by Rani Clark
“He knows you didn’t mean to. I wouldn’t worry about this. You being good at this isn’t something to hide, just enjoy it. Or at least try to. At the very least, you never have to see your father again.”
A knock on the door disturbed their conversation. “Come in,” Jaska said quietly.
Mr. Ragnar stepped in holding a book and a set of markers, “I have these for you if you want to practice.” He set the items on the nightstand, “Are you feeling alright?”
“Did you know I would be good when you decided to take me.”
Mr. Ragnar sat down next to him on the bed, Monarch vanished, “When I met you at the police station I did sense something in you. Why?”
“What if I don’t like being a necromancer?"
“I told you after you learn the basics and I don’t have to worry about you getting hurt, you can do whatever you want.” Mr. Ragnar looked around the room, “Would you like to have anything in here other than your clothes?”
“No. I don’t think of this place as my home.”
“That’s fine. I just thought you might like a different lamp or new sheets?”
“I’m fine and I can already form a ball of mist and make it cover things,” he muttered.
Mr. Ragnar stared at him, “You can?”
“Yes.”
“Show me.”
Jaska did as he was asked, creating the mist easier than the first two times. The mist covered the bed and floor before he brought his hands together to create a heavy ball. He held it for a moment before letting it drop; he didn’t want to wreck something. “I’m a little tired after that,” he admitted.
Mr. Ragnar nodded, “Alright. Practice drawing the symbols in that book and we’ll try them. You’re quite powerful.”
“Don’t remind me,” he muttered, pulling his knees to his chest. “You always said you were powerful. Wasn’t it easier for you to do this stuff?”
“Somewhat. I always had problems with the mist, it took me a few weeks to get it right. Other stuff came easier to me like summoning things and going into the land of the dead. I remember when I first started training with my teacher and I accidentally . . .”
“You what?”
He sighed, “I summoned a monster. She broke her arm and leg defending me, the monster was quite dangerous.”
“You seriously did the same thing?” Jaska laughed. “What goes around comes around.”
Mr. Ragnar laughed, “I suppose it does. Luckily, I was able to defend you better than she did me. Not that it was her fault, it was mine.”
“Is your teacher still alive?”
“Yes. I go and visit her every now and again. She’s in her sixties now.”
“I noticed at the party there were a lot more women there than guys.”
“Women have a knack for necromancy. Not sure why, I never thought to ask.” Mr. Ragnar stood, “Would you like to meet my teacher? I’m sure she would love to meet you.”
Jaska nodded, “Ok.”
“Great. Come on then, I’ve been meaning to visit her.” Freddie was with Lantern in the living room. Leif was reading by the fireplace, looking miserable. “Freddie, we’re heading to see my teacher if you want to come.”
“I’d love to, I haven’t seen her in ages.”
Jaska grabbed his coat off of the hanger by the door and motioned to Lantern to come over. “Want to go for a walk?”
Lantern nodded and made an excited coo.
Mr. Ragnar cleared his throat, "Leif, would you like to-?"
"No." He stood, “I’m going to clean the kitchen. See you guys later.”
Jaska buttoned Lantern’s coat before wrapping the scarf around him. They left the house together, Mr. Ragnar called a cab. “Where does your teacher live?” he asked as he slid into the back, lifting Lantern onto his lap.
“She lives in the country. After she retired she opted to move out there.”
Jaska looked out the window as they drove. Lantern clicked his claws as he stared out the window, his face pressed against the cold glass. Freddie kept her hand on Mr. Ragnar’s leg, running her fingers in a circle across his thigh. Even after seeing his teacher with the woman he was dating, it was still weird. They were affectionate towards each other though Freddie was slightly more open about it than her partner.
The cab ride was silent for the most part. Freddie rolled down the window to let the cool air in. Mr. Ragnar slid his arm across the top of the seats, sighing as he watched the snow fall. The cab took them out of the city and down a calm, country road. Lantern pointed at the horses and cows in the snow-filled field. He would have to take Lantern out to see the animals sometime, he seemed to like them.
The sky was starting to get darker, it was four in the afternoon. Jaska looked up at the cloudy sky; it would be snowing soon he was sure.
“There it is,” Mr. Ragnar pointed to a house up on the hill.
There wasn’t anything remarkable about the house. It was red and blue with a massive tree next to it. There wasn’t a fence around the yard, just a stone walkway up to the porch. Wind chimes lined the entire front of the house and hung from the tree. The cab dropped them off, Mr. Ragnar told him to wait for them.
Jaska stared at the house as a person came around from the back. Whoever they were, was dressed in a parka and ski goggles. The person stopped. Lantern growled, Jaska wondered why the person was wearing a parka like that. It wasn’t that cold out.
“Is Ariana home?” Mr. Ragnar asked them.
