by Duncan Pile
“The two visiting spirits are here for an important ceremony,” he said as he rubbed salt into the haunch of pork. “When you go back to Helioport, you will be accompanied by one of each type of elemental. They have been chosen from among their kind to aid you in any way they can.”
Gaspi was staggered. “But what about the pain they feel out of their element?” Gaspi asked. “I don’t think any of them will be happy in the city.”
Heath smiled warmly. “Again, I’m glad to see you are thinking about their wellbeing,” he said, “but there is a way. They need to be given a bodily form, and then the need they have for their environment will be replaced by the need for nourishment and rest like other bodily creatures. They will be able to transform from that bodily form into spirit form at will, and their needs will change with them.”
Gaspi blinked. This was turning out to be a very surprising day. “What kind of bodily form?” he asked, confused.
“That will be up to them,” Heath answered, “but they will need our help to achieve it, just as they do when we perform healings. That’s what I meant by an important ceremony.”
“Oh, okay” Gaspi said. An exciting thought occurred to him. “So the fire and air spirits will come with me, and one of the water and earth spirits too?”
Heath smiled knowingly. “Loreill will be going with you when you leave,” he said, seeing to the heart of Gaspi’s question.
Gaspi broke into the biggest grin, put two fingers between his teeth and whistled loudly. He’d never summoned Loreill that way before but the elemental came zipping out of the trees nonetheless. He soared and swooped around him joyfully, and Gaspi could feel through the bond that Loreill already knew he would be going back to Helioport with him.
Heath’s smile broadened and he shook his head in amazement. “Never seen anything like it,” he mumbled.
Gaspi was elated. Not only was he going back to Helioport with all the knowledge Heath had taught him, but Loreill was coming with him too. He’d created a quiet bond with Heath, and respected the druid immensely, but he was too closed-off for Gaspi to feel very close to. It was Loreill that had found a place in his heart. In all the anticipation of seeing Emmy again, he hadn’t taken the time to think about how much he’d miss the earth elemental, but now that he knew Loreill was coming with him, it was clear just how painful that parting would have been.
“When do we perform the ceremony?” he asked.
“The day before you leave,” Heath responded, rubbing herbs and oil into his salted meat. “Now stop playing and help me with these chores!”
Gaspi grinned, and, with just a thought, sent Loreill off into the trees.
Sixteen
Taurnil, Lydia and Emmy were having a drink with Everand in the Traveller’s Rest. The boys had been playing koshta again, and as it coincided with one of Taurnil’s rostered days off, he’d joined them, playing in goal for Owein’s team. As a result, Everand’s team hadn’t scored a single goal, and Owein’s team had smashed them 7 - 0. Everand’s pride was clearly still dented, and he sat among them stiffly, trying to act like he wasn’t bothered. Taurnil glanced at him out of the corner of his eye. He didn’t like how uptight he got about losing, and he was even less happy about how much time he was spending with Emmy.
He wasn’t going to do anything about it unless things got out of hand, but he was keeping a close eye on things on his best friend’s behalf. Lydia had tried to talk to her about it, but apparently she didn’t think Gaspi would have a problem with it. She seemed to think that because Everand had apologised for bullying him last year, that he would welcome him into their circle of friends. Taurnil thought there was a big difference between forgiving someone and becoming best friends. Lydia agreed with him, but she said Emmy wasn’t going to listen, and that saying anything to her about it would just make her react badly.
Taurnil sighed quietly to himself. Why weren’t things ever simple? He and Lydia had sorted their differences out and things were great between them again, but it looked likely that Gaspi and Emea were heading for a collision, and there was nothing he could do about it. He found it incredibly frustrating. Gaspi was coming back in just a few days, and he didn’t want his return messed up by this.
“Come on you big lummox,” Emea said, punching Everand playfully on the arm. “You lost. Now stop sulking and lighten up will you?”
