The Familiar

by Tatiana G. Roces

  I peer into the darkness ahead of me, and my pupils immediately adjust to the light. The forest floor is covered in a thick slippery layer of moss, and scattered with jagged rocks. Though my instincts warn me that I should be careful, I gracefully jump from rock to rock, following the direction that my internal compass dictates. When I reach the other side without slipping even once, I find an idyllic looking waterfall cascading down into a clear, shallow pool. I hear something behind me and spot Samir studying the terrain on the other side. He too catches sight of me, and I wave at him before diving gracefully from the top of the waterfall. Instead of a falling sensation, the force of gravity seems to be holding me up, keeping me from falling dangerously fast into the shallow pool below. Seconds go by and I hit the surface, going deeper and deeper into the water. I realize now that what looked like a shallow pool is actually bottomless. As I swim, holding my breath and looking around for a way out, I spot an underwater cave up ahead. I swim as fast as my limbs will take me, frantic since I’m about to run out of air. When I finally reach the cave, a ray of sunlight cuts through the surface of the water, and I figure that it must be only back to the outside world. I swim up and into the entrance of the cave, and as my head breaks through the water, I take a deep breath, sputtering out water as I regain my composure. Once I’m out of the water my uniform and boots dry almost instantaneously. As I gaze ahead, my heart skips a beat at the sight of a freakishly large pine tree with glistening golden pinecones, framed perfectly by the rocky archway of the cave entrance. I run towards it, the adrenaline in my system preventing me from taking even a short break.

  When I reach the base of the tree, I notice that the golden pinecones are precariously high, and that the lowest of the branches are at least twelve feet above my head. It dawns on me that gravity seems to play an important part in this exercise. Perhaps instead of climbing up to get the prize, I should be climbing down. I inspect the area surrounding the tree. On the other side, I find what looks like a large deep hole or animal burrow big enough for a human body. Without hesitation, I jump into the abyss and within seconds, land with a thud onto a large branch. Before losing my balance, I grab onto the tree trunk and look down. I’m standing at least twenty-five feet from the ground. The nearest pinecone is dangling out of reach, close to the tip of the branch I’m standing on. There is splashing in the cave behind me, which means either Samir or one of the others must be close. I balance on the branch like a tightrope walker, and when it becomes too thin to hold my weight, I breathe in and leap, yanking the pinecone before falling. But instead of falling, I float to the bottom, swirling slowly as if I’m riding on an invisible slide. When I land on the forest floor, Samir emerges from the cave and cringes when he sees the prize in my hand. I hold it up to the sunlight and it gleams like a golden trophy.

  “Good luck, Samir!” I shout half sarcastically before dashing into the forest once again. I glance back and chuckle, as Samir tries to climb the tree unsuccessfully, falling on his butt with every attempt.

  I run swiftly with the sound of pine needles crunching under my feet. Suddenly, I’m forced to stop when I reach a dead end. The forest has come to an abrupt halt and before me is an immense rock wall. I look up with my mouth gaping wide open, shocked that I can’t even see where it ends. The wall is completely smooth, making it virtually impossible to climb. A moment of panic grips me as I try to come-up with a solution. I tuck the pinecone into my uniform for safekeeping, and decide to give the gravity idea one more shot. I measure the distance between the wall and my body, before dropping my weight towards the ground to do a handstand. When my hands hit the ground and I’m in the vertical position, I push my legs and core so that my body will land on the rock vertically. I feel a thud, as I align myself with the surface. Within seconds, the rock wall starts to shift and my body automatically leans in following the contours as the movement pitches me down. Gradually, the surface tilts to about fifty degrees till it becomes a smooth rockslide. I keep my limbs stiff, tucking my hands in front of me to avoid scraping them as I slide down. When I near the bottom, my descent slows and then my feet touch the ground gently. I stand and look around, feeling a bit dazed from the fall. As the rockslide suddenly vanishes behind me, it dawns on me, that I’m once again on the grassy field at the edge of the forest.

  Ivana grins and Louise runs towards me, yelping, “You made it!” I look at her and can’t believe that I’ve managed to make it in second place.

