by Martha Carr
Estelle crooked a finger at the bar without taking her eyes off them.
Toni frowned, shaking her head. “Still not picking up on anything magical. Can’t figure out how she does that.”
“Estelle is a magical being, population one,” said Correk. He took a sip of his beer. “Toni, I think you’re up first for our team.”
“First we have some fun with the youngsters.”
The young man on the other side put down his beer and stood at the line, ready to throw. He nudged his friends and put his hand up beside his mouth, still talking loud enough for everyone to hear. “Bunch of old nerds. Easy pickings.”
“Good sign he was willing to put down his beer,” said Eric.
“This will be fun. Do your thing guys.” Jim stepped out of the way as he glanced at Correk. “They’ve raised this one to an art.”
Toni, Jack, and Molly stood close enough to each other to touch arms, passing a ribbon of energy from one to the next. Molly had a grin on her face as the patio squares beneath the young man’s feet began to glow.
Leira looked around cautiously and noticed none of the other people at the bar were looking over at the light show. Only the young man was suddenly fascinated with his feet. He took a step and the light followed him, changing colors. Every time he moved his foot the light followed. A square lit up to the left of him and he stepped on it, shutting it off.
Leira smiled. “You’re playing whack a mole with him.”
“Not quite. Keep watching the bigger picture,” said Toni.
A square lit up to the right, just a little in front and he shook his head, blinking but stepped on it again as it instantly went out.
“What are you doing? Throw the bag.” One of his friends gave him a nudge.
“Hang on, don’t you see that?”
“Oh yeah, this is gonna be good.” Jack smiled. “Let’s speed her up just a little.”
The squares started to light up in a sequence, right and left, front and back. The man was mesmerized, still hanging on to the bean bag, following the lights.
“Shit! He’s doing the hustle!” Leira could hear the music in her head in time to the steps.
“It’s one of our faves when we come across the drunken and rude,” said Molly, over her shoulder. “Plus, Jack has a thing for Saturday Night Fever. He dresses up in the white suit every Halloween.”
“If only we could figure out a way to get them to do the arms.” Eric lifted his arm over his head pointing. The light sped up faster and the steps took the man in a circle, still doing his best to follow them. As he came around the second time one of his friends stopped him, taking the beer from his hand.
“I’m cutting you off, dude. That’s too weird.”
The young man looked up, his head swimming as he leaned over and puked on his friends’ shoes.
“Oh, gawwwww, the worst.” Toni covered her face with her hands as several of the regulars looked away. Estelle appeared out of nowhere rolling a bucket with a mop inside.
“Didn’t even see her leave the action,” said Jim, fascinated. “How does she do that?”
“A spinning drunk might throw up is not that hard to predict.” Toni pursed her lips. “Yeah, we should have stopped with the first spin. We just about have this one perfected.”
“Why does it take all of you to light up the squares? That one seems easy.” Leira watched his friends help the man sit down and someone took the bean bag from him finally making a toss as it went just shy of any of the holes and slid in front of the board.
“I suspect they have to blend their memories of the song to get all the steps fast enough.”
“Well done, Correk.”
“Not the first time I’ve seen this joke played but usually on a drunken Elf who’s mouthing off and you save the spin for the finale. Just in case.”
“Right.” Jim pointed his finger in the air.
“Okay, my turn.” Leira stepped up and gently bit her lip as she threw the bean bag, easily throwing it into a hole. She shot her arms over her head, smiling. Correk raised an eyebrow, smiling back at her as he raised his beer.
It didn’t take long for the magical community to reach twenty-one points against the young men who somehow managed to get nine points.
“More than I thought they’d get.” Molly went to shake one of the player’s hands but ended up helping him take a seat instead.
“Uber time for them. You think they’ll remember any of this tomorrow?” Jack pulled out his phone. “This ride’s on me. Where you live son?”
