Into the Gray

by Geanna Culbertson

  “Count on it,” he said as I steered Chance away. “Call me tomorrow.”

  “Depends how late I stay out.”

  “Crisa.”

  “Calm, calm,” I teased over my shoulder.

  Chance and I found a new table out of my brother’s line of sight. Once settled, Chance held up the tiny taco. “I got you this.”

  “My hero,” I replied. I took it, smelled it—carnitas—then ate it.

  “So, what’d you get?” I asked, alluding to the goblet.

  “It’s supposed to be a delicacy from another world.” Chance angled the goblet so I could see the peach-colored contents. “It’s called an Arnold Palmer.”

  “Neat,” I replied.

  We leaned against the table for a minute without saying anything to each other. Uncomfortable date lull.

  “So I guess Evette is going to be queen of Midveil then,” Chance said after a bit. “That’s a big deal. I wonder if she’s nervous.”

  “She’s not going to be queen of Midveil.”

  “Surely your parents removed Alex from the line of succession after he betrayed them? I know Pietro is adopted, but I’m certain they would be happy to have him as heir to their throne.”

  “They would be,” I said. “The problem is that Pietro turned them down. Pietro doesn’t want to be king. He’s seceding from the role and leaving the throne to me. I’m next in line now.”

  Chance considered the revelation with the weightiness it deserved. “You’re going to be queen of Midveil,” he said with great care in his tone like he was thinking out loud.

  “Eventually,” I replied.

  “You don’t seem thrilled.”

  “It’s a lot to take in. I never once considered that Alex wouldn’t inherit the crown—he was always so perfect—so I never prepared. Then there’s the whole end-of-the-world thing that the antagonists are plotting. So who knows what the realm will even be like in a year, or if we’ll even be alive. And then—if we do make it through everything—I’m not even sure I would make a good queen.”

  “That’s ridiculous,” Chance replied. “You’re smart, kind, a natural leader, and the fiercest defender of what’s right that I’ve ever known. There are plenty of queens that don’t have the moral character you do.”

  “That’s sweet,” I said. “But none of those queens have Pure Magic Disease. I still don’t know what’s in the cards for me where that’s concerned.”

  “You mean with the trial next week?”

  “That and my own control of my magic,” I replied. “Whatever is decided at the Century City Summit, at the end of the day, I personally don’t know if I can keep the darkness in me at bay forever.”

  “Crisa—”

  I waved a hand to cut him off. “Don’t say I have nothing to worry about and that you believe I can beat it, Chance. Plenty of people have already told me that, and while it’s kind, it doesn’t make the problem go away.”

  “I wasn’t going to say that,” Chance said. He locked eyes with me—they were full of empathy and sincerity. “I was going to say you shouldn’t worry about keeping the darkness at bay forever. People aren’t pure light or pure dark. No one lives without one or the other. Just as someone good can have a dark side, I’m sure the antagonists have light in them somewhere. We’re all a mix. So ignoring your darkness is not a plan and pushing it away isn’t a solution. You should try to learn to live with both outright, and not be ashamed of it.”

  Not be ashamed of being dark? Lean into the fact that I was not a pure white Knight? Could I do that? Would the world—would my judges and jury—forgive me if I admitted that sounded so relieving?

  I blinked at him.

  “What?” he said.

  “Nothing,” I said. “You just keep surprising me.”

  Chance turned toward the center of the ballroom as the music picked up. He put down the Arnold Palmer and offered me his hand. “Then let me keep it up. I’ve gotten really good at salsa dancing. Unless you prefer actual salsa, in which case I can get you another taco.”

  I swiped my hands together to shake off any residual taco crumbs then took his hand with a mischievous smile. “I like all kinds of salsa. Let’s go, Prince Charming. Time to put these comfortable shoes to work.”

  t was Friday night and Blue, Jason, and I were about to fly to Adelaide to catch the wormhole to Neverland. Daniel was coming with us so he could bring Lucky back to school. He’d pick us up when we crossed back into Book.

  “Do you guys mind if I drive?” Blue asked. “I never get to fly this guy.”

