Guilt, shame, in the pouring rain

[Anonymous]

"They are no longer your countrymen."

"I know," Josiah recognized, watching the storm rage onwards outside. "There's no way a real Mordecai would do this kind of thing, after all." The Mordecai were people that protected mages from their own sin— they helped them become involved in the church and make new lives for themselves, after all.

A real Mordecai wouldn't kidnap and take them away from their homes if they weren't doing anything wrong. He let out a long held-in sigh, shaking his head— talk of Mordecai reminded him too much of back home. He remembered the look the Mordecai had given him when he asked if they knew where Jessie had went, and how they didn't care to find out.

 She was gone, because she had been a mage and hadn't joined the church. She had kept it hidden— had sinned.

That memory made it a little easier for Josiah to reconcile with the fact that they may have to fight Mordecai in the future. "You're right," Josiah agreed with a sigh. "If they're rogue Mordecai, they should be put down anyway. We don't need people like them giving real hardworkin' Mordecai a bad name." He bit his lip, looking out at the storm — the quicker they could hunt for clues, the better. "Do ya think this storm will ever let up?"

[Thief]

"Don't know," Jack answered, "I don't plan on walking back in it though. No sense in getting ourselves sick." Lightning flashed in the distance, and Jack began counting to himself. A few seconds later, there was a low rumble of thunder. "We'll just have to wait it out." Another flash of lightning, and he was counting again. This time, the thunder took a few extra seconds to follow. "The good news is that it's already moving away from us."

Jack sat back, listening intently to the sounds beyond the curtain of rain that obscured the view from their shelter. With every lightning strike, he counted the time until the thunderclap followed. Each time, the storm was passing further and further away.

Jack could feel the strain on his eyes, evidence of his lack of sleep. Now was as good a time as any to relax. He popped open one of his pouches, producing a full waterskin. He took a sip and offered it to Josiah. "I warn you, it's not water." It was tea, and not that weak brew from the town's tavern either. But then again, not everyone was a fan of strong tea.

[Anonymous]

As the thunder rumbled in the distance, Josiah could only hope that Ansgar would lend him some good luck on this journey. The storm, he knew, would pass — it was just a matter of when, was all. But Josiah, if anything, was patient; despite his anxiety, he knew he could ride out the storm. His rural home had seen enough storms to teach Josiah how to properly wait one out. Just count the booming strikes of thunder — it would tell you all you'd need to know.

As Jack passed him a waterskin, Josiah looked at it curiously, before taking it tentatively. "Not water, huh..." he asked, staring into the waterskin, taking a quick sniff. It wasn't alcohol, from what he could smell, so he decided to take a swig, not waiting for Jack to answer. It had a strange taste — was it tea? — but it was drinkable, refreshing, even. "It's no water, but it's pretty good! What is this stuff, anyway?" He handed it back to Jack, spirits brightened a little. "Thanks," he noted, grateful.

"So I don't think you ever told me," Josiah started, taking off his hat and dusting stray bits of dirt from it. "So I apologize if it's too pushy of a question, but... why were you interested in this caravan, anyway?" He had been grateful that someone had shared an interest in all this, but he hadn't even stopped to think about why. "I mean, you know about my sister, but... what about you?" Was he merely curious — another sleuther like him? Or was there something more to it?

[Thief]

Jack took the water skin from Josiah. "It's tea," he answered, taking another swig, "I brewed it myself." He set the waterskin within reach, and leaned back against the rock. There was another flash of lightning, and he counted the seconds once more.

His question got Jack's attention. He could not recall if he had mentioned anything to him about Scarlet. He really was not sure how Josiah would take the news the Jack's friend was a mage, but he was confident it would not be much concern. He said his sister had practiced magic, but things were always different for family.

With no other way to find out, Jack just decided to be partially honest. "I have reason to believe a friend of mine was on board with the travelers. A woman named Scarlet, with red eyes and matching red hair. She knows a bit of magic herself, and I know how she hates walking when she's tired, so I believe she bartered her way into the caravan."

