His thoughts ran from one subject to the next, all in an effort to make sure his plans for escape would go off without a hitch. He held up a small, crude carving of an owl he had made a few nights ago.

The rotten piece of wood he had found near the eastern edge of the grounds still smelled of earth and was soft to the touch. With a grunt, threw it against the wall where it broke into a few damp pieces, and clattered against the stone floor.

'At least outside in the forest, I'll be able to find decent wood to work with,' he thought. So many emotions welled up inside him. Excitement at his new future, fear that he would be discovered and punished for his wild idea of freedom, and wonder at the prospect of forging out on his own. All these things and more bit at him and kept him awake long into the night.

Eventually, though, he fell into a restless sleep, his body too excited to relax fully. The few dreams he did manage to have were faded, foggy around the edges, and hard to remember. They were inconsequential dreams, but he still clung to them as if they were the very fuel he needed to remain asleep.

Alas, before he knew it and much too soon, Molly was at his door to wake him for the journey. He rose out of bed with a groan, regret filling him as he wished for five more minutes of blissful sleep. He thanked her for waking him so early and let out a long exhausted yawn. With one eye closed he slowly squinted around the dimly lit room. Dawn had not yet broken, and he knew that he still had some time left before it would.

With a dry swallow, he rose and almost knocked down a small platter of food Molly must have left him at the edge of his bedside table. He eyed the platter, taking note of the mug of water, bowl of oatmeal, a fried egg, and three slices of toast. He pushed the plate back into place and stretched before he began his morning routine.

He took a long drink from the mug Molly had brought him, swishing the last bit of it around his mouth before he spat it out the window. He increased the number of actions in his workout from fifteen to twenty in an effort to improve himself faster and ready his body for whatever might be waiting in the weeks to come.

Afterward, he quickly devoured the lukewarm food, savoring every bite of the breakfast. It soon occurred to him that this would be the last time for a long time that he ever tasted something she had made for him. He had known that going through with this plan of his would mean that they’d have to be apart for an unknown amount of time.

He had always loved the food she made for him. Normally servants ate whatever the head chef had prepared but Cypher was different. Molly had her ways and always wormed her way into the kitchens to make him something with her own hands. He had always admired how she found the time to tend to him while still maintaining her own duties around the mansion.

After a while, Molly returned to bring him another mug of water which he gratefully accepted and drank. She took his empty dishes away then, and returned again after ten minutes or so with a fresh set of clothes tucked under her arm for him.

With a grunt of thanks, he took them, and while her back was turned, changed into them quickly. The thick wool leggings scratched at his legs and irritated him but fit perfectly. To his dismay, the moss green wool tunic he wore fared no better but he would wear them to make Molly happy. He was grateful to have yet another memento of her and would cherish these clothes long after he outgrew them. He secured his belt around his waist and slipped on his boots, tying them tightly around his calves.

Soon, the sun would rise and it would be time for him to go. Keeping Eiden waiting on his long-awaited day of departure would not be a good idea, so Cypher hopped up to gather his things and leave before his time ran out. Molly bade him farewell as he slung his heavy pack over his shoulders. She pulled him into a firm hug and Cypher felt the pangs of sadness tug at his heart as he once against realized yet another thing he would sorely miss about her.

"Make sure you look after yourself now you hear?" She began, sadness cracking her voice as tears once again started to well up in her eyes. "I don't want to find out that you've been neglecting your health or anything of the sort. Keep your clothes clean. Take your baths. Make sure you're eating well..." She listed off several more things as she started softly crying.

As they walked out of the manor, Cypher was overcome with emotion. There were so many things he wanted to say to her. Memories from his entire life flashed through his mind. Every kindness, every scolding, and every laugh the two of them had shared were little treasures he would carry with him. She had been there through his best days but also his worst. No matter what he had to say she was always there to listen, always there to care for him.

Was it right to leave her like this? She didn’t, couldn’t know what he was planning. There had been many times over the last couple of weeks when he’d wanted to tell her everything. He had kept thinking to himself, ‘What if there was a way for her to come with me? Couldn’t I at least talk to her about this and see what she thinks?’ But deep down he knew that he couldn’t bring himself to utter the words.

He highly doubted that she’d scold him for simply wanting something more from life than to be bullied, ignored, or treated with disdain by people who couldn’t care less what happened to him. It was no secret how Eiden treated him and everyone in the mansion knew how Galex and Tyrina just turned a blind eye. How could they not? If Cypher was planning to leave this life behind and run away from it all who could blame him?