  We hug tightly. “Wow! You aced it Louise!” I say, proud of her.

  Ivana chuckles at both of us, shaking her head while saying, “Congrats ladies, but don’t celebrate too much. Today is only the first day…”

  Behind us, we hear the others starting to trickle in. Samir is not in third place as I’d anticipated, but instead he comes in fifth, behind two athletic looking boys. He approaches us looking relieved.

  “Man, that pinecone tree was a nightmare! I kept on trying to climb it. Then I thought how the hell did Hazel manage to climb it? That’s when I figured out that there must be an alternate route, and discovered the big rabbit hole.”

  I look at Samir and chortle. “So, you think a girl like me can’t climb trees, huh? Should I be offended?”

  We laugh, happy to have completed the first challenge in one piece. After about fifteen minutes, the last of the students start straggling in. Akiko is among them, and though she looks exhausted, she seems content not being in dead last. She leans in, giving Samir an exhausted hug as she breathes heavily. “Thank god that’s over with!”

  Ivana clears her throat, addressing the group once again, “You all did great today, even those who did not finish at the top. I’m sure we will see improvement in the coming weeks… Now, get some food and rest before your next class.”

  We cross the field together, tired, and very hungry. I’m still on an adrenaline high, but I’m relieved that the day is already half over. As we enter the already bustling dining hall, several students approach and congratulate us. I guess word spreads like wildfire in a place like this.

  My ravenous appetite has me craving for a veggie burger, fries, and milkshake, so I bum-rush the burger station. On the way back to the table, I stop by the dessert buffet and pick out the biggest piece of chocolate cake I can find and a bonus pecan pie. As soon as our butts hit the dining chairs, we dig in like a ravenous pack of wolves. Minutes go by before any of us even utter a word.

  The silence is finally broken as Louise takes her first bite of cheesecake. “So, wasn’t that an amazing class? I could just do that whole thing over and over again!”

  Akiko looks at her bewildered. “I would never have taken you for such an adrenaline junkie.”

  Louise giggles daintily, “Well, I guess I am a bit of a jock back home… And I do have three older brothers who always treated me like one of the guys.”

  Louise leans over to me, and puts her arm around my shoulders. “But hey, how about Hazel? Wasn’t she great? Truthfully, after the meditation exercise, I was a little worried, but you really ended up giving everyone a run for their money…”

  I smile, swallowing the large piece of chocolate cake in my mouth. “Thanks, Louise.” Even though I’m feeling a bit better after this morning’s achievement, my lingering insecurity combined with the chunk of cake I just wolfed down, leaves a big lump of doubt in my throat.

  12

  After an exhausting morning, I’m kind of looking forward to our class with Brad. Since leaving Safe Harbor, I’ve missed my morning swims in the bay, yearning for the tranquility of the sun-kissed water surrounding me. We follow the path towards the lakeshore, and after a few minutes, a sign leads us to a long stone stairway that hugs the side of the mountain as it descends towards the lake. It must be at least a hundred steps before we reach the bottom, where the lake meets a small pebbly beach. The wooden dock looks brand new and is solidly built into the shape of a large letter T. Most of the class is already there, exploring the small beach or sitting and taking a breather befor
e chaos ensues once again. Brad is perched on the dock wearing sunglasses, his long legs casually dangling off the edge. When he sees us, he takes off his sunglasses and perches them on the top of his head, revealing pale circles around his eyes that make him look like a beach bum raccoon.

  “Welcome to your first day at Camp Chameleon. I hope you got some rest and re-fueled with some of that awesome food. Just between us, I know Ivana can be a bit of hard ass, so I’m going to start you guys off easy today,” he announces with a smirk. Some of the students guffaw at his jab, but the rest are just grateful that Brad seems to be the more easygoing type.

  He stands on top of the dock, and points to the other side of the lake. “I want to see everyone’s abilities in the water, so let’s start off with a swim to the other side and back. If anyone thinks they can’t hack it, now is your time to chime in,” he says, scanning all our faces. There is an awkward silence, as we glance at one another waiting to see if anyone speaks up. After a minute, when nobody says anything, Brad looks satisfied and gives a thumbs up. “Your uniforms are waterproof, so there’s no need to strip down. Please find a place on the dock, and when the whistle blows, you can dive in and get started.”

