Wings

by E. D. Baker

  “You talked to my uncle?” said Jak.

  “He sent for me,” said Tobi. “Somebody told him I’d seen the girl who threw the lightnin’. She didn’t throw it at me, of course, but I seen her face when she saw me.”

  “What did Targin want from you?” asked Jak.

  “To help ya find the girl. Yer uncle said that he gave ya a picture, but it was lousy, so he sent me ’cause I’d gotten a good look at her. I’ve been livin’ in the trees near here fer weeks now. I saw her once, but she got away. I think she lives in a big building with stone statues out front and a lot of other humans goin’ in and out, ’cause that’s where she goes every day after school.”

  “A big building? Maybe she lives in an apartment.”

  “All I know is lots of people come out of it with books, but she’s the only one I seen goin’ into it every day.”

  “It sounds more like the library than an apartment. Why would she go there every day, unless … Are you sure she didn’t see you?”

  “What, me? I’m so good at sneakin’ around that nobody could see me! Even my own mother wouldn’t … Wait … There she is, over there by that other girl.”

  “Your mother?”

  “No, the girl who saw me! There she is right there!”

  “Do you mean the girl with the blond hair that looks like sunshine and—”

  “Yeah, that’s her. The one with yella hair. She’s the one who looked right at me with her eyes all big and scary.”

  Jak smiled to himself. He’d been right all along. “Thanks, Tobi. I guess you did what you came for, so you can go back now.” Jak didn’t want him around when he was about to talk to Tamisin.

  “Actually,” said Tobi, “I’m supposed to stay here. Yer uncle thought ya’d need some help bringin’ her back.”

  “So now he thinks I can’t handle it? I already have two goblins here to help me. How many more does he think he has to send? You go back and tell my uncle that I can take care of this myself, and I don’t need any more help!”

  “He ain’t gonna like that and I don’t want to be the one to tell him anythin’ he ain’t gonna like. He’s already irked that ya haven’t brought her back yet.”

  “Just blame it all on me. Tell him that I made you go back.”

  “But ya wouldn’t! Yer too nice to … Okay, okay, I’m going!”

  Jak had bared his teeth and growled the way he’d seen Nihlo do, making the little goblin scoot backward up the branch. Since his own teeth were just teeth and not fangs, Jak doubted that he looked very frightening, but it appeared to be enough to convince Tobi that he was serious. “Tell him that I said I can handle it!” Jak shouted after the fleeing goblin. “Tell him that I don’t know why he sent you!”

  Jak was so angry when he turned away from the tree that he forgot why he was there until he saw Tamisin coming toward him across the parking lot.

  “Jak, is that you?”

  “Tamisin! I was hoping to catch you here. Your dance was great! It made me think of things I miss from my old home. It was very … eloquent.” Jak felt stupid after he said it. There were a thousand things he should have said instead, but the only thing that came to mind sounded flat.

  Even so, Tamisin smiled at him as if he’d said the most wonderful thing. “Thank you,” she said. “That’s very kind of you.”

  Jak didn’t want her to get the wrong idea. He hadn’t said it just to be nice. “Oh, I’m not being kind. I mean it. For the first time I think I know what it means to be homesick.”

  Tamisin’s smile faded. “I’m sorry! I never intended to make anyone feel bad.”

  Jak could have kicked himself, certain that he’d finally said the worst thing he could have. “Don’t be sorry,” he said in a rush. “I enjoyed your dance. You don’t have any plans now, do you? I mean, if you’d like to get something to eat, we could …”

  And then her father was calling to her, telling her that they had to go.

  “I know, Dad. I’m coming,” she shouted, then turned back to Jak saying, “Thanks for the invitation. Maybe some other time.”

  This was all wrong. Jak had to talk to her and it had to be soon. “Yeah. About that…”

  But Tamisin was already moving toward her parents’ car, saying, “I’ve got to go.”

  “Sure,” he said, so disappointed that he felt like kicking something. He watched as the car drove away, taking with it the girl he’d come so far to find.

