[b][u]Innocence Docks[/u][/b]

The evacuation was going as smoothly as could be expected, given the circumstances. Sparks tried to keep the other students from pushing as much as he could. [color=cornflowerblue]“Come on, everyone, keep it orderly. No shoving,”[/color] he called, as he helped slide yet another boat into the water. He held it steady as students started to scramble aboard. [color=cornflowerblue]“Easy now, don't tip over the boat. It won't do anyone any good then!”[/color] he cautioned. The press of students eased a little once the boat was full and he shoved it away from the dock. [color=cornflowerblue]“Get rowing,”[/color] he told those aboard. [color=cornflowerblue]“Put as much distance between you and the island as you can.”[/color] A few of the older students nodded and took up the oars as Sparks turned to help the next clump of students dragging yet another boat from storage.

As a result, he saw the nanny go down, along with the boy, and the girl slip off the dock. [color=cornflowerblue]“Bits!”[/color] he called, not in a position to do anything to help the one in the water. Instead he angled himself through the press to the two still on the dock. [color=cornflowerblue]“Back up, guys, don't trample anyone,”[/color] he called over the noise of frightened students. He arrived at the side of the pair in time to keep them from serious injury, helping the older woman up first. [color=cornflowerblue]“There you go, on your feet. You too, kiddo, up you go.”[/color]

Bits heard more than saw the girl fall into the water, followed by her brother's shout. He couldn't get to the child. She had her hands full with the waves, though they were starting to lessen. Still, they were strong enough to pull the girl under and start dragging her out to sea. [color=slateblue][i]“Can't have that,”[/i][/color] she thought to herself. [color=slateblue][i]”Not while I'm here, not when I'm already working the water.”[/i][/color] The woman shunted a wave threatening the docks to the side, before circling one hand around and around. The ocean responded, spinning around where the child had fallen. With a scooping motion, the sea surged upwards, depositing the girl on the dock again. Another quick sweep of a hand and the water in her lungs was pulled out. And then Bits had to turn her full attention back to the waves, steering another one clear of the boat that had just launched.

Sparks made it to the young girl's side soon after she was returned to land. [color=cornflowerblue]“We gotcha, kid, you're gonna be alright.”[/color] He'd seen his sister clear out the child's lungs, so all that was left was making sure she was okay.

The last thing that drowning young girl remembered was pure hatred; a gross roiling within her stomach that conjured up bile.  She’d sensed Bits’ alchemic drive spike, the water-manipulation washing over her body, purging her lungs, saving her.  Yet in that moment came another reason for the sheer contempt the child held for her own limits. [i]A love for water, the ocean, the sea breeze…[/i] What a connection, what a line… what a …

[i]String.[/i]

[color=yellow][i]‘No!’[/i][/color] she scolded herself, using Sparks’ touch to snap her out of it.

The girl’s awareness of her own hydrophobia settled beneath Sparks’ words, making her forget the immediate surroundings.  A faint blush, even in the chaos, tinged her cheeks. Her torso turned away, breaking her gaze, but it was only the lesson of gratitude that immediately brought her back to eye-contact with him. She nodded her thanks, feeling the ground beneath her bum anchoring her to reality. But as she stood shakily to her feet with the older boy’s help, an odd presence (or lack thereof) reeled her attention to her right hand.

[color=yellow][i]‘My yoyo?’[/i][/color] she thought, noting the loop had vacated her finger.

Some other young child might cry, wail, perhaps even beat the air over losing a toy, even at a time like an evacuation. Loss was a fact of life, a fact she knew rather well already. The girl pursed her lips to the side, relinquishing the possession and archiving the resolve to rebuild another one later. But then, a memory surfaced; a brief one yet prominent, for it was said that all acts start with a memory. And all of hers started with simply [i]him.[/i]

Her father; a male; a dominant presence; the phenomenon known as [i]Ethaniel Baine.[/i]

She glanced at Sparks’, feeling awkward for the silence outside her grudging thoughts. He was fighting, she could sense it. Her connection with him was so strong, so intimate, that a kind of pain caressed her chest and legs as quite a distance away, the Vile trashed him and the others with impunity. She scolded herself again, her own alchemic drive flaring up and embarrassing her; it was so hard to refrain from doing something that was natural for you. One does not truly realize the gravity of the trial until it was attempted. And for her, using alchemy was less a trial and more a mundane occurrence like breathing the air; speaking her will; moving with purpose. 

