The Lostkind

by Matt Stephens

  People like Vincent and Connie. Connie had shown up to help one night and hadn't missed a night since. She stayed later than any of the others; and often beat him there. Vincent knew the Revelation that had forced him to open his eyes and take a look at the world and wondered sometimes what Connie's driving force was. At first he was certain she worked too hard and too often to be doing it just out of the kindness of her heart. Then a few hours passed and saw her with the homeless kids; and knew instantly just how big her heart was.

  She had been as nervous as he was when he first arrived here. It really was as simple as making sandwiches by the dozen and handing them out to people, but very few had it in them to keep coming back.

  Vincent hated closing the doors. There were always more than a few people gathered around at the door, hoping for a free seat. There were always more mouths to feed than food to go around. Every day, soup kitchens in New York turned away thousands of people. It was not a feeling Vincent liked, but it wasn't likely to go away any time soon.

  With the doors closed, the pace settled, and Connie took the opportunity to bring over a cup of coffee. Vincent yawned again, and nearly cried in gratitude.

  "Thank you." He said sincerely. "Come to think of it, didn't you vow never to make coffee here again when you got cooked?"

  "You mean since the anti-Christ attacked me?" Connie returned, pushing her glasses up her nose with one finger. "Special occasion. I heard about Gill."

  "You did?" Vincent was surprised.

  "Yeah." She said gently. "Are you okay?"

  "Me? Of course I'm okay."

  "Come on Vincent, this is me." Connie pressed him. "How long have we known each other?"

  "Five days."

  "Exactly." Connie said as though it had been a lifetime. "I know you. You're in here or someplace like it every night. You blame yourself every time we have to turn someone away. When it's one of your oldest friends? Someone you see every day? No way you don't take that personal."

  Vincent chuckled. She knew him well. "Connie, do you remember the first time you came to help out at the Kitchen? Did you feel guilty the next day, when you ate a nice big hot breakfast?"

  "Actually, yeah." She confessed. "Just a little."

  "So did I." Vincent nodded. "So, you tell me, what's worse? Feeling guilty when there's nothing you can do, or not caring when there is?" He kept his eyes on the sandwiches, kept his hands busy making them. "Gill was a wake-up call. There was a time I didn't come to places like this at all. The last few months... I've been neglecting the people in my life." He shrugged. "I'll do what I can, for as many as I can, for as long as I can."

  Connie smiled and tucked her hair behind her ear. "You care too much Vincent. I think that's what I like about you."

  The tone was leading, and Vincent felt a knife edge of worry then. He didn't know why, but Yasi came to mind just then. "How did you find out?" He asked suddenly.

  There came the sound of someone clearing their throat, and Vincent turned back to the line to find Wotcha grinning at him from behind a pair of sunglasses.

  "I think I just figured it out." Vincent added dryly, spooning the soup into another bowl for her. "Wotcha. New glasses?"

  "The Borrowers had a swap-meet at the market. Share and share alike. When are you gonna take pity on that nice girl and ask her out already?"

  Vincent flushed and glanced over his shoulder; checking that Connie was busy at the other end of the table collecting used plates. He lowered his voice. "Did you hear from Yasi?"

  "About Monroe?" The Watcher nodded. "The matter is closed. You were lucky." She shivered. "We don't like to involve the Captain unless we absolutely, positively have no other choice in the matter."

  Vincent blinked. Yasi had told him that she was security, and he had no doubt she was quick with that katana, but the notion that Wotcha was secretly terrified of the Shinobi Captain took him by surprise.

  "So what happens now?"

  "Now nothing." Wotcha shrugged. "We found the guy, there's nothing more to do. Declare victory, go home, and take the girl with you."

  "The Girl?" Vincent repeated. "Connie?

  "Yessir?" Connie responded promptly to the sound of her name, suddenly at his elbow.

  Wotcha had already melted back into the room, out of sight. Vincent was about to say something when he yawned broadly again.

  "You look... exhausted." Connie said lightly.

  Vincent bowed his head and rubbed the bridge of his nose, forced to agree. "Connie?" He said tiredly. "Do you know you're wearing two different socks?"

