Magnus had been conscripted to the army. He realized that he would have to leave home and his friends and family. This, however, excited him. A new place, new people, and real danger. Magnus got a real thrill when thinking about the dangers of war. He did not yet know the fallacies of his current thought, still not fully matured.
Even so, Magnus now had to attend basic training in one week. This was an abrupt change of lifestyle, but Magnus was sure he could handle it. Having to spread the news of what had transpired quickly, Magnus ran over to his friends' houses to tell them.
"You're really going to go fight in the war? You lucky dog!" shouted Emmanuel, the most energetic of Magnus' friends. "Just you wait," continued the boisterous, short boy, "I'll get my conscription notice soon too, and then we can be army buddies and tell our grandchildren our tales of war!"
Grandchildren...
The girl's name popped into Magnus' head. They had been officially seeing each other for the past year, as Magnus finally gathered up the courage to ask her out. Magnus darted over to her house, somewhat eager and somewhat anxious to tell her he got the Letter of Fate.
That night, everyone wondered why Magnus returned home with a goofy grin on his face, and why it stayed there even during dinner.
"So, Magnus, you going to tell us why you're smiling like that?" Julius asked, surveying the table for other prying eyes, eager to hear what had transpired.
Magnus replied that the girl had agreed to marry him if he returned alive from the war.
"What?!" was the shout heard around the neighborhood, originating from the Licinius household, as all of Magnus' siblings expressed their surprise in the loudest manner possible.
Magnus' stepfather then interjected, "Well, it's only natural."
"Only natural?! What is that even supposed to mean?!" shouted Christopher, extremely oblivious in the ways of romance, just as he had been in middle school.
Magnus' mother then added to the conversation, "Congratulations Magnus, I'm very happy that I'll have grandchildren soon."
"Grandchildren? Grandchildren?! This is progressing way too fast for my taste." responded James, the oldest of the sibling sextet, who was already married but without children and had stopped by for dinner without his wife.
Magnus wasn't listening to the conversation anymore. He was lost in thought, thinking about his future with that girl and all his war stories, if he survived, that is.
The child then heard shouts calling to him and said to Magnus, "I better go before they find me in here. I'll come back tomorrow night, OK? You better be here when I get back."
Magnus replied sarcastically "It's not like I can go anywhere."
The child, not hearing what Magnus had retorted under his breath, then said, "Bye bye!", opened the heavy door and snuck out, closing the door as quietly as possible.
Magnus then thought to himself, "I wonder if that kid can help me...", the gears of his mind starting to turn while he sat in that God-forsaken dungeon.