to rebuild the kingdom, and wasn’t ‘rebuilding the Jairsolas claim’ also part of that?

It would be nice to help the Masked Phantoms who’d helped him. That was why he joined them in the first place.

Jameson was so deep in thought as he walked, that he didn’t realize he was walking past an open tent flap until someone ran into him as they exited the tent. The person yelped and immediately started to fall. Jameson gasped and grabbed them, pulling them to their feet. “Th-thank you,” the person said breathlessly. “Sorry, I-I didn’t see you coming. I’m not—I’m still not very coordinated...”

That voice. The hesitant tone was so different than what Jameson was used to, but he would never forget that voice. He’d heard it in his nightmares often enough. Jameson froze in place, and looked down at the King.

The King stared back at him, just as shocked as Jameson was. His wide eyes were blue now, but Jameson still saw the green ones flash in his memory. For a second, the two of them just stared at each other. Then the King pushed him away. “Sorry! I—” He quickly started to fall over, and Jameson instinctively reached out to catch him before he fell. The King yelped, then looked at Jameson and gave him a small, sad smile. “S-sorry. Uh... thank you. Again.”

Jameson nodded. He pulled the King upright and slowly let go, watching carefully to make sure he kept his balance.

“Okay...” The King breathed. “I... I-I’ll be going now.” He started walking, heading down the clear aisle between tents. He was... heading in the direction Jameson was going. Well... shit. That meant they would run into each other at the cooking fires.

Jameson glanced around. There should be a Phantom nearby keeping an eye on the King—yes, there. A tall man with an otter mask attached to his belt, his gaze locked on the King. The Phantom realized Jameson was staring, though, and looked over at him, waving slightly. Jameson waved back, awkwardly. He couldn’t just stand in place! That would be strange! Maybe he could change his mind and not go to the cooking fires after all? No, he could feel hunger gnawing at his stomach. He needed food. Well, did he really need it that much?

...okay, this was getting ridiculous. He couldn’t just avoid skip a meal because the King would be there. Maybe he could just... hurry past him? No, that would make it clear he was avoiding him. Jameson didn’t want the King to know that! Because the King—Jack—had already suffered so much with the possession. Jameson didn’t want to add to what was surely a difficult time for him. Maybe he could take the long route around? No, they’d probably still run into each other, and then the King could come to that same realization.

Jameson sighed. He took a deep breath, and started walking the same direction the King was going. They just wouldn’t talk to each other on the way. It would all be very normal.

The King was not walking fast. He kept glancing down at the ground, making sure he didn’t trip over a rock or anything. His gait was... odd. Almost like a limp, but not quite, because the dragging effect was happening with both legs. Jameson quickly caught up with him, but then slowed down a bit. He didn’t want to make it look like he was in a rush. And also, maybe if he stayed out of sight they wouldn’t have to—nope, the King looked over his shoulder at the sound of footsteps. The two of them locked eyes for a moment. Then the King turned back around, facing forward again.

Silence. Neither of them acknowledged each other for a while. Jameson didn’t even speed up to pass the King, even though he knew he could have, with how slow the King was going. The Phantom with the otter mask was also walking nearby, occasionally looking at Jameson with a confused expression. What? Couldn’t a man walk slowly in peace?

The King looked back at Jameson again. And he stopped walking. “You, uh... you... know you can... walk past me, right?”

Jameson also stopped walking, his face quickly growing hot with embarrassment. He nodded.

“Yeah. So... if you want to go ahead, you can,” the King said.

I’m fine, Jameson said—then paused, realizing that he didn’t know if the King could speak in hands. The spirit couldn’t... but that wasn’t a problem with how he could read minds. Wait, didn’t the King still have that power? Did he know that Jameson was avoiding him?!

“You’re... okay?” The King glanced at Jameson’s hands. “I-is that what you said? Chase, uh... has been teaching me handspeak, just in case I... ever needed it, o-or... anything.”

Jameson nodded. Yes, that’s what I said.

“That’s what you said? Okay. Good. I-I’m glad to know I have that knowledge locked away.” The King smiled slightly, though it quickly faded. “You... you really can go past me. I won’t... I-I don’t mind.”

Well how was Jameson supposed to react to that? After a moment, he slowly began walking forward. The King waited for a bit, then turned and kept walking as well. It wasn’t long before the two of them were walking next to each other—because despite the King’s insistence, Jameson couldn’t bring himself to go faster than him. He wasn’t fully sure why. It just... felt like a bad idea. Like the man would stab him in the back if he wasn’t looking. Which Jameson knew he wouldn’t! But he couldn’t help the nervous feeling jumping around his stomach.

After a bit of quiet walking, the King suddenly blurted out, “I’m sorry.”

Jameson blinked in surprise and stopped walking. He looked over at the King—and realized that he had to look down a bit to do so. Strange... the King had always been taller than him. Was Jameson standing up straighter now? Or was the King shrinking into himself?

“S-sorry! I mean— you don’t have to—” The King stammered. “This—this probably isn’t a good moment for—sorry. I’ll just—we can keep walking.”

Slowly, Jameson asked, Sorry for what?

Jack flinched. “For... everything,” he whispered, voice barely audible. “I... I-I did... a lot of... things to you.”

That’s what Jameson thought he meant. That wasn’t you, it was the spirit, he said, hands moving somewhat stiffly.