“I’m not sulking!” Everand said indignantly, but then his handsome face lost its stiffness and broke into a big smile. “Okay I might be sulking. You always know what to say to make me relax Emmy,” he said. She smiled sweetly in response, and Everand sidled a bit nearer to her. Taurnil fumed inwardly. Couldn’t she see what was happening? The jumped-up, pompous idiot was making a move on her! It was slow, and patient, but it was a move!
“Come on Lydia,” he said brusquely. “Let’s go and do that thing.”
“What thing?” she asked confusedly.
“You know, that thing,” he responded lamely, grabbing her by the elbow. “Sorry we’ve got to go,” he said as he dragged her from the room.
“See ya later,” Lydia called as she was extracted from the room. As soon as they were out of the Rest she rounded on him. “What was that all about?” she asked, planting her hands on her hips, her beautiful green eyes flashing with anger.
“I just can’t watch it Lyd,” Taurnil said. “He’s coming onto her.”
“I know he is,” Lydia responded heatedly. “which is exactly why we should be in there, and not out here!”
“No,” Taurnil said firmly. “It’d be one thing if she asked for help, but she won’t listen to either of us. She’s determined to see the best in that arrogant toe-rag and refuses to see what’s right in front of her eyes. If I’m not allowed to say anything, or better still punch him out, I’m not going to sit around and watch it happen.”
“I don’t know,” Lydia said, frowning, but all the anger had gone from her voice.
“Do you think she would actually cheat on Gaspi?” Taurnil asked.
“No!” Lydia said firmly. “She loves him. She doesn’t have any real feelings for Everand, and even if she did, she’d never do that in a million years.”
“Then we’re not doing her any harm by leaving her alone with him,” Taurnil said. “If I’m around him any longer I’m going to hit him, hard.”
“Okay Taurn,” Lydia said in a small voice. “I don’t like it, but you’re probably right.”
…
“Why did they leave like that?” Emea asked, frowning at the door as if her friends were about to come back in.
“What?” Everand asked distractedly. “Oh, I dunno,” he said. “Probably had something to do.” Emea considered getting up and following them, but then thought better of it. Maybe they had something to discuss.
“Come on Emmy,” Everand said. “Let’s get a drink. You stay in the snug so we don’t lose it, and I’ll go get them.” Before she even had a chance to respond, the athletic boy had sprung out of his chair and left the snug.
After a moment’s uncertainty, she relaxed back against the cushioned bench. What harm could it do? It was as good a way to spend an afternoon as any. She played idly with the brass studs around the edge of the padded seat of the bench, running her fingers over their rounded surfaces as she let her thoughts wander. She could hardly believe that Gaspi would be back in just a few days. The time had gone so slowly at first, but the last few weeks had seemed to speed up, and now the time was almost here. She felt a thrill of excitement when she imagined seeing his face for the first time, running up to him and kissing him. Her hand stopped moving over the brass studs as she daydreamed about that amazing moment. The door burst open, causing her to jump in shock, making an unladylike squeal of fright. Everand stood framed in the doorway holding a pitcher and two glasses, grinning wildly at her.
“Bit jumpy are we?” he asked, moving into the room and letting the door swing shut behind him. He slid onto the bench besides her and poured a full measure of some
dark, blood-red substance from the pitcher into both glasses. She realised that it was wine - not the watered stuff she normally drank, but the real thing.
“Rand, why didn’t you get me some watered wine?” she asked. “I don’t drink the strong stuff.”
“Oh, sorry Emmy,” he said, picking up his glass by the stem. “I’ll go get you some water if you like, but just have a sip. It’s an exquisite vintage.”
She picked her glass up and took a sip of the deep red liquid. Her whole mouth tingled as rich flavours awoke every single one of her taste buds. She took another sip, larger than the first, and marvelled at the depth of flavour as it rolled around her mouth.
“Want me to get some water?” he asked, half rising from his seat.
Emmy thought about it for a moment. “Er…no,” she said. “I’ll just drink it slowly. It tastes amazing.”
