Starlight

by Lauren Jade Case

  James looked to her father, who in turned looked at her. “Is that what you want?” Her father asked.

  “Isn’t this my Purpose? Aren’t I supposed to want it?”

  Natalia thought of her nurse training. Was she supposed to put that behind her? It’d taken her a lot of work to get here, even if she hadn’t been actively doing it long. Could she work on the side, or was being a Creature a full-time thing?

  There was no space in her brain for anything to be processed. Not now, anyway.

  Sarah walked over and touched a small hand to Natalia’s tear-stained face. “It doesn’t have to be,” she said. “You can walk away while the Council are unaware of you.”

  Natalia zeroed in on her father. “Can I think about it?”

  He nodded. “Of course! You have a lot to think over.”

  She unhooked herself from Peri to fall into her father’s embrace. They hung onto each other for a moment. Then he guided her back to Peri who waited patiently near the doorway.

  What do I want? Do I want this life? Am I definitely not in a dream?

  The idea of peace and quiet had never sounded better.

  When they at last made it to the bathroom, Peri aided Natalia in undressing. At first, it was embarrassing. But soon the nerves faded, especially when Natalia realised she needed the help. Peri seemed unfazed, even when she had to heave Natalia’s sore leg out of the water once her body was submerged.

  The water was warm and bubbly. Peri left, promising to be on the other side of the door if Natalia needed anything. Natalia was sure she needed nothing except loneliness. Lying face up to the ceiling, she sighed heavily.

  Two days ago, she’d had no thoughts of stories filled with Creatures and Monsters. Yet here she was, dumped right in the middle of a reality she couldn’t quite grasp. It was like she’d become a rock repetitively being thrown against a cliff, wearing her down.

  A Fairy.

  She tapped the surface of the water in sync with her heartbeat. Could she believe these people? They’d only just become acquainted. How could Creatures and Monsters exist? It seemed illogical. And yet she’d seen proof to say otherwise.

  Even more bizarrely as the fact that she could somehow tell they were being truthful.

  She pinched herself and bit her lip at the pain. That seemed real enough.

  Natalia sank below the water completely.

  ◆◆◆

  Peri heard her name being called. She opened the door, expecting Natalia to need help being lifted out of the bath. When she got there, however, she struggled to hold in her laugh. Natalia wasn’t in the bath. Instead, she was face down on the floor, a towel haphazardly thrown over her back.

  “Why didn’t you yell before you ended up in this mess?” Peri asked, amused.

  “I thought I could manage.” Natalia groaned as Peri shifted her into a sitting position.

  “I told you. It’ll take days for you to heal.”

  “Can’t you use magic or something?”

  At that, Peri did laugh. “Amore, in case your brain turned to water, I’m a Mermaid. If you want magic, you’ll have to ask the family.”

  Natalia’s cheeks pinked with a near missable bronze sheen overtop. “Sorry.”

  “Anyway, they have used magic on you,” she expressed. “That’s why it’ll only take you days to heal. Without it, you probably wouldn’t be this well off already.” Peri put her arms out, tucking them under Natalia’s armpits. “Now, let’s get you sorted.”

  With minimal effort, Peri got Natalia up. Natalia winced with nearly every step and Peri could only sympathise. She’d never been struck by a Calefaction’s claws, and hoped she never would be. Though Calefactions were low ranking Monsters, according to the incomplete records – files the Council kept of all known Monsters, which Creatures were taught about growing up – they could still issue pain and punishment from Hell.

  Calefaction’s claws were made of fire which could transfer into the target via broken skin. The cut on Natalia’s leg had been sustained as a result of clawing and it was deep enough that fire had indeed been transferred. It was just a blessing Natalia hadn’t been bitten. That didn’t have a recovery time. There wasn’t one. A Calefaction’s mouth was hotter than any Human furnace; they could expel a fire their bodies created, and it burned unlike any known heat source.