“No, I-I know that,” Jack said, looking away. “But... it was... still me. I-it was... still my voice. And my hands.” He looked down at his hands as he said that, quickly clasping them together. But Jameson saw how they trembled slightly. “My power,” he breathed. “I... I-I know that... it wasn’t my will, but... it was everything else. A-and I’m... I’m so sorry. I’m so, so sorry.”

It’s alright, Jameson said.

“I... maybe?” Jack blinked furiously. “Maybe it’s alright. But it doesn’t... feel alright. I-I can’t forget the things I did. I felt it all... even if all I could do was watch. I-I know I can’t make up for everything I did, or... restore everything that...” He trailed off. “But... I’m still sorry.”

Jameson looked at him quietly for a moment. It’s alright, he said again.

“I-I understand that you... you can’t forgive me,” Jack said, not making eye contact with Jameson. “But I hope that... you know I... I am truly, deeply, sorry.”

Wait a second. What do you mean? Jameson asked. You think I can’t forgive you? I already have.

Jack started in surprise as he saw Jameson say that. “Y-you... huh?”

I know it wasn’t really “you,” Jameson said. I know now that... I’d never met the real “you” during that time. The person I knew that way was basically an imposter who’d stolen your name. The moment I realized that, I knew that you were never to blame. So... there’s not even anything to really forgive you for.

Jack stared at him. “But... but...” He shook his head, confused. “Sorry, I-I don’t understand. You... I... A-am I misreading your... expressions? You don’t... You’ve never...”

Oh Elders, Jack had caught on to Jameson’s avoiding him anyway.

“I-I mean, you’re not the only one, of course,” Jack said quickly. “So—it’s not your—you shouldn’t worry about that. I don’t plan to single you out, it’s just... I think I hurt you the most. Or at least... in the most personal way. And... for the longest time, too, I... I think.”

Jameson blinked. He held his hands in the air, unsure what to say.

“I-if you’re just saying all that to, uh... make me feel better, o-or something, you really don’t have to do that,” Jack said. “I can handle your feelings. They’re well-deserved, anyway. I know that what I’ve done is... not easily forgotten.”

It’s not, Jameson admitted. But I mean what I said. I know it wasn’t you.

Jack tilted his head. Now it was his turn to be unsure.

The thing is... I just... Jameson hesitated. When I look at you, I still think of... him. Your looks haven’t changed that much, after all, other than the eye color. I know... it wasn’t you. And I don’t blame you. But... there’s this part of me, the part of me where the fear lives, that doesn’t seem to understand that. The message doesn’t quite reach that far. So... I can’t help what I feel when I see you. But it’s not because I blame you at all. It’s because... Another pause. Because you’re right. It was a long time. I’m... used to being... on edge. I can’t... forget so easily. Just like you said.

“I... I-I see.” Jack looked down at his hands, clasping them again. “I’m sorry.”

Please stop apologizing, Jameson said. It’s not needed.

“I feel like it’s needed. I just...” He gave a small, dry laugh. “Fuck, I hope I’m understanding you correctly. This handspeak thing is a bit tricky.”

You read minds, Jameson said. Why even rely on hands when you can do that?

“No, I don’t just ‘read minds.’ I can, but... I don’t want to.” Jack shook his head. “I’m not like him. I-I don’t want to do something like that without permission. It only hurts everyone involved. Like... eavesdropping, or reading a diary. I’d only do that if I was allowed to—or if I thought I was in danger and needed to do so. I’m not... like him.”

Jameson looked at him, his gaze going up and down, and landing on Jack’s blue eyes. I know, he said. I really do. That’s why I don’t blame you for what you did. I’m... sorry if I ever made you think I held you responsible.

“No, you’re not supposed to apologize to me,” Jack insisted.

Well, I am. Because I really... don’t want to hurt you. Jameson sighed. I know that we were both victims under those circumstances. And you likely saw many more things than what I did. So... I’m sorry. I wish I... could change how I remembered your face.

“Hah... I-I see.” Jack looked at him and smiled hesitantly. “Well... maybe you need... more memories? Better ones. Maybe the recency will push the bad ones back farther.”

Jameson looked at him, then also smiled, just as slow and hesitant as Jack was. Maybe.

“Yea.” Jack nodded. “Um... I... I-I know I can’t... undo what happened to your... to your family, Jameson. But i-if there’s any way I can help make up for it, if I can... I don’t know, lend you funds to restore things in the claim or something, I... You can ask me anything. I... want to make up for it. So that I can earn that forgiveness.”

Maybe you need to allow yourself some forgiveness first, Jameson said. You can’t keep blaming yourself forever.

Jack started. He stared at Jameson, then looked outwards, towards the distance. Revelation dawned on his face. “I... didn’t realize I...” He trailed off, then laughed. “I-I’m pretty good at reading people, but you just showed me up, didn’t you?”

It’s hard to read yourself, usually, Jameson said. Like how you can’t see your face without a mirror.

“Yea. I guess that’s true.” Jack nodded. Then he fully looked back at Jameson, eyes raising from his gesturing hands to his face. “You... you really can pass me, you know. I don’t have a problem with that. I-I know I’m still slow.”

Jameson tilted his head to the side. We can... walk together.

“Are you sure?” Jack asked quietly.

Jameson nodded.

“Hah... th-thanks.” Jack gave him a small smile. “I’m guessing you’re going to the cooking fires too? You’ll probably have to lead the way, anyway. I-I’ve only been there a couple times.”

Of course. We’re heading straight there, no problem. Jameson faced forward and started walking again. Jack stuck by his side. The two of them said nothing, but they stayed together.

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