“Fifty-fifty they remember much of anything. Come on Eric, let’s go shake their hands or help them up or make sure they’re alright.” Jim and Eric gathered the young men and helped them gather their things, and head out to through the bar to the street in front. Eric gave the driver a twenty. “Make sure they weave toward their apartment, okay?”
Correk turned his back on everyone on the patio and pulled in enough magic to send a steadying stream to surround the young men in the car, filling them with a sense of peace and calm.
Leira noticed what he was doing and gave a crooked smile, arching an eyebrow. “Someone’s pulled this joke on you. That’s alright, no explanation needed. That was nice of you.” She let out a deep sigh. “Glad you’re back.”
“We’ve established that already.”
Leira let out a snort and ran her hand through her short, dark hair. “Okay, I’m done. Hey, you never got to go to the food trucks. They’re probably closed by now.”
“Not a problem. Have you tried these wings? I’ll wager Jack is going down.”
“Grab some for the…” Leira looked up in time to see a wing moving itself across the table. The regulars were distracted by a story Jack was telling in great detail as Leira moved herself in front of the table, her back to the regulars. She lifted up the edge of the wing to find a troll covered in barbeque sauce, licking his face as fast as he could while carrying the wing. Leira scooped him, wrapping him in napkins and stuffing him in her pocket.
Correk watched her, amused as he took a sip from his beer.
Leira scooped up a few more wings in a napkin. “I’ll be right back.”
“That’s not enough to hold him.”
“Then I’ll show him where your stash is.”
“Very funny. Hey, wait… you wouldn’t.” Correk frowned as he grabbed the platter and carried it behind Leira toward the guest house. As he passed Estelle, she nodded calmly. “Make sure you bring that platter back.” The cigarette gently bobbed up and down in her mouth as she spoke.
Correk caught up with Leira as she opened the door, wiping her fingers on a napkin and dropping her purse in the chair. Leira scooped the troll out of her pocket as she kept going into the kitchen, depositing him on the table.
“Yumfuck!” The troll bit into the wing he was still holding and fell back onto the table, wrestling the piece of chicken.
“He’s leaving fur prints everywhere. I’m going to let that play out before I even try to clean it up.”
Correk set the platter down on the counter and scooped up three more pieces, putting them on the table near the troll.
The troll was on his back, his arms and legs wrapped around the wing as he looked up at Correk, eyeing the wings on the table and the platter on the counter. He had a ring of sauce around his mouth that made him look like he had a furry red beard.
“No. Not the whole platter. You can share.”
The troll let out a cackle and bit down on the wing, finishing it off in seconds. He pushed the bones off and reached out for the next wing, sliding it toward his five-inch body, wrapping his arms and legs around the next piece.
“If he was any bigger this would be horrifying. The only reason we’re not looking away is because he’s so tiny.” Leira gave in and got a dishrag, wetting it at the sink and wiping up the area around the troll. “Feel like I’m making a barbeque outline of a crime scene.” She looked up at Correk. “This food thing with trolls never gets better, does
it? I’m going to live to be hundreds of years old. He’s going to live to be something with zeros behind it, still bonded to me, still eating like this.”
“Now you’re catching on to why we don’t rescue trolls. Lifelong commitment.” Correk spread out his hands, smiling.
“Fuck me. This is going to go on forever.”
Sounds of slurping and grunting rose up from the table as the troll threw off more chicken bones and reached for another wing. He was covered head to toe in barbeque sauce and was happily licking his paws, nibbling on the last chicken wing.
Correk saw the troll glance up at the platter as Leira grabbed a plastic container from a lower cabinet, rummaging around for a matching top. She handed the container to Correk as he upended the platter, letting the wings slide in, snapping on the lid. He put them in the refrigerator just as the troll cleaned off the last wing in his possession, smacking his lips. “Motherfucker! You have to sleep sometime.”
Correk raised his eyebrows.