  “Isn’t that more of a reason for you not to?” I replied hesitantly. “No offense, but the boys and I have way more experience. You’ve only done it a couple of times and driving hasn’t proven to be your forte lately.”

  Blue huffed. “For your information, I have been studying for Driver’s Ed extra hard in the past few days. C’mon. Have a little faith. If anybody dies, you can just bring them back to life.”

  “I wish you wouldn’t make jokes like that,” Kai said. She was standing on the grass below, having come to see us off. “Trivializing death can’t be healthy.”

  “I produce fog and spit acid like a lizard monster,” Blue responded. “Healthy was in the rearview mirror a long time ago.” She pivoted back toward me and the boys. “So how ’bout it?”

  Daniel shrugged. “Fine by me.”

  Jason and I acquiesced and Blue climbed up to Lucky’s neck. Daniel leaned over the saddle and smiled down at Kai. “I’ll be back around midnight.”

  “Call me once you’re in your room. I’ll wait up,” she replied. “I like knowing you’re home safe.”

  “If you two love birds are done, we have a timetable to stick to,” Blue called over her shoulder.

  Kai huffed as she waved goodbye. Blue gave Lucky a kick near one of his neck ridges, and we shot upward through the top of the In and Out Spell, sending a glistening ripple of color over the campus. When we leveled off, I settled back against the edge of the saddle, as did the boys.

  “So, how bad was Blue’s performance in Driver’s Ed?” Jason asked me.

  “The wind shear might be strong up here, but I can still hear you!” Blue shouted over her shoulder. “Change the subject!”

  “Okay, okay!” I called back. I readdressed Jason and Daniel. “Anybody have a topic to suggest?”

  “How was your date last night?” Daniel asked.

  I was a bit taken aback by the question. Blue and Kai had waited up for me because apparently it was my obligation as a girl to share all the details. But I hadn’t expected the boys to be interested in such matters.

  “It was fine,” I replied. “Chance can be a surprisingly great person to talk to.”

  “That is surprising,” Daniel commented. “I haven’t found that to be the case from my experience.”

  “That’s probably because Crisa’s being nice to him whereas you like to show him up whenever possible,” Jason said. “I know the guy’s a bit . . . prim and proper. But he’s not the dillhole he used to be. Maybe you should try cutting him some slack.”

  “Right, because I’m sure a prince from one of the richest kingdoms in the realm with the power to turn things into gold has never had people cut him slack before,” Daniel replied. “What was I thinking?”

  “Anyway,” I cut in. “We went to 12 uNDER, which was super awesome. And we ran into my brother Pietro and Evette; they’re engaged now.”

  “Wow, that’s great,” Jason said. “And I take my hat off to Chance; 12 uNDER is a legit first date. I always thought it’d be cool to take a girl there someday. It has to be the right girl though, you know?”

  I wondered if Blue could still hear what we were saying. “I do,” I said. Then I pivoted toward Daniel. “Where did you and Kai have your first date?”

  “There’s a pasta place in the capital’s restaurant district that she loves,” he said. “I worked there as a busboy briefly. After closing one night, I set up a table for us with lights an
d candles everywhere. You should have seen her face when she saw it.”

  “Well aren’t you the romantic,” I said, impressed. “I think it’s cool that you made it a private moment. Going to the club last night was incredibly cool, but I’m kind of hoping my next date with Chance will be more one-on-one. Like I said, I like talking to him and I think only by really getting to know each other will we figure out if there is something between us.”

  “I’m sorry, your next date?” Daniel stared at me.

  “Uh-huh.” I nodded. “We’re hanging out after school next Wednesday. Since I promised Lady Agnue I’d be back in time for dinner and we wouldn’t leave the Lord Channing’s campus, she said it was fine.”

  “I thought you were only going on the one date with him,” Daniel said a bit harshly.

  I narrowed my eyes. “I said I’d give him a chance and I still am. There isn’t a limit on that.”

  Silence hung between us until Jason cleared his throat. “So . . . anybody want to play a game of I spy?”

  It was dark by the time we arrived at the swirling silver wormhole, already open at the precarious edge of a cliff. Adelaide Castle glimmered with light on a cliffside farther down the shore.