“Sure, if that’s what you want,” he said, taking his seat again.
The afternoon passed comfortably for Emmy, sipping her wine and talking about anything and everything with Everand. In the past she’d seen him as self-important, but experience had taught her that beneath that puffed-up exterior he was just a nice, normal boy, and she felt she’d got past the surface with him.
He wasn’t like Gaspi of course. Gaspi was brimming with passion, and she’d never known anyone so kind-hearted. He was complex and emotional and vulnerable all at the same time, and best of all, he was hers. But in his absence, she’d spent a lot of time with Everand, and had come to appreciate him far more than she ever would have expected. He was chatty and charming and always ready to laugh. She didn’t know how she’d have got through the last few months without him.
He flashed a particularly broad smile at her, and Emmy couldn’t help noticing how the sunlight caught in his golden hair. In an honest moment, she had to admit she found him attractive. She didn’t want anything to happen with him of course! She loved Gaspi, but that same honest moment allowed her to realise that were it not for Gaspi, she might have been interested in him. He’d never measure up to Gaspi, but in the imaginary world where she’d never met him, she wouldn’t have had him to compare other boys against, and Everand would have been a reasonable choice of boyfriend. He was a good-looking boy with hidden depths, and she got on well with him.
Realising what she was thinking about, Emmy shook her head physically to clear it, but when she stopped, the room kept on moving. Damn! She must have drunk too much wine. She’d been really careful, but she wasn’t used to the strong stuff and she’d been sipping away at it for hours. When the room stopped spinning she berated herself. What was she thinking about? Firstly she’d drunk too much and secondly she’d been entertaining silly thoughts about Everand.
She tried to stand up, intending to make her excuses and leave, but she stumbled and landed back on the seat. She threw out her hands to steady herself, accidentally placing one on Everand’s broad chest. She drew it back, apologising, but he caught it in his own strong hand.
“Emmy,” he said softly, and way too late, all the alarm bells went off in her brain.
“Everand, don’t,” she said, but suddenly he was near to her, his face close to hers.
“You must know how I feel about you,” he said breathily. “And I know how you feel about me.”
“No,” she said, trying to pull her hand away, but he had it captured tight, pulling her even nearer. She didn’t know what to do. He was holding her tight to him and looking at her so intensely she felt frightened. Before she could say anything he was kissing her, his full, fleshy lips pressed against her own. Incensed, she suddenly found her strength. Pulling away from him, she whipped her hand out from his grasp and cracked it across his face.
“I said no!” she said fiercely, burning with anger.
Everand raised a hand to his cheek, clearly shocked. “But Emmy,” he said, confusion and hurt sounding in his voice.
“What makes you think you can kiss me?” she asked, seething. “I’m with Gaspi.”
“But what about all this time we’ve been spending together?” he said.
“As friends,” she snapped.
“Oh come on,” he said sarcastically. “We’re much more than friends.”
“No we’re not,” Emea said pointedly. “I’ve never meant to give you that impression.”
“You’re not being serious?” he asked. She could see his face hardening with anger and hurt pride.
“Yes I am,” she said firmly.
Everand drew himself up straight. “I can see I’ve been wasting my time,” he said stiffly. Emmy could see the hurt in his eyes, a fractured look that was at odds with the stern mask of his face. “I thought we had something, but I can see I was wrong,” he said, his voice cracking on the last word. At that moment, Emmy realised just how badly she’d messed up, but before she could say anything else he stood up and strode out of the room, the door to the snug swinging back and forth noisily in his wake. Emmy fell back against the seat, consumed with guilt and self-doubt. She needed Lydia, and right away.
Pushing herself off the seat, she staggered under the influence of the wine and had to catch herself on the table. She left the snug and made her way out of the bar, colliding with several customers and banging her hip on a table, but she didn’t care. She just needed to get out of there and find Lydia. Once outside, she steadied herself and tried to walk in as straight a line as possible. Somehow she made it through the campus without attracting attention. She entered the tower and went straight to the transporter, muttering the command before anyone could speak to her. When she arrived in the Warren, she hurried to Lydia’s room, speeding up when she heard someone call her name from a bedroom, desperate to avoid attention. She turned the handle to her friend’s room, crying in relief when it opened.