  While we wait for our turns to climb the dock ladder, I glance nervously at my friends, slightly panicked to be competing with all these uber-athletes.

  “Don’t worry, Hazel. It won’t be so bad,” Louise says trying to comfort me.

  “I don’t know… Looks like there might be some strong swimmers out there,” I say, eyeing our classmates at they stretch and warm-up. My feet stand firmly on the warm wooden dock and I begin to move forward about twenty feet until I find a free spot to dive from. Suddenly a whistle-like sound reverberates through the air, and after a pause we dive in, some more gracefully than others. As soon as I hit the water, my uniform creates a waterproof barrier, and my limbs automatically begin making steady strokes. I was feeling kind of insecure standing on the beach, but now I realize that my summers spent swimming with Andy might actually give me a slight advantage. I try not to worry about the swimmers splashing around me, instead I focus on my pace, looking up once in a while to gauge my distance. After about twenty minutes of steady swimming, I’m about three quarters of the way; the other side of the small lake a short distance away. Even though my arms and legs start to ache, I push on until I reach a bright orange buoy, taking a breather before touching its slick surface with my fingers.

  I’m surprised that only a few swimmers are ahead of me, most in fact, are still lagging pretty far behind, making a slow progress from somewhere in the middle of the lake. That gives me the extra boost of confidence I need to push off and continue my strong and steady pace. Though I can feel my muscles cramping up, I trudge on, doing my best to ignore the nagging pain. As my strokes become more fluid, I’m inspired, seeing the gap close between myself, and the swimmers ahead of me, acting like some natural performance enhancing drug. I recognize the bleach blonde heads bobbing in the water, the twins, both athletic and extremely competitive. I have no doubt that their physical abilities will easily give them the top spots, but finishing third wouldn’t be so shabby for someone puny like myself.

  After about five more minutes of frenzied swimming, there are only about twelve feet between me, and the brothers. I’m about to make another push, when I suddenly notice frantic splashing to my left. When I stop and to take another look, I notice it’s one of the smaller boys in our class. His arms are flailing and he seems to be in trouble. The brothers are getting further and further away, and as I whip my head from side to the other, I make the decision to go and help, rather than try to catch up. It looks like the closest swimmer behind the drowning kid is a good ten minutes away, but with a few minutes at a rapid pace I think I can get to him before it’s too late.

  I swim as fast as my sore muscles will take me. My heart is beating rapidly and the adrenaline is pumping through my body with every kick, and every slice through the water. In no time, I’m only a few feet away, but before I can reach him I feel my legs cramp and stiffen. I push through it, but as the pain subsides, I realize that my legs somehow feel different. I shift my eyes down and flinch at the long glistening mermaid’s tail in place of my legs. The urgency of the situation makes me push aside the shock. I instinctively tense my core and flex my tail till I feel my body gliding through the water. In a few seconds, I’m at the boy’s side and I grab hold of him just as he’s about to sink underwater. He coughs out water and grips my neck and shoulders as if his life depended on it. His feet graze my tail, but he’s too panicked to react as he wraps himself around me securely and he croaks, “Thank you.”

  While gliding effortlessly towards the dock, my tail pushing back and forth against the cold water, I get the sense that someone is beside me. I glance sideways, surprised when I see a large blue dolphin soaring across the water, matching my pace. I stare at the dolphin’s eyes with pale circles around them, and realize that it’s Brad. He swims steadily, our rhythms in sync. As we near the shore, I spot the brothers panting on the beach looking exhausted, but alert to the fact that something has gone wrong.

  Brad leads us to the beach instead of the docks, and we stop swimming when the ground is shallow enough to stand. The brothers wade into the water to help. They pull the boy off my back, eyes widening when they see my shimmering tail, and drag him onto the beach asking over and over if he is okay and what happened. I glance at Brad who by now, is wading next to me already back to his human form. He studies my tail intently, and then looks up at me. “Hazel, are you okay? Can you to transform back?”

