Mia was in perfect darkness. There wasn't a single speck of light in the tunnel around her. Everything was so still and silent that the sound of her own breathing sounded jarring. When Mia paused and held very still, she could faintly hear the sound of Lu and Ruby talking behind her. But she couldn't make out what they were saying. As she moved forward, the tunnel became more and more narrow.
The shadows wrapped around her like a blanket. This... was wonderful. No one could find her here. No one could hurt her here. It felt as if the deeper she went into the city the safer she would be. Now Mia could make out more sounds coming from all around her. If only she could stay down here forever.
She would be able to hear everything that happened up above. But she wouldn't have to leave this shadowy little hideout of hers. Voices came and went. Footsteps sounded up above. Mia pushed forward. A part of her wanted to lie down, close her eyes and go to sleep right there. This messenger idea was the best idea that she had ever had. This was perfect for her.
The tunnels seemed to wrap themselves around her. She felt as if the city was giving her one giant hug. Now Mia could tell that she was growing closer and closer to some of the noises. Was she already almost there? Mia didn't want to be almost there. She wanted to stay in the tunnels forever. But she had a job to do.
That was why she had decided to do this in the first place. Mia knew that she couldn't lose sight of that. At last, she caught sight of a pale light ahead. It seemed so strange and unnatural, surrounded by all the dark shadows. Mia's tunnel led out into a small clearing, similar to the one that Lu had in her apartment. Slowly, Mia stepped out into the pale light.
"Hello?" she whispered.
"Hello." The voice made Mia flinch. She hadn't noticed the doll standing by the tunnel. The doll's black dress blended perfectly with the shadows. "Do you have something for me?" asked the doll.
"Y-yeah, you’re Alice, right?" said Mia. She held out the letter to Alice. Suddenly Mia felt microscopic. Standing next to Lu had made Mia feel small. But Alice was several times taller than her. Mia wanted to crawl back into her tunnel and forget how small she was. But she waited until Alice had taken the letter. Alice didn't say another word. She simply turned and left. Mia felt sorry for any doll who had ever had to fight Alice. Even without powers, Alice was clearly a threat. Mia watched as Alice left. She didn't glance back at Mia. She didn't ask any questions. How strange.
Well, that was Alice. Now Mia had met another one of the rebel unit’s leaders. Alice didn't seem like Lu or Ivy. But then again, Mia still didn't know much about her. There was no point in constantly comparing Lu to Ivy anyway. Mia rolled her eyes at her own foolishness and turned back to the tunnel. It was time for her to head back home. She had done her work for the night. Pride swelled up in Mia's chest. Yes, she had helped. She had been useful. That was what she had wanted. That was what mattered.
The shadows gently swallowed up Mia once more as she slipped into the darkness. Mia moved slowly and carefully, savoring the peace that the tunnel brought her. The rope led her right back to Lu's apartment. Alice and Lu must really live very close to each other. Perhaps it was the city’s layout that made it difficult for them to visit each other.
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The tunnels cut right under the buildings. No wonder Lu had been excited about Mia's idea. This really did make things much more efficient. Before she even knew what was happening, Mia found herself stumbling back into Lu's apartment. Ruby rushed over to her side without hesitating for a moment. She pulled Mia into a tight hug.
"Did it go okay? Are you alright? Did anything bad happen?" Ruby asked breathlessly. Mia could feel Ruby shaking. Gosh, Mia hadn't realized how hard this would be for Ruby.
"I'm fine! It went well! Alice got my letter and everything. Honestly, it was much easier than I thought it would be," said Mia. Lu walked over to her.
"It might feel easy, but what you have done has made my life much easier. This idea that you had really is very brilliant!" said Lu. Those wonderful, wonderful words filled Mia. She closed her eyes and tried to imagine those words coming out of Ivy's mouth. Ivy needed to know about this! She needed to see how useful she had been.
This was everything that Mia had ever wanted. Mia just sat perfectly still for a moment, savoring the pride and joy as it washed over her. This might be a small job, and it probably wasn't as helpful as fighting or working in the tunnels. But it was something. It was something that Mia had thought of all by herself, and it was something that Lu seemed to be really thankful for.
Lu seemed nice but she also didn't seem like the kind of person who went around flattering people left and right. That was exactly why Mia savored her praise. Lu was being honest. Ivy had been the same way. Ivy didn't praise anyone without good reason. That was exactly why Ivy's praise meant so much to Mia.
"May we head home now, Lu?" Ruby asked after a few minutes.
"Of course." Lu smiled at them. "You've already helped more than enough." Those were such wonderful words to hear. "Oh, before you go, I meant to ask you something. Have either of you two seen Blossom today?"
"We played in the games with her this morning. But we haven't seen her since. Why do you ask?" said Ruby. At that, Lu's shoulders slumped slightly.
"Last night after you left, I told her about the glass and how it really works. She was very shocked. I-I just wanted to know if she was doing alright," said Lu. Mia frowned. Blossom had been acting very cheerful that morning. At least that was how it had seemed to Mia.
"I-I hope it doesn't hurt her too much," whispered Ruby. "But you know, it is awful. I can see how news like that would destroy someone," she added. "Honestly, I find it hard to keep fighting when I know what I'm doing is pointless."
"It might not be pointless," Lu said softly.
"But they have so much power over us. We can't even keep secrets from them. They're probably watching us right now," whispered Ruby.
"But they haven't punished us. We are still here. We are still breathing. That means they have allowed us to live for better or for worse. Perhaps that means that they need us for something, or at least they care enough about us to keep us around," said Lu.
"What do you mean? I-I just don't understand why that is a good thing. Doesn't that mean that we are just going to be trapped here forever?"
"Well, I don't know what the future holds for us. But the fact that they haven't killed us tells me that we have some use that may go deeper than just watching us suffer. If they need us, then they can't afford to lose us. That suggests that we do have some unknown power. It might not be a lot of power. But that idea still gives me a little bit of hope," said Lu. Ruby didn't answer. There was another long pause. Mia liked that idea; it brought her hope to. Power? What kind of power? What did the humans want from them besides entertainment? Maybe someday she would find out.