  Jak hung around Tamisin’s locker on Monday morning, but she got to school late and didn’t have time to talk. He didn’t see her that afternoon. When the same thing happened on Tuesday, he began to think that she was avoiding him. Even so, he was watching for her on Wednesday morning. He could see right away that Tamisin wasn’t feeling well. Her cheeks were flushed and she didn’t seem to notice him when he called to her in the hall. That afternoon he was hanging out while Jeremy talked to Heather when Tamisin ran past them to her locker. Jak was already walking over when she pulled out her backpack, letting a flood of books and papers cascade onto the floor. Her hands were shaking when he bent down to help her.

  Although Tamisin turned down his offer, Jak insisted on picking up the papers. He was smiling as he handed them to her until he saw a look of pain in her eyes. “Is everything all right?” he asked. When he tried to help her get up, she shook off his hand.

  “I’m fine,” she said through gritted teeth. “I can manage on my own.”

  I’ve been so stupid, thought Jak, suddenly convinced that she didn’t want to have anything to do with him. “Don’t let me keep you,” he said.

  When he got home that afternoon he called to Gammi as he walked in the door. “We’re going to have a party on Halloween. The Gate will be open then and it will be the perfect time to take Tamisin through. I’ll drag her here if I have to. She made it clear today that she doesn’t like me, which is going to make it that much harder to persuade her to go through the Gate with me. I doubt she’s going to change her mind between now and Halloween.”

  “I’ll talk to Bert,” said Gammi. “He’ll take care of the decorations and I’ll see to the food.”

  Even though Jak had made his plans, he hated the idea of forcing anyone through a Gate, and was still hoping to get Tamisin to trust him. When she didn’t come to school the next day, Jak learned from Jeremy that her brother Kyle had said that she had been sick the night before and had locked herself in her room. He didn’t know what was wrong with her.

  It was Friday when Tamisin finally returned to school. She looked different that morning, and it took Jak a moment to understand why. Her long hair was pulled back and secured with a ribbon, leaving her ears uncovered. She wasn’t wearing any makeup either, and when she walked in front of one of the big floor-to-ceiling windows in the hall, her cheeks and the bridge of her nose sparkled in the sunlight. Jak pushed his way through the crowded hallway and reached her locker when she was putting her things inside. When she glanced up, he smiled and said, “I’m glad you’re back. I heard you were sick.”

  “I’m fine now,” she replied, flashing him a brief smile of her own.

  The first bell rang and she took a note from her pocket. “I have to get this to the office,” she said.

  Jak nodded. “Yeah. I’ve gotta go, too. But first I wanted to ask—would you like to have lunch with me on Saturday? I know a good spot for a picnic.”

  Tamisin paused, then surprised him when she said, “That sounds like fun.”

  “Great!” he replied. “I’ll pick you up at noon.”

  Jak watched her walk away. She seemed different somehow, and it wasn’t just her hair and skin. She seemed more vibrant, as if she’d changed from the inside as well. He wondered what could have happened to make such a change in just a few days.

  Jak got directions to Tamisin’s house from Jeremy. When he mentioned that he was taking her on a picnic, Jeremy told him to put the food in a basket and to take a blanket to sit on. All the blankets in the house had been mouse-chewed, but Ja
k had found an old plastic shower curtain decorated with neon tropical fish that he thought would work.

  When he arrived at Tamisin’s house, she looked happy to see him. Three cats had followed him to her door, but she didn’t say anything when the animals joined them on their walk. It was a glorious day with a clear blue sky and only a slight chill to the air. As they headed back toward the school property and into the woods beyond, Jak took a deep breath and relaxed. The school was her territory. The woods were his.

  They didn’t have to go far into the woods before they reached Jak’s stream, which they followed until they could no longer hear traffic from the road. Jak led Tamisin to the waterfall and a pretty spot under the trees. Her eyes lit up when she saw the tumbling water. “This is great,” she said. “I didn’t know there was anything like this around here.”

  “I thought you’d like it,” Jak said as he set the basket on the ground. It wasn’t anything special—he knew of much prettier places near his uncle’s den—but it would do. “Are you hungry yet?” he asked. “We could eat now if you are.”