[i]Purpose.[/i] The girl seized it.

She met Sparks’ amber-brown eyes with her own green pupils. [color=yellow]“I will not forget you,”[/color] she told him with authority, her undeveloped tone void of any distinctive womanly traits.

And there, her courage fell flat. Afraid that a conversation would emerge, she walked pass him, clutching her elbows with opposing hands. But the strangeness of her words already bit into her, so she scrambled for a parting phrase; some kind of goodbye that was meaningful. What would her father say?

[color=yellow]“Until the Next,”[/color] she smiled at him sweetly with a wave, the full meaning of her father’s phrase weaseling out from underneath her comprehension.

Sparks’ eyebrows shot up at that familiar farewell, but he didn’t have time to dwell on whether it was coincidence or something more.  He glanced at the boat that was now full, then looked back at the boathouse with a sigh.  [color=cornflowerblue]“Here, kid, come with me,”[/color] he said suddenly.  Sure, children tended to bounce back quickly, but he wanted to keep an eye on the girl for a little longer, just in case.  [color=cornflowerblue]“What’s your name?  I’m Sparks, and that’s my sister Bits over there.”[/color]  He pointed.

The mulatto girl indulged Sparks’ wishes, following closely. She strained to listen as she fought back a shiver. [i]Sparks? Bits?[/i] Her green eyes narrowed to pinpoints, then she blinked and looked down. 

[color=yellow]“Zoe,”[/color] she lied, averting her gaze.

The woman at the edge of the dock was standing still now, but still facing out to sea.  The waves were dying down, and the water felt like it was done making crests big enough to cause trouble for the boats.  She took a deep breath and let it out slowly, using the familiar breathing exercise to release the remainder of the alchemic power she’d been using.  She waited until she was sure she’d let all of it go before turning to see how the evacuation was coming, walking quickly over to her brother and his young companion.  Bits gave the girl a rare smile, before looking at Sparks and tilting her head towards the boathouse. Zoe smiled back at Water Girl. For once, it felt genuine, but she had seen too many people smile with daggers in their teeth. People bite with relish.

[color=cornflowerblue]“Yup, just heading to get another round now.  Perfect timing -- you can help,”[/color] was his reply.  He tapped the shoulders of a few of the older students in passing. [color=cornflowerblue] “You guys, come with us,”[/color] he directed.  Those he selected fell in without question, for the most part, though when one of them grumbled, Sparks drew himself up to his full height. [color=cornflowerblue] “Maybe you didn’t notice the huge fight?  Or perhaps you missed Miss Julie’s orders? Do you want to get out of here or not?”[/color]  The other boy looked away, and Sparks nodded curtly.  He continued leading the little group to the boathouse.

[color=yellow][i]‘I guess I’m not actually leaving just yet,’[/i][/color] Zoe thought, listening to the conversation and keeping her eyes down. She nervously fidgeted with a ring on her right hand, her steps keeping her close to Sparks, almost at his heels. Like a dog. Her mind recalled the many lessons of her father, particularly the ‘dogs of AMRO’ one.

It didn’t take too long to drag the boats to the water.  Sparks tried once to get Zoe to talk a little, but when the girl seemed reluctant to answer, he let it go.  He was no stranger to silent partners.  As he held a vessel steady by the dock, Bits offered the girl a hand to help her aboard, to which Zoe actually accepted. However, it became apparent that she had been trembling, not just from the water, but from fear, too. She kept glancing at Bits, her eyes welling with tears, but not quite breaking. Like she was refusing to cry.  That didn’t escape the woman.  She wanted to reassure the child, but really, what could she say that wouldn’t be a lie?  Certainly not that everything would be alright -- Bits wasn’t even sure she believed this herself.  So instead, as the last student that could possibly fit in the boat climbed aboard, she said simply,  [color=slateblue]“Everyone will do their best.  You do the same.”[/color]  The words were soft, for Zoe’s ears alone.