  "As a matter of fact Vincent, I do know that." She nodded helplessly. "I don't know how it happens, I just know that somewhere between the Laundromat and the apartment, I manage to lose half a dozen socks. Next week's laundry, there they are, back again, but..." She chuckled despite herself. "Fortunately, I'm quirky. I can get away with wearing mismatched socks."

  Vincent chuckled with her, and looked past her to notice Wotcha leaving the room, Tecca at her side. Tecca glanced back at Vincent, gave him a sly wink, and pulled up his trouser legs a little bit. He too was wearing mismatched socks; at least one of which Connie would probably recognize.

  Smiling despite himself, Vincent started collecting plates.

  ~oo00oo~

  "I'm gonna go. There's this pizza place I like, open all hours. They make great pasta, and free garlic bread." Connie said lightly. "If you could see straight right now, I would invite you to come with me."

  "If I could see straight right now, I'd..." Vincent yawned. "What was I just saying?"

  "Earth to Vincent."

  Vincent came out of himself. "Sorry, what were we talking about?"

  "You've been off with the pixies all night, even before you fell asleep mid-stride." Connie joshed. "Something on your mind?"

  She wasn't the first to make the comment and Vincent was tempted to tell her. The woman sought to find sweet and fascinating stories in everything she touched. He wondered what she'd make of something like the Underside. She was his friend, and dense as he may be, he could tell she wanted more than that. The Underside was the most amazing thing that had ever happened to him, and he wanted to share it.

  But he knew he couldn't. "Nothing really." He said aloud.

  Connie turned back to the dishes, overly casual. "Girl trouble?"

  "Why do you say that?" Vincent returned, equally casual.

  "Well, it occurs to me that you were free every night this week; so I doubt you've got a girl. If you do; then you're keeping her a secret… or maybe there's another reason?"

  It was an invitation. She was giving him an out if he wasn't interested. A month ago, Vincent might have been tempted, but now Yasi had reappeared in his life, and even though he knew it was an impossible goal, he was still fascinated by the New York Ninja… But Yasi was a dream. Something out of a comic book. Connie was real. She lived in the real world, like he did; even if part of him daydreamed constantly about being somewhere else. "Connie…"

  "You know what?" Connie said suddenly. "It's none of my business. You okay to get home?"

  "Yeah, I called a cab."

  "Good. I fell asleep on the subway once. And when I woke up... Well, let's just say that it never happened again." Connie pushed her glasses up her nose again, and smiled shyly. "Sleep well Vincent."

  He nodded. "Same time tomorrow?"

  "Probably. But if you wanted to meet me a little earlier, we could get coffee?"

  Vincent's eyes focused instantly. "Like a date?"

  "No. Like coffee." She said, a little too calmly. "And if you remember this conversation tomorrow, I'm sure you'll be able to come up with a response." She headed off. "Don't make me wait too long for an answer Vincent; you know how neurotic I am."

  She was very easygoing about it, but Vincent knew she was nervous, putting herself out there. His first instinct was to say yes. Then Yasi came to mind. He wasn't sure if it was Yasi holding him back, or if it was Connie. It suddenly struck him why Wotcha was ge
ntly suggesting he go out with Connie. Because she was already interested in him... and because if he was with Connie, he couldn't pursue Yasi; who terrified Wotcha.

  He was too tired to keep it all straight in his head. He needed sleep.

  ~oo00oo~

  Tap! Tap! Tap!

  Vincent moaned.

  Tap! Tap! Tap!

  One eyes opened unwillingly. He had come home, collapsed instantly and fallen asleep on his couch. He was still in his clothes. His watch said it was after three am. He'd gotten a few good hours, but could easily sleep for another...

  Tap! Tap! Tap!

  Vincent rolled his head painfully to the left, his neck hurting after sleeping on the couch, and...

  Yasi was at the window. He rolled to his feet, and opened the window. The shock of cold air woke him completely in seconds.

  "Hi." He yawned a little, rubbing sleep from his eyes. "I'm glad you came back."