The person reached up and took off the ski goggles. Jaska noticed they had four claws on their incredibly white skinned hand. “Yes, Mrs. Vivian is home.” They spoke in a raspy clicking voice, their jaw moving to the side after the sentence. “And you are?”
“Vladimir Ragnar.”
The person shrugged and turned, “Follow me.”
Jaska couldn’t tell if they were male or female, he couldn’t see anything beyond a mouth and the claws. Rather than going into the house, they followed the person around to the back of the house. There was a woman sitting on a lawn chair in the snow. She was wrapped in a blanket and sipping from a steaming mug.
“Mrs. Vivian. You have guests.”
“Guests? That’s new.” She stood and turned, “Vladimir!”
She was in her late sixties wearing giant hoop earrings and a friendly smile. Jaska watched as the two embraced.
“I haven’t seen you in ages, I thought you might be dead,” she joked. “And you brought an entourage. Freddie Hallows I haven’t seen you in what feels like forever.” She hugged her, “Still as beautiful as ever. When can I expect an invitation in the mail? You two need to settle down.”
Mr. Ragnar blushed a deep red, “Ariana, I wanted to introduce you to my apprentice. This is Jaska Byrne.”
“Apprentice?” Ariana looked at him, “Really? Well, come inside. I’ll make us some hot chocolate and we can talk.”
The inside of the house was what he expected. There were books and other necromancy supplies stacked throughout the kitchen. The mystery person followed them in and shut the door, removing the coat and goggles as it did so. Jaska stared at it. The thing wasn’t wearing a shirt. It had nub spikes all along its back and down its thin tail.
“Staring at me,” it said, moving its jaw. “Stop staring at me.”
“S-sorry.” Jaska moved his eyes away, looking down at the floor.
“Don’t be so touchy,” Ariana snapped out, “he’s just a child and most likely has never seen one of your kind before. Jaska, this is Kelis. Kelis is from the land of the dead. Some biological creatures live there, Kelis is one of them.”
“I’m sorry for staring,” Jaska said. Kelis had a mouth full of sharp teeth and two slits in the front of a featureless face that acted like a nose. Two sharp ears moved gently towards him. “I’m Jaska.”
“To meet you,” it hissed. “It’s a pleasure.”
Kelis’s feet were much like a dog’s only with longer claws. Jaska watched as it took a kettle from the cup
board and filled it with water. Obviously, Mr. Ragnar had left out a few things about the land of the dead.
“Have a seat. I want to hear all about you, Jaska.” Ariana removed her coat and hung it by the door. She was wearing a bright red and green sweater and jeans.
Mr. Ragnar cleared his throat, “Before we get into that I should tell you how he came to live with me. I forced him to do this.”
Ariana’s smile went away just as quickly as it had come. “You did what?”
“I forced him. Jaska saw me kill someone, he saw Mads, and I had to do this to protect him. He hates it and he hates me. Just so that’s out of the way.”
“Vladimir, are you telling me this young man is being forced to become a necromancer?”
“When you say it like that, it sounds bad. I just wanted to protect him. If someone wanting to get to me got a hold of him I-”
“You forced him away from his family?”
“Yes.”
Jaska noticed his master looked worse than when he was being chastised by Freddie. It made him smile to hear Mr. Ragnar getting chewed out by his former teacher.
“How can you force him to do this? Necromancy is a choice, no matter if the person is good at it or not. Does he even want to be a necromancer?”
“The problem is that he’s good at it. He already summoned a Demon Beast by accident, it nearly killed me and him.”
Jaska unzipped Lantern’s jacket and took off his hat and scarf. “Do you have marshmallows? He likes them,” he interrupted.
“Of course. Kelis do you mind getting the little one a few marshmallows?”
The creature obliged without comment. Ariana looked back to her former pupil, “I can’t believe you would force someone into this life.”
“Once he can control his powers and he won’t hurt himself or others then I’ll let him decide if he wants to continue.”
Ariana turned to him, “So Jaska, how is training with Vladimir?”
“Fine, I guess. He doesn’t really yell at me if you want to know. Well. He got pretty mad when I almost killed him.”
“I think I would be a bit angry at you for that too.” She motioned to Lantern, “Where did he come from?”
“Some guy dropped him off and I’ve been taking care of him, he seems to like me. I like taking care of him.”
“And your powers?”
Jaska shrugged, “Once I learn how to control everything, I’m done. He took me away from my family, from my friend, and from my life. If he ever lets me go, I never want to see him again. I hate him.” He should have felt bad about saying this in front of Mr. Ragnar, but the man knew he was hated and didn’t seem to be phased by it.
“I see. Do you like anything about living here?”
“I like Leif and Freddie. Also, my Spirit Guide is quite wonderful.” He took the bag from Lantern, “Ok, no more of these.” Lantern looked at him with pleading eyes. “No, you’ll make yourself sick.”
“Jackson Bentley is quite fond of him,” Freddie told her. “I’m not sure if you remember him, he was introduced to the society a few years ago.”