  Peri sat Natalia at the crooked writing desk; it was the closest point to the en suit and she didn’t want the girl to struggle further. She handed Natalia some underwear and clean clothes. Tony, Natalia’s father, had brought them over when he’d raced round in a panic.

  “I’ll do your hair once you’re dressed,” Peri announced.

  “Oh, no, you don’t—”

  “I will,” Peri insisted, not about to take a no. “It’s the least I can do.”

  Peri turned her back to give privacy, even if she had seen the girl’s body already, waiting to be called for assistance. There was silence until Natalia called for help with her bra claps and the zip of the dress. Her father had chosen a simple mint green dress and white leggings.

  “It’s February,” Natalia mumbled, glancing down at herself. “What was he thinking? I haven’t even seen these clothes in years.”

  “Practicality,” Peri answered.

  “I’m sure freezing is practical.”

  “With leggings, we can monitor your leg without having to tear or cut them off. Plus, your wound can be left to breathe easier while it heals.”

  “That won’t save my arms from their inevitable falling off.”

  Peri went around the bed, lifting up a thick white cardigan she’d brought from Home City despite never having plans to wear it. She wondered how it’d come to be in this room when it wasn’t her space. But in moving, everything had gotten jumbled. She handed it to Natalia, who slipped it on and buttoned it, and she picked up the nearby pink hairbrush.

  “I know it sounds like I’m complaining a lot—”

  “You are,” Peri cut in.

  Natalia dropped her head. “I don’t mean to. I’m sorry.”

  “You have every right to complain.”

  In the small mirror on the desk, Natalia looked at Peri. “I do?”

  “You don’t know who we are. You have our names, nothing else. Not to mention the whole thing of what you just found out about yourself.” Peri started brushing Natalia’s long hair. “I imagine it’s like the world crashing around you.”

  Peri couldn’t begin to imagine what that felt like, to not know about the biggest part of who she was, the part that was entirely her. She’d always been a Mermaid. It’d never once been hidden from her.

  “I still don’t need to be rude about it,” Natalia argued, tilting her head forwards. “You’ve all been nothing but kind. You and that boy helped me when I was first hurt—”

  “Jasper.”

  Natalia nodded. “And then I was brought here to recover and heal,” she continued. “You all just spent time out of your lives trying to explain to me how your world works, what I am, and how I might fit into it. And how do I repay you? By being a Class A bitch.”

  Peri stopped brushing. “Does that mean you accept it?”

  There was nothing at first.

  “No,” Natalia finally answered.

  Peri left it alone. Natalia had all she needed for now, all that she could cope with. What she needed was time and space to grow accustomed. The girl had to figure out what she wanted and what she didn’t, what she believed or didn’t. No one could force such thoughts or decisions onto anyone. There was no knowing how Natalia was doing, but to Peri, she seemed to be handling a lot better than she knew she would if the roles were reversed.

  Whatever the eventual choice, Natalia had the right to make it for herself.

  Peri finished Natalia’s hair and dragged the chair against the carpet so Natalia could face her. The girl looked up anxiously, bronze now lining the edge of her brown irises.

  She went to speak when the door burst open.

  Jaspe
r halted, clocking the girls, eyes searching over them. Peri tapped her fingers against her stump, waiting for his next move. If he was smart enough, he would’ve suspected them being in here.

  His eyes finally rested on Natalia. “I love it when women invite themselves into my room, and here I have two!”

  Peri rolled her eyes. “I’m your brother’s girlfriend.”

  Jasper smirked. “Fine. But did we play musical bedrooms while I was out?”

  “Your bedroom was the closest,” Peri half-explained.

  “I knew it! A guy takes one walk and suddenly his private space is invaded until it’s no longer his. The tragedy.”

  “You’re a drama Witch.”

  Jasper’s attention went back to Natalia, his smirk softening to a smile. “How’s the leg?”