“Yeah, he talks more now.” Leira rinsed off the platter and plucked the troll from the table, holding him under the running water. Yumfuck opened his mouth wide under the faucet and spit the water up like he was a furry fountain.
“Badass,” he gurgled, grinning as Leira applied a little liquid soap. She was trying to get the last of the sauce off his back as he wriggled away from her.
“Cut it out, you can’t lick back there anyway. Can you?”
The troll let out a trill and attempted to twist around and lick his fur.
“Nevermind! Don’t want to know. Sorry I asked.” Leira grabbed a dish towel and gently rubbed the troll’s fur as he spread out his arms, his legs in the air and shut his eyes. He gave off a soft purr as she dried him off and swaddled him in the towel. “Here, all yours. It’s a boy.” She handed him off to Correk and grabbed the roll of paper towels, tackling the remaining smears of sauce across the table.
“I’m heading back out to the festivities.” Correk picked up the platter and deposited the troll on the couch on his way out the door. “You coming?”
“Right behind you. Nesturnium.” She rubbed the top of the troll’s head as he let out a trill. “I didn’t forget this time. You stay put right there and watch TV or go to sleep. It’s late. We’ll be right out there.” Leira headed for the door. “I just tucked in a troll so I can go hang with some magical people and my Elven cousin. Yeah, things are back to normal! Aloha motherfuckers.”
Correk smiled and opened the door.
“Leira!” The yell went up from the crowd outside as Leira smiled and shut the door behind her.
Chapter Fourteen
Eireka looked across the table at her mother sipping coffee, narrowing her eyes to study her.
“Don’t do that dear. You’ll cause frown lines.” Mara took another sip.
“Exactly. What’s up, Mom. Confess.”
“Don’t know what you mean.”
Eireka tilted her head to the side. “Uh huh. You’re looking good these days, Mom.”
“Must be all the fresh air. The air is thick in the world in between.”
“That’s another thing. Time stands still in the world in between but lately you’re looking like a remake of Benjamin Button. You look more like my sister than my mother.”
“I’m half Light Elf. It’s to be expected. When you look at it that way we’re close in age.” Mara didn’t make eye contact with her daughter.
“After everything we’ve been through, you’re still doing it, aren’t you? How many portals have you opened?”
“I may be looking younger, but I’m still grown and your mother.”
“You had better have a damn good reason for risking the world in between again. You slipped through the cracks once…”
“I have my reasons and believe it or not, I don’t have to share them.”
“Better be good ones.”
“It’s me, dear, the best.”
“Romance?"
“I have nothing against humans. After all, your father was a human. A rather fine one too.”
“Money? I have more than enough from the settlement. You don’t need to be visiting an entirely different world to get money.”
“Occasional card game with a few old friends but I’m good on money. Stop guessing. And don’t even think about feeling me up with magic. Won’t work.”
“Creepy Mom.” Eireka drummed her fingers on the table.
“How’s Donald?” Mara reached over to the counter to get more coffee.
“Fine. We’re going hiking later today. Revenge? Is that it? Revenge?”
“For what? I don’t hold grudges, anyway. Pointless and draws dark magic to you.” Mara gave off a shudder. “That dark mist was enough to teach me to let things go.”
“I’m going to figure this out.”
“I’m sure you will, dear.”
“Can I at least get you to promise to be careful?”
“That goes without saying. I have a few skills of my own, you know. I made one bad call and now everyone doubts my magic.”
“Your one call was a wowzer. You are looking good.”
Mara looked at her reflection in the toaster. “Better than a facelift. Okay, I have to run. Do I need to pretend to be going somewhere on Earth or can we be grownups and I’ll just go?”
Eireka put her hands flat on the table. “Take me with you.”
“Not a chance.”
“I can open a portal on my own and follow you.”
“I know, but you won’t. You’ve got a bigger conscience than I do, always have. That potty mouth of Leira’s is from me. Go to Oriceran if you want to. It’s your home too, along with this one. Can’t stop you, won’t even try. But I want your word you won’t try to interfere or nose around in my business. Your word. You’re going to have to trust me that I have my reasons.”