  “I’m famished,” said Tamisin. “I didn’t eat breakfast this morning. I was working in the garden, trying to get it ready for winter.”

  “You like to garden?” he said, taking the shower curtain out of the basket and shaking it so that it billowed out before settling onto the ground.

  “I’ve always loved working with plants,” she said.

  Jak glanced at her ears and nodded. That made sense, considering. He’d been wondering ever since he first saw Tamisin’s ears that day in front of the school, but it wasn’t until he’d seen her without makeup that Jak had been certain. Tamisin had fairy ancestry; the sparkles on her cheeks, the translucent skin, and the slender-tipped ears were all a giveaway. Jak wondered if she knew the truth herself. More than likely she was a halfling like him, although he had seen both of her parents the night Tamisin performed and he could have sworn that neither of them had a drop of fey in them. Being a halfling would explain why she could see the fey, but it didn’t explain the weather.

  While Jak straightened the shower curtain, Tamisin set the basket in the middle and opened the lid. “Oh!” she said, taking out the plate piled high with slices of cold pizza. Jak had made a special trip to Mama Mia’s that morning and had bought the biggest pizza they had—with anchovies, of course, which he considered the best part.

  “Don’t you like pizza?” he asked.

  “Sure!” she said. “I’ve just never had it on a picnic before.”

  “There are eggs, too,” he said, pointing at the basket.

  “Oh, good! I love hard-boiled eggs.”

  “I never would have thought of boiling them,” Jak said. “I always eat them raw. Here, you’re supposed to eat them like this.” Using one hand, he cracked the shell, broke it apart, and poured it into his mouth. When he glanced at Tamisin, she was grimacing, an expression he thought looked awfully funny on her sweet, delicate face.

  Jak couldn’t help himself and began to laugh. His laughter must have been contagious, because soon Tamisin was laughing with him. Then something moved on the other side of the stream, catching Jak’s eye, and he no longer felt like laughing. The cats had noticed it as well. One by one they stood and stalked toward the stream, ears flattened to their heads and tails lashing. They were growling deep in their throats so softly that only someone with cat-goblin hearing could hear them.

  “Here,” Jak said, handing Tamisin the basket. “Why don’t you try the cookies? My grandmother’s friend sent them over. I have to take care of something.”

  “Sure,” Tamisin said, setting the basket on her lap.

  Trying to act nonchalant, Jak strolled to the stream. Although he couldn’t be sure, he’d thought he’d seen a goblin face peering at him through the leaves. He wouldn’t have noticed it at all if it hadn’t been autumn with half the leaves already on the forest floor. The face had been there for just a moment, and had gone just as quickly. It occurred to Jak that his uncle might have gotten tired of waiting and had sent someone else to get the girl. He resented that his uncle didn’t trust him to do it; he also felt more than a little angry. After all, he was the one who had found the girl and gotten to know her.

  Noting where he thought the face had appeared, Jak crossed the stream in one bound. The cats dashed across a fallen branch, following him to the other side. An orange tabby ran under his feet, making Jak stumble into the underbrush. A goblin who had been hiding under the fallen leaves squawked in surprise and jumped up, scattering leaves and twigs as he ran off, clacking his sharp little beak. Jak followed the goblin as far as a sycamore tree, where a shower of broken twigs and pieces of old bird’s nest pelted him from above. Protecting his head with his arms, Jak dodged out of the way and peered up into the tree where two bird goblins were crouched amid the branches. “I just want to talk to you,” he said.

  “Jak, are you all right?” Tamisin called to him.

  He paused long enough to call back, “Just fine” before grabbing one of the lowest branches and swinging up into the tree. The bird goblins chattered at each other and climbed higher. Jak was halfway up when the goblins jumped out of the tree and disappeared into a tulip poplar.