  There were three colors of portals that developed when wormholes formed between the fourteen worlds that made up our magical dimension known as the Wonderlands. Silver portals were Portalscape Portals, which took you to a big intersection that allowed access to all the realms. Pop-Up Portals led to the next realm in the sequence—orange portals were a clockwise jump and red portals were a counterclockwise move in that sequence.

  As we approached, I spotted a White Rabbit near the wormhole entrance. These creatures were responsible for guarding Portalscape Portals in order to regulate access to the very powerful multi-realm intersection. Blue landed Lucky a bit abruptly a short ways from the White Rabbit. I checked my Hole Tracker, a rare magical watch manufactured by White Rabbits that tracked the time and location of upcoming wormholes in your current realm. I was fortunate to have been gifted this device by a White Rabbit I’d befriended named Harry.

  “The wormhole will be open for another six minutes,” I reported.

  “Actually, it will be open for another five minutes and thirty-two seconds,” the White Rabbit said as she hopped over, pocket watch in paw. She wore an old-timey hat with a flower and birdcage veil. Her turquoise velvet jacket covered a hot pink satin shirt. “Please present your storyteller visas.”

  We obliged. Harry had also given my crew and I all-access visas that allowed us to take Portalscape Portals without getting into trouble with the White Rabbits. I presented my hand first. The lady White Rabbit removed a small black wand from her blazer and scanned it over my skin. When she did, a crest-shaped stamp appeared on my hand and flashed an assortment of colors. Once the scan was complete, my stamp faded. Jason and Blue offered the White Rabbit their hands as well. When they were done, she gestured for Daniel.

  “I’m not going,” he said, climbing back aboard Lucky.

  “Fine then,” the lady White Rabbit said, stowing her wand inside her jacket. She checked her pocket watch. “The rest of you have four minutes and twenty-three seconds.” She hopped back to her post beside the portal and we turned to bid Daniel farewell.

  “We’ll call you when we’ve crossed back into this realm,” Jason said to him. “Hopefully we won’t be long.”

  Daniel yawned. “Yep, sure thing.”

  I eyed him with a touch of concern. “I’m sorry this falls on you. You should be getting a good night’s rest for Twenty-Three Skidd tomorrow.”

  “We’ve all done more with less,” he said. “I’ll be fine. You guys be careful. And tell SJ I said hi, and to be careful around angry gnomes.”

  I crinkled my nose. “What?”

  “It’s an inside joke,” he said. “What, do you think if you’re not in a scene, the world stops turning?”

  I blinked like a confused dove—or any dove, as they all tended to look vaguely confused—which caused Daniel to crack a smile. “Just watch out for magic hunters, okay? And monsters. And evil in general.”

  “Darn, and here I thought evil in general was our next meet- and-greet,” Blue said sarcastically. “Don’t worry, Daniel. Pop your collar and fly off into the night like the brooding cool guy that you are. We’ll see you soon.”

  Daniel gave Jason an exasperated look. Jason shrugged. “Hey, she’s not wrong. That’s kind of your image, man.”

  With a wave and an irritated sigh that was very brooding cool guy, Daniel took off into the starlit sky. The rest of my friends and I squared off with the circular wormhole. It was the size of three doorways put together.

  “I hate Portalscape Portals,” Jason said.

  “We all do,” Blue said. “But you’ve gotta look on the bright side. There’s fun in their kind of danger.”

  “There’s fun in all kinds of danger,” I added, tightening the straps of my backpack. “It’s only a matter of leaning into it. Now come on. We’ve got realms to visit.” I bounded through the portal and left our world behind once again.

  We tumbled through the dark, dirt-and-root-lined chasm that connected different worlds to the tiny, mystical realm known as the Portalscape. My friends were right; it was a dangerous journey, and I highly suspected more than one person had suffered a dislocated shoulder or worse traveling through it.

  Thankfully, such a fate had never befallen my friends or me. Maybe the universe thought we already had enough to deal with.