Though 'friend' was a bit of a stretch, the rest was true. He knew she was on the caravan, and she had definitely been there at the ambush. The tranquilizer powder had probably prevent her from fighting back, as she probably did not realize what was going on until it was too late. For someone so fast, she could be a little slow to catch on when traps were involved.

[Anonymous]

"Magic, huh..." Josiah mused. It made sense — his friend must've been taken by whoever had intercepted the caravan, if she was on it. He frowned a little, crossing his arms over his chest. "It seems like all knowing magic ever does is get people into trouble."

Jessie — he couldn't fault her, not really. If she had told the church she knew magic, she would've been taken away from them, away from the farm, away from everything that was her home. It wasn't like she practiced it, it wasn't like she embraced the sin inside her. So why had things turned out like it had?

With his situation the way it was — being related to a mage and trying to help a mage, even — he could pass no faulty judgment on Jack's friend. This whole magic debacle — those who used it, those who didn't — it was easier in Connlaoth, everything was so black and white. But out here, magic was seen as good, useful even. And Josiah, not knowing what to think about it all... decided, well, maybe it was better if he didn't think anything about it at all.

"I hope we find your friend as well," Josiah told him, and he meant it. Magic or no, he was sure no one deserved this kind of fate. Ansgar forgive him, but that was just how he felt. "If it turns out to be rogue Mordecai doing this, I don't think I'll be able to forgive 'em, for what they've been doin'..."

A thought came to him, a question he had been avoiding. "Are you a magic-user too, like your friend?" It hadn't even occurred to him that he might be working with a magic-user. But at this point, the answer didn't even matter. He was sure he could trust Jack, and that was all that was important, really.

[Thief]

"Trouble would find people even without magic, but magic doesn't always help either." In fact, the more Jack thought about it, the more it seemed like Josiah was right. Most of the trouble Scarlet got herself into was because of her abilities.

Then, Josiah asked him something he hoped they could avoid. He asked if Jack was a mage. Being from Connlaoth, Josiah he been raised to believe that magic was a sin. While Jack could not perform any actual magic, his ability was not exactly normal. "Yes and no," Jack answered hesitantly. "Honestly, I can't do even the most simple magic. However, I do have this ability that allows me to transport myself or objects anywhere I choose in an instant."

Of course, talking about magic, or even saying you were a mage, was not what Connlaothans saw as sinful, it was actually performing the magic that was wrong. Jack needed to know he was okay with Jack using his ability. "If you'd like, I can show you how it works."

[Anonymous]

Josiah studied the man carefully, wondering what it must be like — to have magical abilities, and live in a place where everyone thought that sort of thing was perfectly fine. Despite all of the time he had spent out of Connlaoth, he still couldn't shake that uncomfortable feeling whenever he saw someone perform magic. To be the witness of sin, and to just dismiss it, as if it were nothing was still a troublesome feat for him to pull off, even though he still felt that he could trust Jack.

But still, to watch him execute his magic... Would it alleviate his anxiety towards Jack's powers, or would it only make him more nervous? He knew that not everyone who possessed magic was sinful, just as Jessie hadn't been, but... He thought hard on it, biting his lip, wondering what Jessie would've liked for him to do in this situation. He guessed... no, he knew, Jessie would've wanted him to see his ability in action, at least once. If they were partners in this, then he'd need to be able know what he could do.

So the Connlaothian nodded, honey brown eyes looking on at Jack. "Yeah," Jo replied firmly, "I'd like to see how it works."

[Thief]

Jack was still unsure how he might react. He could not say that he fully trusted Josiah, but he trusted that the young man would not try to harm him. He might still believe that magic was evil, not that Jack would disagree, but he seemed to have accepted it anyway. Jack thought of magic like any other tool, it's the one wielding it who decides whether to use it for good or evil.

Still, Jack decided to ease into this, and start with the most basic trick he could do. "It's not very impressive," Jack said, closing his hand around a dagger that was not there a moment before. "Some might think it was just sleight of hand. But I assure you, I'm not hiding daggers up my sleeves." With a quick blink, the dagger vanished, as if it had not been there in the first place.

