Juniper waited until nightfall to enter the town

Juniper turned and walked away from the king. She strode out of the room, up the flight of stairs, and out of the building. For a moment she stood perfectly still, controlling her anger, and then she walked through and out of the abandoned city of Raltoa. She stepped over pieces of rubble, stopping only when she was several yards away from the city.

“So, now what?” She turned and looked at Robin who looked bored. Hawk was staring at a rock he had picked up, and Falcon was just looking into the distance. Juniper followed his gaze and thought, So that’s why they’re called the Mountains of Mist. In front of them was a wall of fog that seemed nearly impenetrable.

“We wait,” Juniper said, sitting on the ground. “We wait and see if the fog will lift. After that, well, I’m not quite sure.” She lay back and placed her hands behind her head, staring blankly at the sky. “I suppose I should see if my mother and sister made it any farther than Raltoa.”

“We’ll come with you,” said Hawk, and he lay down beside Juniper. “There’s no way we’d let you go on alone.”

“Right,” agreed Robin. “Even if we have fought occasionally –” Juniper glared at him, and he shrugged. “Okay, a lot. Even if we have fought for most of the time we’ve known each other, we’re still friends.”

“Why do you fight, anyway?” Falcon asked, joining the group. “I’ve never really understood how some people can fight all the time yet still be friends.”

“Well,” said Juniper, “it started when I was fifteen and had just arrived at the town that Robin lived in. I seem to recall it was a sunny day…”

A fifteen-year-old Juniper crouched on a roof, looking at the town. “I think I’ll like it here,” she said to herself, and leaned back to watch the sky.

“Hey, kid!” She lifted her head and saw a group of people about her age standing on the street. One of them was glaring at her. Juniper got up and sat on the edge of the roof. “We don’t like new people here,” the boy called. “Get out now!”

“You’ll have to catch me first!” Juniper yelled, and got up. While the group scrambled to reach the roof, Juniper leapt across to the next one, and began to race. Her bare feet scraped against the tiles, and several times she nearly fell. She glanced behind her and saw that she was widening the gap between herself and the others. With a grin, she turned her head back to the front and realized that she had just made a big mistake.

“Watch –” gasped the black-haired boy just before she ran into him. He stumbled back and began to fall. Juniper lunged forward and grabbed his ankle, struggling to keep him up.

“Hold on!” Juniper said, and began to pull him up. He grabbed the edge of the roof to help, and soon they were both lying on the hot tile, gasping.

“There she is! Let’s get her!” Juniper looked up and saw the group of people jumping onto the roof she was on. The boy rose to his feet and gripped Juniper’s hand.

“Jump,” he said, and jumped off the roof before Juniper had time to think about it. She came tumbling down after him and landed on him. They both rolled for a few feet before scrambling up and running. They stopped in the nearby woods, both out of breath but exhilarated.

“Thanks,” Juniper said. “I guess we’re even now.”

“Not quite,” the boy said, and punched her arm. “Now we are.”

“What was that for?” Juniper said, placing a hand over the sore spot.

“That was for almost getting me killed,” the boy said.

“You almost killed Robin?” Falcon asked in astonishment. “Wow.”

“And I’ve given her hell for it every day since,” said Robin, wrapping his arm around her shoulders. Juniper grinned and him and rose.

“The fog is lifting,” said Hawk, staring out at the unveiled mountains. “We should probably move and get as far away from Raltoa as possible.”

“Right,” said Juniper, walking to the edge of the hill they were on. She began to walk slowly down the side, occasionally glancing back to see if the others were following her. Her foot slipped on the damp grass, and she began to slide down. At first, she felt terrified, but then she began to laugh. Sliding down a hill was no more dangerous than fighting a giant spider, and it was a great deal more fun.

“Where now?” said Falcon, brushing himself off on the bottom of the hill.

“Now,” said Juniper, staring into the distance. “Now, we find a city. I want to find my sister.”