  Natalia glanced down then up again as if the sight of her injury made her sick. “Sore,” she said. “Like there’s fire contained inside it.”

  “In case you missed it, you were mauled by a Monster made of fire.”

  Peri wanted to hit him.

  Natalia didn’t blink. “I have two questions.”

  Jasper launched himself onto his bed facing them, stomach down, his head in his hands, his feet in the air with his ankles crossed. Peri thought about hitting him harder now. She had no idea what he was doing, like always.

  “Things are finally getting juicy,” he proclaimed. “I’m down for playing twenty-one questions.”

  “Only two,” Natalia insisted.

  Peri forced Jasper to move over and sat beside him. “Ask away,” she said.

  Natalia’s eyes flitted between Peri and Jasper. “Did you stop that thing yesterday?” was her first question.

  “Yes,” Peri answered immediately.

  “How?”

  “That’s question two,” Jasper unhelpfully pointed out.

  “They’re parts A and B,” Natalia retorted.

  He grinned approvingly, and Peri curiously watched him as he spoke. “Calefactions are low ranking. You just keep hitting them, so to speak, until they’re gone. Magic doesn’t work on all Monsters, and neither do weapons. But Calefactions can be brought down by both.”

  Thank the Gods for a short and sweet answer. Maybe I won’t hit you now?

  “I saw it choking,” Natalia said. Peri was sure her brain was fizzing but then again, Natalia had asked for answers.

  Peri touched her stump. “That’s how you get rid of them. It sounds worse than it is but you have to make them choke on their own fire. It’s the easiest way to kill them. As Jasper said, there are other ways, like weapons, but this is less drawn-out.”

  Natalia looked surprisingly calm. Sunlight beamed in through the window, the bright day not quite reflecting this conversation.

  “After they’ve turned to ash,” Peri continued, “the remnants of their existence goes back to the layer of Hell, or world, they crawled out of. They’re never seen from again.”

  “So they say,” Jasper mumbled.

  Unfortunately, Peri couldn’t disagree. There was no proof anywhere that the Monsters didn’t reform and come back. They had no way of knowing if they were fighting the same damned Monster over and over, or if it did turn to ash forever once dealt with and there were simply thousands of that type that kept cropping up. It was just an assumption that they remained ashen.

  “You had another question?” she asked.

  Jasper seemed to notice something Peri hadn’t picked up on because he said, “You don’t have to ask if you don’t want too.”

  Natalia’s eyes glistened. There was an unexplainable sadness hovering in her gaze and Peri wanted to take the girl’s hand in support.

  Natalia took a shaky breath. “No, it’s ok.”

  “Amore,” Peri pressed, “you really don’t—”

  “What exactly does it mean to be a Fairy?”

  4

  Improbable Belief

  Noah coughed when he approached. The woman, Katherine, turned to him – whether because she’d heard his lame attempt to draw attention to himself or just suspected someone was close. When he stepped beneath a lamp, Katherine smiled.

  “Noah,” she greeted.

  They weren’t well acquainted but she’d seen him enough with Natalia over the years.

  He fiddled with the bottom of his jacket. “Sorry ma’am. I know you’ve just finished work and…”

  “What is it?”

  Noah looked up and Katherine’s eyes were wide and questioning. Just ask, his chided himself. “Have you heard from Natalia?”

  From the day they’d become friends, they’d been inseparable. Whether they were tagging each other in things online, playing games, or sitting in the same room watching movies, not much time usually passed between them talking.

  But for the past week, Natalia’s messages seemed flat; like something had been taken from her, some great energy sapped from her being. Not just that, but Natalia hadn’t invited Noah round and had declined his invitations as well. It wasn’t like her.

  That was why he found himself here, in the middle of a dark Main Street, at ten o’clock at night. He’d meant to find Tony, but had seen Katherine first. He was just worried about his best friend. So much so he’d bitten down his nails.

  Katherine shook her head, dangly earrings bobbing. “She’s not been to work all week, calling in sick every day.”