"Of course, there is more I can do, but it's essentially all the same thing." It was odd to think of it that way, but it was the truth. Whether it was grabbing objects out of thin air, or transporting himself somewhere far away, it all worked the same way. "I really don't like using my ability much, I never have. But, there are times when it is useful."

[Anonymous]

Josiah's eyes widened as the dagger suddenly disappeared from Jack's hand. Looking up to Jack, and then back to his hand where the dagger no longer lay, he was loss for words. During his travels, he had seen magic yes — but all of it had been flashy and full of panache — it was detectable, a force you could see coming from a mile away. What surprised him about Jack's magic was how subtle it had been, how smooth the dagger had disappeared. Magic, he supposed, came in all shapes and sizes.

"That was...something," Josiah muttered, not sure how to describe what he felt without offending him. "Your magic is... different, I guess, from what I've heard, or even seen. It's very practical, I would say." He wasn't sure if that was an offensive way to put it or not. "Not that all magic users aren't practical! Ah, you know what I mean?"

He shook his head, adjusting his fedora. "I guess what I'm saying is — I'm okay, you know, with your magic," he explained, smiling a little. "Hell, it might even be useful when we're out there investigatin' — when the rain stops." He looked out at the rain, deciding it'd be better to stop talking. He hadn't been out of Connlaoth long enough to know how to talk about magic with friendly magic users. He still was such an obvious fish out of water.

[Thief]

Jack was not surprised that Josiah looked a bit shocked. Although, he did say that he was okay with Jack's use of magic. "Yeah, it's useful at times." Jack said, "But, it can be trouble at others."

Jack noticed the thunder growing more distant, but the rain was continuing to pour. Though the threat of being struck by lightning was gone, there was still the threat of the two of them catching an illness from walking in the rain. He had hoped the rain would pass, but it looked as though it might continue for a while still. Now was as good a time as any to test the waters.

"What do you say to us getting out of the rain right now?" Jack asked, hoping this would not be too much for Josiah. "I can get us out of here using my ability, but it won't be the most comfortable travel." In fact, most of Jack's 'passengers' mention feeling suffocated, and tend to feel out of breath afterwards. "I can get us back to town in an instant."

[Anonymous]

At Jack's suggestion, Josiah looked down at his hands, taking a deep breath. It was all well and good to accept someone's different abilities, but... to actually use them, well, he was certain Ansgar would look down on that. After all, it was laziness, wasn't it? That's what the clergymen had always taught him. To make use of magic was to undermine human potential — to weaken the body, mind, and spirit.

Still, if it meant tracking down Jessie faster by getting out of this storm... what did he have to lose? True, if Jack had not been with him, he would've been content to wait out this storm. But to turn up a chance to make things easier... would Jessie want him to take this chance? He thought not, but who knew how long the storm would continue to rage onwards?

"I... uh..." Josiah began, not sure where to start. "If it'll guess us to town quicker, I can't very well say no." He nodded, as if to affirm the decision he was making with himself. "Sure, go on ahead and take us back. I'll—" He bit his lip, and nodded again. "I'll be fine with it." He wasn't entirely sure, but this was as close to sure as he could possibly get.

[Thief]

Josiah was hesitant, but he had been tolerant so far. Jack did not want to push him too far. He knew he would need Josiah's help to find the tranquilizer powder, but he also wanted to help the young man find his sister. It would not be beneficial if Josiah refused cooperate with him because of his ability.

"Okay, I'm going to need you to close your eyes, and take a few deep breaths. You'll need to keep your eyes closed until I say you can open them." He pictured the inn back in town, where the street would be clear due to the rain. He could clearly see the building in his mind. "Tell me when you're ready, and then you'll need to hold your breath." Jack placed his hand on Josaih's shoulder, and waited to hear if he Was ready.

If Josiah decided to go, he would feel a moment of cold and a feeling like he was falling. He would open his eyes to find himself standing beside Jack, in the street in front of the inn. He would also feel like he was completely out of breath, as if he had been holding it for a long while. Hopefully the experience would not be too much for him.