Zoe swallowed, consternation tugging her facial features at Bits’ unexpected affectionate words. She didn’t know how to take this. Most of the time such things flew over her head, but at times like this, it felt more like a brick wall. Her nostrils flared as she nodded, though it was a lie. She didn’t really understand. If everyone did their best, why did they die? If they died, were they not doing their best? She then realized she was still holding Bits’ hand, yet as the boat rocked beneath her, she refused to let go. The boat started to drift away slowly, even as Zoe’s eyes stayed glued in stark terror to Bits’ gaze. 

[color=yellow]“My dad is going to kill you two,”[/color] she whispered to Bits and Sparks, tears suddenly breaking free and racing down her cheeks.  Sparks looked surprised and a bit confused, but he wasn’t the one next to Zoe at the moment.  In a single smooth motion Bits grabbed the girl around the waist, lifting her up and depositing her on the dock again, which caused Zoe to inhale sharply and tuck her limbs in so that she resembled an odd human-shaped ball.

[color=cornflowerblue]“What the heck are you doing, Bits, she needs to get out of here!”[/color] Sparks exclaimed.  It was too late to go back -- the action had pushed the boat away and the rowers didn’t seem inclined to wait for the girl.  Bits just tilted her head, and placed her free hand on the child’s head.  [color=cornflowerblue]“She wants to stay?   I don’t think that matters right now -- honestly, sometimes I don’t understand what you’re thinking, Bits.”[/color]

At Bits’ touch, Zoe fell down to her knees, her legs spreading out to form a W next to the woman’s feet. She didn’t fight the feeling of her hand, but she just couldn’t stop trembling. It numbed what could have been a gesture she’d enjoy. As the two argued in their own special way, she eyed the boat, then their shoes. Then the individual grains of the pier’s boards. Her shoulders slumped. [color=yellow][i]‘What have I done? … I’m so stupid. I can’t… why am I like…’[/i][/color] And then she had to go and say [i]that[/i] thing, which confused her even more. She wiped her eyes with the back of her tiny hands. Why would Daddy want to kill these two?

Bits looked down at the girl slumped at her feet.  She wasn’t entirely sure what had prompted her to listen to the child’s silent plea, but it was too late to change it now.  The three of them were the last ones on the dock.  It was time to join the battle, as hopeless as that might be.  She caught her brother’s eye for a moment, before reaching down to help Zoe up.  He sighed.  [color=cornflowerblue]“Right, well, I guess you’re stuck with us now, Zoe.  Bits seems to think you should get to decide for yourself what you want to do right now, but I’m going to tell you straight up.  This is not a fight I’m expecting to survive--”[/color]

[color=yellow]“--then why fight it?”[/color] she interrupted, glancing up, then looking away.
[color=cornflowerblue]“Why fight it?”[/color] the teen echoed.  [color=cornflowerblue]“Well...sometimes there’s things that you have to do, even if you don’t live through them, I guess.  Miss Julie’s fighting, and there’s some friends of mine that are staying back.  Maybe I won’t be much help, but I’m going to do what I can.  Bits has her own reasons.”[/color]
Bits didn’t bother voicing her reasons, but she’d always expected alchemy to kill her one day.  And going out fighting seemed better than waiting to go insane, anyhow.  If Sparks had wanted to run she would have run with him, but with him staying, she could hardly do otherwise.

Zoe nodded at Sparks’ explanation, not really understanding fully. She could now see him, because he spoke. He impressed upon her, and that tickled her mind. It was odd, really. His words alone just felt like a string that pulled her head up, forced her to focus on him. But courage, even when imparted, was fleeting. She considered her thoughts as she stood to her feet, lightly brushing up against Bits’ side. 

[color=yellow]“Well… I may be wrong, but I’ve seen… seen my own death,”[/color] Zoe lied to them, [color=yellow]“and it is not today…”[/color]

She looked at them, her eyes darting to and fro Sparks’ intimidating features and Bits’ quiet demeanor.  The pair exchanged looks.  Neither one believed her, but neither was willing to say anything about it either.  [color=cornflowerblue]“Right, then let’s go see what else we can do to help, hm?”[/color] Sparks said instead, with a lopsided smile, as they turned and started inland.

As she followed them, Zoe mirrored Sparks’ silly grin, causing excitement to course through her little body. [color=yellow] “Yeah, let’s!” [/color] she smiled back, almost [i]psychotically.[/i]