  After a minute, we fell out of the chasm and into a huge, circular room with an extremely large bed directly below. When my boots touched down on the springy mattress, I bounced off with grace and landed in a crouched position on the floor a few feet away. Blue came through next and Jason landed ten seconds later. Both of them mirrored my newly acquired dismount poise. We were all getting the hang of this.

  A layer of wraithlike fog hovered near the ceiling and over the ground, caressing our shins. Fourteen doors were embedded into the rounded walls of the room, one for each Wonderland realm. The doors were unique in design and size. Tonight we were after the dark wooden door covered with vines sprouting orange tiger lilies. This door connected to Neverland.

  “Everybody good?” Jason asked.

  I nodded and Blue gave the thumbs up. She then headed for our desired door and at my go-ahead gesture, opened it. Jason and I were right behind her.

  The doors and their portals never seemed to let out in the same place, and you had to be ready for anything. This one opened to a jungle streaked in rays of daylight. I followed Blue through the opening and my boots squished down on soft dirt. I turned around. On this side, the doorway we’d taken looked like a silver portal—an entry into the Portalscape.

  As expected, another White Rabbit was nearby. He sat on a log a few feet over. The creature wore a simple navy button-up shirt and tan pants with a hole for his tail to poke through.

  “Storyteller visas?” he said, standing up and drawing his wand.

  “Yep. There’s one more on the way too.” I directed a thumb back at the wormhole as Jason hopped through.

  As I held out my hand for a scan, I noticed crumbling stones with strange markings rimmed the clearing we’d landed in. Only then did I recognize the location. SJ, Blue, and I had been through here before. It was the entrance to the Temple of Malbona. Several hundred feet below the earth there were giant snakes and a bunch off booby traps we’d narrowly avoided. I shivered at the memory.

  The rabbit scanned us all swiftly then we were on our way.

  “You remembered to bring our old Neverland map, right?” Blue asked.

  “Yeah, but why don’t we try the Mark Two first?” I gestured to the ruins, then swung my backpack around to root out my magic compact. “The Temple of Malbona is a familiar spot. Maybe our friends can come find us and simply lead the way back to camp, save us some time.”

  Blue spotted the red folder in my bag. “What’s that?”

&n
bsp; “SJ asked me to bring it to her.”

  “What’s in it?”

  “I don’t know. She just asked me to get it from her desk.”

  “And you didn’t sneak a peek?”

  I cocked my head at her and zipped up the backpack. “If it was your folder, I would, because I know you’d do the same. SJ would respect my privacy, so I’m returning the favor.”

  “Goody two-shoes.”

  I smirked at her and flipped open my Mark Two. “Dorothy.”

  I’d given our friend the heads-up that we were coming, so the entire Lost Boys and Girls camp was expecting us. Dorothy answered. Her dark brown hair was bigger than normal—must’ve been the humidity—and her light brown eyes filled with glee at the sight of me.

  “Crisa! Are you here?”

  “At the Temple of Malbona. Can you send someone to get us?”

  “Sure thing. Give us about twenty minutes.”

  “Awesome. See you soon.” I shut the compact and looked at my friends. “And now we wait.”

  The cavalry arrived nineteen minutes later.

  Two Lost Boys and a Lost Girl flew through the trees alongside a couple of fairies. I recognized the youngest boy immediately—he was one of the first Neverland kids I’d met, the precocious Thaddeus Thunderbolt, also known as Conqueror of Pogpie Valley.

  “Welcome back to Neverland, Crisanta Knight: The Page Turner, Jason: the Pirate Slayer, and Blue: Master of the Strong,” Thaddeus announced.

  “Why so formal, Thaddeus?” I asked.

  Blue elbowed me. “Hey, I like the nicknames. They properly recognize our awesomeness.”

  “Ditto,” Jason chimed in. He played along and bowed formally to the little kid. “Conqueror of Pogpie Valley, thank you for the welcome.”

  “Do you guys want to walk back?” asked the Lost Girl, who I now remembered was named Ella. “Dorothy mentioned that only Blue can fly.”

  “Actually,” Jason interjected. “I’d like to give it a try again. I . . . feel different now.” He gave me a knowing smile.