  Lowering himself from branch to branch, Jak tried to decide what to do. While he wanted to run the goblins down and make them tell him what they were up to, he was eager to get back to Tamisin so the date wouldn’t be completely ruined. When a rock clipped his ear, Jak nearly fell the last few yards. He slipped and caught himself, but now he was really mad. Silently seething, he returned to the stream long enough to collect a fistful of stones and check to make sure that Tamisin was still all right.

  “I’ll be right back!” he shouted, not wanting her to think he’d deserted her. She was sitting with her back to him, but instead of turning around she just waved.

  Certain that she was still eating, Jak returned to the woods and waited for a goblin to show itself. The moment he saw movement in a tree, he took careful aim and hurled a rock, hitting something with an audible thunk!

  “Ow!” yelled a voice and Tobi peeked out, the orange and yellow leaves framing his small, masked face. “Why’d ya do that?” he shouted, rubbing his chest.

  Jak was frowning when he stalked to the base of the tree. “What are you doing here?” he asked. “Are you with the bird goblins? Did my uncle send them?”

  “Do I look like I’ve sprouted feathers?” asked Tobi. The cats pressed themselves against Jak’s legs as if to protect him, glaring at the raccoon goblin. When the big tomcat took a step toward Tobi, the little goblin raised his cudgel and shook it. “Call off yer cats, Jak. Ya know I’m on yer side.”

  “Then tell me why you’re here,” ordered Jak.

  “I came to warn ya that there are other goblins who want the girl now, and ya gotta be extra careful. Word got out that Targin wants her, so they’re comin’ over every time they find an open Gate, tryin’ to get her for themselves. They figure if Targin wants her, she must be worth wantin’. Some are stayin’ too, spendin’ all their time lookin’, though they don’t know what she looks like. They shouldn’t be able to get their claws on her unless ya show her to ’em.”

  Jak turned and started running back toward the stream. Branches whipped his face while gnarled roots tried to trip his feet, making his pace frustratingly slow. Like a fool, he had left Tamisin alone in the woods, easy prey for a goblin. No matter what anyone said about her, he doubted that she could defend herself, with or without lightning. When he saw that Tobi was scurrying alongside the cats, trying to keep up with him, he asked, “Why didn’t you tell me this sooner?”

  “I came … soon as I heard about it!” panted Tobi.

  Jak paused to look across the stream. From where he stood he could see Tamisin sitting where he had left her, yet even from a distance he could tell that something wasn’t right. Her hair no longer looked like sunlight and gold, but was dull and limp. The way she sat was different, too; she normally had a
graceful quality that came out even when she wasn’t in motion. It was apparent in the way she held her head and positioned her body, an unconscious thing that was as much a part of her as the way she breathed. Only now her body looked stiff and she held her head angled to the side like a …

  Jak fairly flew across the stream and was at her side before he could draw another breath. And then he knew why she looked so different—it wasn’t Tamisin at all. A girl of the bird-goblin clan sat holding the picnic basket on her lap. Cookie crumbs dotted her beak when she glanced up at Jak, and she cackled with laughter when she saw how mad he looked. “We’ve got her now!” she said, just before she threw the picnic basket at him.

  Jak caught the basket and tossed it aside, but the girl had already fled into the forest, the cats on her heels.

  “Who was that?” asked Tobi.

  “Not Tamisin, obviously,” growled Jak.

  “Did ya think it was?” When Jak didn’t reply, Tobi gasped. “Ya did, didn’t ya? Ya don’t mean to say that ya brought her here? What were ya thinkin’?”

  Jak glared at his friend. “Not what I would have been if someone had warned me in time.” Turning away from Tobi, Jak cupped his hands around his mouth and shouted, “Tamisin, where are you?”

  “I’m over here!” she shouted back, as if there was nothing wrong.

  Jak began to run in the direction of her voice. He found her in a meadow surrounded by out-of-season wildflowers with her arms already loaded with an enormous bouquet. The relief he felt when he saw her was enough to make him stagger.

  “Can you believe all these flowers?” she asked. “I didn’t mean to wander off, but after I saw the first one …”

  “I’d better get you home so you can put them in water,” Jak said, wanting to hurry her out of the forest as quickly as he could. “They won’t last long if you don’t.”