But Molly had always been very persuasive. She always knew just what to say to set him on the right track. She always knew, and that was part of why he loved her so much. The truth of the matter was, Cypher was afraid that this decision, this plan of his to run away might just be the wrong choice.

If it was, Molly would find a way to talk him out of it. His gut told him that telling her the truth would only lead to her convincing him to abandon such a reckless idea. He knew full well that going out into the wilderness was stupid. His past experiences had shown him as much. Ruthless bandits, Zightbeasts, random acts of misfortune, all of these things could find him wholly unprepared. This too scared him.

When all was said and done he was only a child who knew how to fight. He had grown strong and gained a lot of skill but he was still only a child. Fear of failure. Fear of dying. None of that really mattered to him. What really bothered him most was letting Molly down. But Cypher had already made his decision a long time ago. There was no turning back from this now.

‘What was it that Jelroy had said?’ he thought to himself.

“It takes real skill to know when and when not to run away from a battle.”

His entire life so far had been a battle. A battle against his lot in life. A battle against the fact that no matter what he did or accomplished he would always be less than some shitty little brat born to powerful parents. If his life was truly such a battle then the only way he could continue to survive was to run away to consolidate his power and fight another day.

Cypher didn't know if he would ever see Molly again, but if he wanted to be anything, to have anything in this life then this was his only option. Despite all of that, he still wanted her to know how much she meant to him before that time came. Without a second thought, he ran up and embraced Molly in another mighty hug. His tears were already gathering in the corners of his eyes as he said his goodbyes.

"I will miss you, Molly. More than you could ever imagine. I'll make you proud out there I promise. I hope that one day, you no longer have to work for these rich snobs and can find a life for yourself doing what makes you happy. I love you." Molly burst into another round of tears and hugged him back.

The two shared that close embrace for several moments before she pushed him back and, as she always did, placed a kiss on his forehead. Cypher cherished that familiar feeling and engraved it into his mind. He knew that lingering any longer would cause his conviction to waver, and so, wiping his tears away and giving her hand a firm squeeze he pulled away and started towards his carriage.

“Cypher?” Molly began and he turned to face her once more. “I love you too and…” she hesitated, nervously tugging at the ends of her apron, “be safe out there in the wide world and make me proud, okay?” Her face was red and puffy from the crying, but a smile still spread across it. However, along with that smile came a look of knowing that Cypher was all too familiar with.

A pained chuckle escaped his lips as understanding dawned on him. Without even needing to say a word to her she had still read him like a book. He had no idea how much she knew about his plans but there was no doubt that she could see what he had in mind. Almost like fulfilling a prophecy the age-old adage held true; A mother always knows.

Not wanting to say more and alert her to the full scope of his schemes he ran off with his head held low and scrambled onto the carriage in the rear. Eiden would laugh at him if he saw the tears that streamed down his face, but he no longer cared.

The familiar guard that sat in the carriage with him took notice of his tears and turned to look out the window to try and give the boy some privacy. Cypher didn't care if he saw. Agnad was only there to act as an escort to both Cypher and Eiden on their journey, it wasn’t his place to comment on the tears of a young boy bidding his mother farewell for several years for all he knew.

Agnad leaned against the seat, his thick, slightly pudgy arms crossed as Cypher silently wept across from him. It was awkward for both of them but neither spoke about it opting instead to remain quiet. Eiden came bounding out of the front doors of the manor a few moments later, his own pack slung across his back.

Eiden said his farewells to his mother and sisters, but it was a wholly different goodbye than the one that Cypher had shared with Molly. It was one made with the understanding that only a few short years would pass before they saw one another again. Another luxury that Eiden possessed that Cypher did not.

Cypher heard a few muffled words, and then they began to move. The vehicles rocked gently as they slid around the fountain and headed for the front gates stopping only to allow the well-oiled protectors of the Galvan mansion to swing open.

Cypher turned to stare out the back window as they began moving again. He gazed at the manor for what he hoped was the final time. He wiped away another stream of tears as he watched Molly's round figure grow smaller and smaller from a window on the second floor.

As he returned to his seat, he pulled his knees up and hugged them tightly. He could still smell Molly’s scent on his clothes. It was a mixture of baked goods and lavender and had always brought him comfort in the past. Now, however, it only served to reignite the feelings of loss in his heart.

Right on cue and as if they had never stopped, his tears began flowing again as the intense emotions took hold of him once more and the carriages ferried him off towards an unknown future.