  Yasi didn't say anything, she just gestured for him to follow her, and she quickly scaled the fire escape.

  Grabbing a jacket, and trying to smooth out his clothes, Vincent followed.

  She was waiting at the top of the fire escape, on the edge of the rooftop. In the time it took him to get there, she had found a perch on the corner of the building, cross-legged on the ledge. He came up next to her. "Bad news?"

  "Somewhat." Yasi admitted. "When I got home last night... Keeper was waiting for me."

  "Ah. She was angry?"

  "She was… concerned. It's the first time we've ever had an outsider giving orders to our Watchers." Yasi explained. "I told her it'll never happen again."

  The word 'outsider' hit Vincent harder than he thought it would. For all the changes he had made to his private life over the last year, he was not one of them, and likely never would be.

  "It's been noticed, and not in the good way." Yasi summed up. "And... the inevitable result... resulted."

  Vincent felt something deflate inside him. "Well." He said simply. "We knew it would happen I guess."

  "We did. In fact I remember warning you about it."

  "We got an answer we needed, I was able to tell Gill to relax, and he could keep his job. All in all... Mission Accomplished."

  "Not such a bad thing." Yasi said. "So. This is goodbye."

  Vincent took it in and kept his chin up. "It would... appear so."

  Silence. She wasn't moving. He came off the fire escape and came around onto the roof itself, standing behind her, and keeping away from the edge. She swiveled in place, sitting to face him, the drop inches behind her.

  "When I graduated high school..." Vincent said finally. "My friends were the best I'd ever had. We promised that would never change. I haven't spoken to any of them in ten years. People move on."

  Yasi seemed more interested in that than Vincent would have thought. "Wow. I honestly can't imagine that."

  "What do you mean?"

  Yasi shrugged. "I've never... ever, drifted away from any of my friends. We all live together Underground, it's the ultimate closed community."

  "That sounds... awkward."

  "Not that much. We recruit now and then, we have regular trade with the surface, even if you don't know about it; we can come up whenever we like. Some of us even move up here permanently, seeking an Upside life, but... It's a huge Culture shock going back to surface towns." She shrugged. "I've never drifted away from anyone before."

  "Must be nice." Vincent said quietly. "Can we... talk for a bit before you go? If only because it's the last chat we'll ever have?"

  Yasi nodded. "Yeah." Nothing else, no particular emotion. Just the one word.

  "Can we do it inside?"

  Yasi grinned. "Cold? Bearing in mind that of the two of us, I'm the one wearing a leather vest, and you're the one in an overcoat and mittens."

  "Not the first New York Winter I've survived, but-"

  Yasi snapped her fingers. "Fear of heights!"

  Vincent ducked his head.

  Yasi leaned back on the edge of the rooftop, perfectly at ease with the fact that she was hanging out over a five story drop. "Vincent, I was born and raised underground. You think I don't understand a fear of heights?"

  "Not heights. I'm fine with heights. Put me in a skyscraper I'm fine. Put me in a plane, I'm fine." Vincent looked surprised. "Put me on a five foot step ladder with nothing to hold onto; I get vertigo."

  "Ahh. Fear of falling. That's different." Yasi swiveled around in place and dangled her legs over the edge. "I've had that before. Not in years though."

  "How'd you get over it?"

  "I had to do it a lot." Yasi shrugged. "Most of us stick to the Underside, but Shinobi and Watchers have to go Above fairly often. I know the hidden highways of this city like you know the Midtown traffic. I can tell you which stone gargoyles will keep you hidden from the street level. I can tell you the location of every manhole cover in this city that actually leads to one of our tunnels. I know what graffiti is put on the walls by kids, or gang members, or by us as signals to each other. I can tell you that if the train at 82nd and Metro is late, you can get to Central Park in ten minutes riding on it's roof; and I know exactly how fast it can move before it's too dangerous to jump for it."

  Her voice had taken on the dream-like quality again, like she was telling a great old folk-tale. "What must it be like to be you?" Vincent asked wistfully. "Walking through walls like that?"

  Yasi met his eyes for a moment, before she swore under her breath. "Keeper's gonna kill me."