Jaska didn’t often think about Jackson. The young man had made him uncomfortable, but had stopped his advances when told they weren’t welcome. “I only talked to him once,” he muttered.
Kelis set their mugs onto the table, moving its tail behind its back. It looked at Jaska before taking a seat with its own mug. Jaska tried to smile at it, all he got in return was a frosty glare. He hadn’t meant to offend the creature.
“Shall we discuss something a little more lighthearted?” Ariana asked. “Jaska, did he tell you about the time he broke his arm when he slipped on the ice?”
“No. What was he doing?”
“Being an idiot. He thought he was so debonair and so amazing showing off in front of his girlfriend until he fell flat on his back and shattered his forearm. Oh god the moaning and the carrying on.”
“You were showing off?” Freddie looked at him with a smile, “I didn’t get him during that lovely period apparently.”
“How did you meet Mr. Ragnar?” Jaska asked.
“It was very usual. He asked me to dinner after one of the society parties and one thing led to another.”
Jaska couldn’t picture Mr. Ragnar as an idiotic young man trying to impress a girl. He also couldn’t imagine him whining because of a broken arm. “Any other embarrassing stories?”
“He got locked out of a woman’s apartment in his underwear after sleeping with her. Why did she lock you out again, dear?” Ariana asked him.
Mr. Ragnar frowned, “I called her the wrong name during . . . why are we talking about this?”
“It’s difficult thinking of you like that, sir.”
“I was once young and dumb. Everyone was. You aren’t.”
Ariana raised an eyebrow, “He calls you sir?”
“Much to my discomfort.” Mr. Ragnar stood, “Do you have any alcohol?” He opened the cupboard, “Yes, peppermint schnapps.”
Freddie reached down and squeezed his leg when he sat back in the chair, pouring alcohol into the hot chocolate. “How have things been, Ariana?”
“Fine. I’m enjoying retirement. Kelis helps me out around the house, not like I need it. How is Leif doing? I miss him, tell him to come around more often.”
“He’s his usual talkative self. I’ll have him stop by.”
Jaska was having a hard time looking at Mr. Ragnar. The man was human. He had started seeing him differently when he had met Freddie and seen them kiss, but this was different. His master was embarrassed, he was smiling when talking to his teacher, and he was reminiscing. It was obvious that Mr. Ragnar cared about his teacher and his teacher cared about him. He wasn’t sure if he wanted any kind of relationship with Mr. Ragnar outside of what he had now.
“Why don’t you all stay here tonight?” Ariana asked. “I haven’t seen you in forever and it’ll give me a chance to make your apprentice some food. He looks like he hasn’t eaten in weeks, are you feeding him? Kelis, have the cab go.”
Mr. Ragnar watched the creature put on its parka, “Alright, if you’re sure.”
“Of course I am! Freddie, I hope you’re ok staying here.”
“I would love to hear more about Vladimir breaking bones being an idiot,” she joked.
“He used to be the worst around women. He would do anything to impress them and I do mean anything. It was fun to watch until it got sad.”
“It wasn’t sad,” Mr. Ragnar muttered.
“You lit a grove of trees on fire in an attempt to impress someone with fire magic which you know is difficult for necromancers let alone students.” She shook her head, “But he was an admirable student and extremely powerful.”
“And quite the gentleman,” Freddie said, kissing him on the cheek.
Jaska didn’t want to stay here, but he was too tired to make an argument. “Are you married, Ariana?” he asked quietly.
“I was. My husband died a few years ago due to an illness.”
“Was he a necromancer too?”
“No. Christian was a stay-at-home father to our two children until they were old enough for school. He worked as a teacher until he retired.”
“Are your kid’s necromancers?”
“No. My son’s work in real estate. Neither of them really had the knack for it.” She stood and poured herself another mug of hot chocolate, “By the way, Jackson Bentley delivers my groceries, he’ll be stopping by later.”
“Why does he deliver groceries?” Mr. Ragnar asked. “I could have Leif do it for you if you-”
“His aunt insists he do it. I tried to tell her I am more than up to the task of going to the store, but she wants him to do this. She didn’t tell me why and asked me to go along with it as a favor.”
Jaska didn’t know how he felt about seeing Jackson again. The young man hadn’t pushed him into anything, but he didn’t know how he would react upon seeing him.
Ariana stood, “Dinner’s almost ready, I
just need to cook the bread. Freddie, why don’t you and Jaska go make up the beds in the guest room? It’s up the stairs, two doors down on the right.”
Freddie glanced at Jaska as they walked up the steps, “You’ve been quiet.”
“I’m a quiet person. I’m sure Mr. Ragnar’s told you before.”
“He has. Didn’t think he meant this quiet.”
The guest room had a bunk bed and a day-bed. Jaska opened the closet and took out fresh sheets. “Are you upset Mr. Ragnar never broke his leg or lit things on fire to impress you?”