In the Open Cage

Chapter 28

"Yawo, how nice it is to see you again." Sha'ka smiled at Min-Min, who purred softly against the witch's long, skinny legs.

Misa heaved the oars, her arms beginning to tire. It was still worth the experience. Misa never dreamed she'd ride a boat, let alone use oars. There was something quite relaxing about it. Dip, pull, lift. Dip, pull, lift. Rhythmic. Like drum beats. "You've met before?"

"Once," Sha'ka said, running her fingers through Min-Min's belly. "Brin and I sensed a distress call, and when we investigated, we found this cat waiting for us. I believe it was you that night."

Misa tried not to stiffen. The night she had almost gotten caught as a witch in a purgehouse officer's costume. Min-Min had saved her life.

"I didn't mean to. Min-Min scared the living daylights out of me, and it sort of just...happened. Naughty thing. She gets around a lot. But she's quite friendly, I think."

Except towards the captain and Rithian. Those two seemed to rub Min-Min the wrong way.

Fortunately, before Sha'ka could ask any questions, a subtle bump against the boat signaled the shore. Misa rowed a few more times before Sha'ka dunked her ankles in the water and pulled the boat to land.

"We should wait for Royle," Misa said, tying a rope from the boat to a post that had been hammered into the earth. The lake was a common place for boating, Misa suspected, though it was probably more popular during the spring or fall, when the weather wasn't so unbearable. Still, there were a few boats on the shore, one of which she was sure belonged to Nisha.

"Royle," Sha'ka tested the name, and a slight accent rolled off her tongue. "If you trust him with your secret, he must be someone very special to you. Your lover, perchance?"

Misa choked. She coughed until Sha'ka handed her the water carton. "What? No, it's nothing like that. I..." Misa recalled the kiss, so soft and sweet. "I mean, well, I..."

"You haven't confessed to him, yet?" Sha'ka raised a pierced brow.

Misa shook her head. "That's never going to happen. I...there are reasons, Sha'ka. Reasons I can't be with him."

With a sigh, Misa took a seat on the edge of the boat. Min-Min rubbed against her leg, and she ran her hand over the cat affectionately. Why did it seem like everyone was coming to the same conclusion? That she and Royle were...

That couldn't be true. But maybe it was. Misa just didn't know. "Sha'ka? How do you...know if you're making the right decision?"

"The right decision?" Sha'ka tilted her head. "What exactly do you mean?"

Misa drew a line in the sand, circling her finger over and over. "When you must make a choice between two things that are very, very precious to you...How do you know which one to pick? How do you know which is the right one?"

"Ah." Sha'ka bent her legs, so she was at Misa's level. "A battle of the heart."

Misa nodded. "If I pick one, I can't have the other. What do I do?"

"Why not?" Sha'ka said. "If you truly desire two opposing choices, why not pave a path in which both may come together?"

"Both?" Misa pursed her lips. "How?"

"That is for you to figure out, now isn't it?"

"But..." Misa contemplated on divulging her inner turmoil. She chose her words carefully. "One path leads to freedom, and the other...will trap me. I want to see the world, Sha'ka, but if I choose wrong, I might stay trapped forever. I don't know what to do."

"Do you believe you truly love something if you feel it traps you?"

Misa didn't know how to reply. The thought was strangely uncomfortable, as if it would somehow expose her.