Taurnil and Lydia were sitting on the bed, playing cards on a side table. They looked up as she entered, and she flew into Lydia’s arms, sobbing like a child. Silently, Taurnil left the room, leaving her in his girlfriend’s care.
…
Lydia held her while she sobbed, stroking her hair and trying to calm her down. Poor Emmy! It looked like things with Everand had finally blown up in her face. Eventually, she stopped crying and lay sniffling in her lap for a few minutes until her breathing deepened and she fell asleep.
Lydia gently laid her friend down on the bed and drew a blanket over her. Emmy smelt of wine and was clearly a bit the worse for wear, so she’d probably sleep for quite a while. She’d been looking forward to a long evening with Taurnil but she couldn’t let Emmy wake up on her own. Sighing, she pulled out some books, sat down at her desk, and began to study.
…
It must have been at least two hours later when Emmy stirred. Putting her books away, Lydia fetched a glass of water and gave it to her. Groaning, Emmy took the glass in a shaky hand and drank the water. She handed the empty glass back to Lydia and forced herself to sit up.
“Are you alright Em?” Lydia asked.
“I feel terrible,” Emmy groaned.
“That’s because you drank too much,” she said.
“I didn’t mean to,” Emmy said miserably.
“So what happened?” she asked. There was no point skirting round the issue. She needed to talk about it sooner or later, and now seemed like a good time.
“Everand kissed me,” Emea said, her tear stained face the picture of dismay. “He said we were more than friends and that I had feelings for him, but I don’t.”
“What did you do?” she asked. It was best to know all the details before saying anything.
“I slapped him in the face!” Emmy said, looking absolutely horrified. “I can’t believe I did that. I hit him really hard.”
Lydia struggled to repress a smirk. Everand deserved whatever he got. “And then?” she asked.
“I told him I didn’t have feelings for him,” Emea said more softly. “He wouldn’t believe me to start with but then he got so angry and hurt and said he’d been wasting his time. He jus
t walked off. I think he was crying.” She looked up, her eyes as wide as they could go. “Oh Lydia I’m an awful person!” she said in a tremulous voice, and broke down into sobs again.
Lydia waited for her to stop crying and then coaxed her into sitting up. “Do you want me to just be nice to you, or do you want my opinion?” she asked.
Emea looked at her through bleary eyes. “Your opinion,” she said half-heartedly.
Lydia chose to ignore Emmy’s obvious reluctance and went ahead anyway. “You’re not an awful person. You just refuse to see what’s going on in front of your eyes because you want to see the best in people. You did exactly the same thing with Ferast last year.”
“He was so hurt,” Emmy said. “It was awful.”
“I know it was awful but Everand tried to steal another boy’s girlfriend. He deserves whatever he gets.”
“But…”
“No buts,” Lydia said firmly. “Competing for a girl’s attention is one thing, but he waited until Gaspi was out of the picture and wormed his way into your affections. It’s sneaky and it’s arrogant. I bet he never thought for a moment that you wouldn’t feel the same way.”
“He did find it hard to believe,” Emea mumbled. “But he was really hurt, Lydia. I could tell.”
“Well you’ll just have to accept responsibility for that,” Lydia said gently. “You have been a bit ignorant. Did you honestly not see this coming, because I saw it coming from a mile away, and so did Taurnil?”
“Then why didn’t you tell me?” Emea asked with a touch of anger.
“Would you have listened?” Lydia asked.
Emea hung her head. “No I suppose not. I’ve been really stupid.”
Lydia put her arms around her and gave her a hug. “A little bit stupid maybe.” She pulled back from the hug and looked Emmy in the eye. “Have you thought about what you’re going to tell Gaspi?”