Eireka made a steeple with her fingertips, pressing them against her mouth. She finally let out a sigh. “I do trust you but I’ll kick your ass with a fireball if you get hurt… or worse.”
“You should swear more often. Let’s go of tension. Maybe that’s why I’m looking so much younger.”
“Funny mother. Very funny. Fuck you.”
Mara let out a loud laugh, rocking her head back and opening her mouth wide, slapping the table. “There you go!” She got up and put her mug in the sink. “I’m out of here. I’ll be back tonight, you have my word. Maybe sooner if all goes well.”
“Will you at least agree to tell me eventually?”
“Definitely. That’s always been part of the plan. Let’s go in the living room. Never like opening a portal in the kitchen. Not enough room.” Mara got the cloak hanging on a hook in the living room.
“A cloak? Who are you hiding from?” Mara was sure she saw her mother start. A clue… maybe.
Eireka trailed Mara into the living room of the small apartment and watched as her mother formed a ball of light. The energy grew and sparked in her hands until she let go and a portal opened to Oriceran, growing large enough for Mara to easily step into the dense forest.
Eireka grabbed her mother’s arm before she was all the way through the portal. “You come back to me.”
Mara looked into her daughter’s eyes. “Always.” She brushed a lock of hair off Eireka’s face and stepped all the way into Oriceran. Eireka took a long look around at the lush foliage. It had been a long time since she had been there herself and she felt the ache in her chest. My other home. “Be careful, Mom.”
The portal was already closing with a pop and a sizzle and a shower of sparks. Eireka put her hand in the air where the portal had just been. “Not easy being your daughter all the time.”
Chapter Fifteen
Mara moved easily through the underbrush, making her way to the road that led to the bazaar. She had made the trip to Oriceran so many times lately the path was becoming familiar to her.
“It’s good that I told her. Sure, sure it is,” she muttered, arguing with herself. The nearby re
eds and ferns bent toward her as she talked. “I mean, it’s not like it wasn’t becoming obvious that something was up. Sure, yeah, it’s fine.”
Mara batted at a bug flying low near her head, just missing it as it flew higher, whirring and buzzing. She was too distracted to look up and notice how the sun shined brightly off the insect’s body. It flew away in the direction of the deeper parts of the forest as Mara hurried on her way, still talking to herself.
“I need more information before I say anything. Everyone has been through enough. I could be wrong and get everyone worried for no reason. This way is better.”
Mara got to the road just as a carriage was passing. She waved at the driver sitting on the top and he pulled back on the reins, slowing the horses. “Are you headed north?”
He nodded as he rested the reins in his lap. “I stop wherever I’m paid to stop.”
Mara held up a smaller gold coin. “The Dark Market and you forget you saw me and you don’t stop for anyone else.”
“Suits me fine. Get on.”
Mara hesitated, waiting to see if the driver was going to hop down and help her into the cab but he was busy biting down on the coin. She rolled her eyes and swung open the door, stepping onto the small step and hoisting herself into the worn carriage. The leather on the seats were shiny from use but still intact and the interior was swept clean. Mara settled back against the seat and looked out the window, making sure to keep her face hidden from view as they rode past the Light Elves’ floating castle.
The view of the royal gardens was always a favorite part of her journey to the market.
It wasn’t long before the market came into view down the road. Mara tapped on the ceiling. “You can drop me here. This is close enough.”
“Suit yourself. Whoaaaaaa.” The driver gently pulled on the reins and Mara opened the door, easily hopping out. She tossed the driver another small gold coin and looked him in the eye. “You forget you even came this way.”
“Consider it done.” He bit gently down on the coin before sliding it into his pocket, smiling. He turned the horses toward the road that led toward the ocean and Rodania, giving the horses a slap with the reins as they picked up to a gallop.