  I stare at my tail and nod. “I think so…”

  I close my eyes and imagine my legs kicking against the water, and as soon as the sensation feels real, I open my eyes. The tail is gone and my legs are back where they belong. Brad looks relieved, scooping me out of the water, and carrying me to the beach. My body feels lifeless and I collapse in Brad’s arms, limp, as if all the energy has been sucked out of me. Brad wraps me in a large fluffy towel, hoping the warmth will revive me. “Lance, help Henry stand up,” says Brad to one of the brothers who’s by Henry’s side. Lance pulls Henry to his feet, allowing him to lean on him for support. Brad calls out to the other brother, “Donovan, please stay behind and wait for the other students to get back. I’m going to send a counselor down here to assist while we’re at the infirmary.”

  Donovan nods in agreement. “No problem.”

  Brad is carrying me up the endless stone steps as if I weigh nothing at all and Lance does his best to assist Henry, who’s still weak from the ordeal. When we finally reach the main house and go inside, Brad hurries down a lengthy corridor adorned with paintings of witches and wizards in gleaming robes. As the blur or artwork goes by, I catch a quick glimpse of a portrait of a stoic, intelligent looking woman. Somehow, she reminds me of the older witch in my dreams and I make a mental note to go back and take a closer look. We finally reach the end of the corridor and go through some old fashioned swinging glass double doors. Inside, the room looks nothing like an infirmary. Instead it’s like a cozy grandmother’s home – with lots of comfy sofas and armchairs in muted pastel shades, floral throw pillows, crocheted blankets, and sage colored rugs. On one side are several smaller rooms with single beds, soft down pillows, and embroidered bedspreads. Brad brings me to the first room and carefully places me on the bed. Through a gap in the door, I spot Lance helping Henry into another room. An Asian woman walks in holding a glass clipboard; she’s wearing a staff uniform, except hers is white with the red embroidered doctor’s symbol, snakes curled around a staff, at the collar and cuffs. Her long dark hair is neatly braided down her back and she has no make-up on her face. She frowns. “What happened out there?”

  Brad shakes his head. “Doc Alice, to be honest I’m not really sure. I was watching the kids from the dock, and as soon as I realized Henry was in trouble, I jumped into the lake. When I reached him, Hazel was already there… as a… mermaid.”

  Doc
Alice looks troubled. “Hazel, has this ever happened before?”

  I avoid her eyes, not exactly sure how to respond. “Um… Well, yes, sort of,” I croak in a hoarse voice. Doc Alice’s forehead creases with worry. She taps on her clipboard and it lights up. She scrolls silently for a few seconds.

  “It doesn’t say anything here in your records about that,” she states matter-of-factly.

  I pause for a moment deciding what to say next. I guess Mom must have left that information out of my application, probably so they wouldn’t judge me even before arriving. Based on their reactions, I can’t really blame her.

  “It only happened once and I decided not to tell my mom about it… She tends to worry a lot.”

  Doc Alice glances at Brad. From the looks on their faces, I can only assume they don’t believe me.

  “Okay, well I’ll have to keep close tabs on your progress. Your teachers should really be aware of these things, Hazel. Please make sure you advise us if it happens again,” she says while examining me. My cheeks feel hot, and I feel too guilty to reply, so I just nod in agreement.

  “It looks like your legs are fully functional again. They’ll be weak for several hours. The kind of transformation you made took all your strength. Even mature and experienced shifters will be weakened by it,” she explains clinically.

  Doc Alice looks over at Brad, her voice serious but reassuring, “She’s going to be okay.”

  She taps at her clipboard a few more times. “You’ll have to stay overnight for observation. Someone will bring you some medicine and food shortly. Try to eat slowly.”

  Brad smiles. “You did a good thing today, Hazel,” he says, giving me a cheesy thumbs-up.

  “Now get some rest, okay?”

  Brad leaves with Doc Alice. Before the door closes, I hear them whispering in the other room, and wonder what they’re saying about me.

  I lean back and close my eyes. I wiggle my toes, making sure that the sensation has returned. A tingling feeling travels up my legs, and I breathe out, relieved that they’re pretty much back to normal.