Home is Where the Heart is [Job]

Spoiler:

’What a magnificent sight…is this truly the home of the Magic Council?’

Throngs of people milled around the stationary mage as she took everything – or at least tried, there was quite a bit going on after all – the people offering her a somewhat wide birth. Tail lazily drifting from side-to-side probably had something to do with it, the large limb possibly intimidating or the people simply so polite they didn’t wish to bump into her and it…well who could really say? The mountain in the center could easily captivate any traveler’s attention, those observant eyes squinting for a better view, but alas the sun persisted in blocking most of it. ’Somewhat imposing, and with the various angles of the sun…could even be classified as “intimidating.”’

Sadly she wasn’t really here for sight-seeing, though the woman made a mental note to return to do such at a later date. Maybe she’d even spend some extra time after everything was said and done to peruse the place. First things first though: the quarry must be brought back. How such a heavily fortified place could lose such a simple man Mao couldn’t say, though they’d offered excuses.

”Well, it was just the regular, non-magic prison. Who knew he could use magic?”

”Those who don’t commit serious crimes aren’t known for escaping. We’re not really sure WHY he did, but he did so just bring him back.”

’Well, at least they offered up some spots to watch,’ she thought with a small sigh.

The first location proved a little worrisome given the amount of guards surrounding the place. Even though the soldiers guarding the prison lacked a friendly quality – a necessity of the job no doubt – these men, their muscles, and hardened glares easily outclassed them by leaps and bounds. Each one bore a crest of sorts on their shoulders that further set them apart, eventually leading Mao to suspect a private company involved. With each step towards the residence they crowded more and more around the short woman until they all but surrounded her, arms crossed and stares aimed down…if she didn’t know better, a few might’ve even looked smug at her less-than-impressive physique and size.

”Whattya doin’ here girlie?” the one in front of her finally asked, a cocky smirk firmly in place, ”I don’t ‘magine one o’ your size has bizniss here.” That deep voice rumbled with slight chuckles at the end, as if he could hardly believe he really had to talk to her. The insinuation that her size had anything to do with her reason for being here…”irked” felt like the right description. Honestly the sensation felt all too new to the woman, coming close only one time before, but that shopkeeper apologized profusely when he realized he’d been mistaken. This guy on the other hand saw it as some sort of really good insult, and in a way it was because it’d definitely annoyed her…but the mage couldn’t afford to cause trouble.

Expression smoothing out, some of his smug attitude vanished when presented with her blank, completely “unimpressed/unaffected” expression, ”I was merely here to inquire if the residence owner noticed anything suspicious…I won’t bother them however. I’m sure they have some competent staff inside to notice. Sorry for bothering you gentleman.”

She left quickly before the realization could dawn on those very square jaws.

In the end checking – attempting at any rate – the residence of the other involved party proved fruitless. The people at the prison theorized that he might’ve escaped to seek vengeance on the person who helped cause his incarceration. ’A white collared crime that turned violent…I suppose the brutes shouldn’t have been a surprise. He was probably the first one warned about the escape just in case.’ From what she heard however that man was rather unfavorable and unsavory, so it sounded logical that he might’ve been the reason behind the escape. Multiple crimes accumulated into a longer sentence, and there was suspicion that a few of the charges were fabricated. Sadly without proper proof he would need to serve the entire sentence, and this escape would undoubtedly add further time to the sentence.

So…why?

The questions persisted as she left the second location: his place of work. Nobody recalled seeing him, nor could anyone really think of a good reason why he might visit there. Sure he’d liked his job well enough, and many had been sad at the time to see him dragged off to prison over the dramatic events. From what Mao gathered the people there believed the other gentleman used their coworker as a scapegoat, likely the actual guilty one for the main crime. The crime of violence was, undoubtedly, the convict’s crime however and something he’d need to spend the time repenting. For the most part however they seemed just as surprised that the usually mild-mannered man chose to run rather than fulfill his punishment.

’So what drove him to do something against his nature?’

It was the third location that she finally found her prey, the situation a little disturbing if she didn’t know better. There he stood, peaking into a window of a small, but cozy house on the outer edges of the grand city. Squished between two larger houses, the small yard in front was framed with a short, pointed wood fence painted white to match the quaint abode. Partially hidden between two bushes there he stood, clad in some striped garb, peering through that woman and looking to all the world like a total creeper.

However it was his house.

Lights on, his family milled about inside as the mother prepared dinner and the girl studiously worked on a drawing nearby whilst humming happily. A homely scene missing only the doting husband, who could do nothing but watch from afar the family he’d been missing for the past two years. The desire to go inside radiated off of him, body shaking from the willpower holding him back as he knew he couldn’t. Not yet.

She watched him, the man unmoving from his position for over half-an-hour, completely unnoticed. His attention sat riveted on the duo inside the house, completely oblivious to the world around him, as if only they existed and the rest was just noise. Such devotion to the simple task, the need to ingrain this on his memory, carve these visions to help him last through the final years of his sentencing. It fascinated her deeply as those pale green eyes observed him, trying to gather every little detail she could.

Finally, after a full hour she quietly approached him.

”It’s time to go Mr. Heiser.”

”…I know. Thank you.”

For half the journey they traveled in silence, each wrapped up in their thoughts as they walked side-by-side. He towered over her by almost a foot, his bedraggled form lean yet not thin, brown hair a tussled mess. Glancing at his face from beneath her bangs, his mind appeared to be elsewhere, likely still at that window with a picture of bliss on the other side. Kale Heiser had once been a reasonably fit man with short, kept hair and a charming smile. Not gaunt cheeks gave him a haunted look, though the thought of returning to such an unpleasant place certainly didn’t help.

”If you’d stayed, you would’ve been able to be with them full time within a year…why escape?”

It slipped out quietly, though with the sun nearly gone in the distance and a lack of people on the small street he heard it perfectly. She saw the small flicker in his eyes as the question brought him back to the present even as he continued to watch the pair in his mind. Despite answering, his voice retained the faraway quality of his gaze, ”You’ve never had someone you care about…someone you’d be willing to risk everything for.”

He stated it so matter-of-factly it surprised her, Mao’s pace halting for just a second, ”What makes you say that?”

”Because,” and then he finally looked at her with a knowing look, ”you had to ask.”


All the way home Kale’s words churned in her head.

”Yes…it would’ve been shorter, technically…but I couldn’t go another day without knowing. It’s the ‘not knowing’ that eats away at your soul as you wonder how your loved ones are doing. Are they okay? Are they happy? Do they miss you too? So many things begin to eat away at you when you’re forced apart, whether it’s your fault or not. Even if they tack on a few months…it was worth it. I know now, and that’ll get me through the rest of my time.”

He’d gone back so peacefully in the end that it’d shocked even the guards. Even a small smile graced his no longer dazed expression, content in the fact his family was healthy, happy, and waiting for him.

It’d completely mystified both her and the guards, even if for different reasons.