  Vincent blinked. "Huh?"

  "Go to your regular Subway station, and get on a train to the Met." Yasi told him, rising to her feet without using her hands. "Wear something comfortable. Something in black if you've got it. I'll meet you."

  "No reason we can't both take a train." Vincent pointed out. "We've done it before."

  Yasi perched on the edge of the rooftop. "I know. But I travel faster if I go my way."

  Vincent was about to respond when Yasi rolled backwards off the rooftop without hesitation. He ran to the edge quickly, looking over the side in shock.

  There was no sign of her.

  ~oo00oo~

  Twenty minutes later he was on a subway train. It felt like a hundred years since the last time he'd taken a train with Yasi. He was sure she was here somewhere, but he couldn't guess where.

  There was a tapping noise beside him, and he turned in surprise. Yasi was six inches away, on the other side of the window, hanging upside down from the roof of the train. She waved at him, smiling brightly. The rushing wall of the subway tunnel was less than a foot behind her, and she didn't seem the least concerned.

  A short scream of shock came from behind him and he spun to see one of the passengers staring at the window, pointing at Yasi with his mouth was hanging open.

  Vincent turned back to the window. There was nothing there. She'd vanished again.

  "Did... Did you see that?" The passenger asked Vincent in shock.

  "See what?" Vincent asked innocently.

  ~oo00oo~

  He got off the train, and made his way toward the stairs. When he hit the street, he wasn't a bit surprised to see Yasi leaning against the nearest light pole. One circle of light on a dark street. Vincent made his way over to her, glancing over his shoulder to check that they were alone.

  By the time he looked back to the streetlight, she was gone. He paused in the middle of the empty street.

  A moment later she reappeared, stepping into the light. She had been less than two feet away, and he hadn't seen her. "Miss me?"

  "How do you do that?" Vincent asked.

  "There are three rules. Call it our philosophy, if you will." She held up three fingers, her long coat waving a bit around her ankles. "Be invisible. Be daring. Be beautiful." She stepped back again, and was swallowed in the darkness. Invisible again, Vincent grinned and followed her. The streetlight was bright against his eyes, and once past the light, he could see the shadows clearly.

  "It's a trick of the l
ight." She explained. "You can't see through bright lights to darkness. It's like when you're trying to see outside your windows at night from a well lit room. Easier to see in than out."

  "And just like that, you're invisible." Vincent nodded, getting to know the rules of this new viewpoint.

  "We're invisible." She corrected primly. "You're right here with me."

  She was standing very close to him again. He suddenly noticed and swallowed, reminding himself that this was goodbye.

  She turned to walk, and he followed, both of them trotting down the street. They didn't speak for a while, but the silence was comfortable between them as they walked. "Where are we going?" He asked finally.

  "Field test." She said easily. "First exam on being invisible."

  She had led him to the Museum of Natural History.

  Yasi ignored the steps completely and took him around the side of the building. The maintenance doors were marked staff only, and had keypads and card readers…

  "We don't have a ticket." Vincent teased.

  She just grinned back. "We don't even need a key."

  The door opened before her like a magic trick. She'd done something to it, but Vincent couldn't for the life of him guess what. She was as human as he was; he knew that; there was nothing supernatural about anything he'd seen. But she could disappear in the simplest shadow, locks and doors were nothing to her, she could dance on a spire and run on a wire…

  For some reason Connie came to mind just then, and Vincent found himself feeling guilty. Like he was hiding from the real world; running around Neverland so he wouldn't have to grow up…

  She clearly knew her way, glancing up at the cameras every now and then, leading him along the narrow corridors to evade them with an almost bored expression on her face.

  Once they got out into the exhibits, she loosened up considerably. He walked with her through the floors. Coming and going between levels was easy with Yasi to open the security grates for them. Vincent had seen them before, but the exhibits all changed in the dark. The Ocean creatures were more mysterious, the tribal huts looked more threatened, the carnivore statues and models looked more menacing. All of it seemed more natural, the dim light glinting off glass eyes, making them seem more alive, though still…