  “Sick?” She’s ill? But then, why wouldn’t she just say so?

  “She should be back in the morning.” Katherine stepped from her café door. “Come on. You can walk me home. We’ll talk on the way.”

  Noah obliged, not finding an excuse to deny her.

  ◆◆◆

  Archie kissed Peri’s forehead, the smell of apple shampoo wafting up his nose as he did. She snored softly. Rolling the covers off, he stood on the dark wooden floor. Peri didn’t stir. Barefoot, he crept from the room.

  He nearly yelped once the door closed behind him.

  Jasper was propped against the stair banister, one leg crossed over the other casually, eyes turned towards the shared bathroom. He was dressed in dark jeans and, more notably, a ripped t-shirt. His hair was wavier and there was salt in the air around him.

  Archie edged towards his brother. “Where are you hurt?”

  “Nowhere,” Jasper murmured.

  “I may not be a Fairy but I know when you’re lying.”

  Archie’s gaze lingered on Jasper’s right shoulder which drooped slightly. He lunged for it. Jasper winced as they collided.

  “Fucking seven Hells,” Jasper hissed, holding his bicep as crimson seeped through the otherwise white t-shirt. “That hurt.”

  Archie surveyed him. “Why lie?”

  “I wasn’t hurt that bad before.”

  “You’re bleeding.”

  Jasper pulled his hand away, red smears covering his palm. “I am now!”

  “You were before.”

  “It’d stopped until you forced yourself on me like a wild bear.”

  “I didn’t force myself on you.”

  “What did you do then? Trip? Come in for a hug?”

  Archie’s patience was wearing thin – he was the most patient out of the siblings too. Not even the birds were singing yet; he’d only come out for water. “I’ll bloody hurt you twice as much as whatever hurt you in the first place if you don’t open your trap and tell me what happened,” he warned, though far too tired to actually follow through with the threat. “And why are you even out here? Your room has an en suit.”

  “There’s no medicine cabinet in there.”

  The bathroom’s door opened and their mother blinked at them. She turned and yanked the light cord; white light burst behind her, casting her as a silhouette. She said nothing and left. The truth would come by morning, it always did, so she needn’t ask now for it.

  Archie dragged Jasper into the bathroom, giving him no room to reply and forced him onto the toilet while he rifled through the medicine cabinet. Jasper sighed heavily and Archie peered at h
is brother’s reflection in the mirror. Jasper’s eyes were half closed, his lips dry, and his cheeks flushed faintly. He looked exhausted.

  “I went for a walk,” Jasper admitted. “I wanted to understand this place, to see its possibilities.”

  Possibilities meant something different to this family. They meant all the ways a Monster could come to be here, on this side of the Veil, in this spot. Whether that meant swimming, appearing by their own portal – it wasn’t noted anywhere that any could do that, but just in case – by following a Witch, or simply sneezing to this side – Jasper had sworn he’d seen that once. But possibilities also meant ways Creatures could defend themselves, and the world, or escape if the situation became dire. Witches, for example, could create portals but only in certain places.

  Archie handed over a damp cloth. “And?”

  Jasper took it and slid it under his top to his shoulder. “The Island has enough of both.” Confliction crossed his face. “But this Island is big, as big as a mainland city. It’s a six hour round trip on foot.”

  Archie took the cloth when Jasper handed it back and gave him a square white gauze patch. Jasper raised his t-shirt gingerly. A gash, no bigger than a couple of inches, stretched along his right shoulder. Violent pink shading surrounded the wound, but at least the bleeding had stopped again.

  Jasper applied the gauze. “This place will be no different than any other place on Earth.” He winced as the centre touched the gash.

  If Jasper did fight something that got through from another World or another Hell, this place could easily be an equal target for Monsters now. This place needs protection, just like any other.

  He didn’t want to admit to the Council being right aloud.

  Archie narrowed his eyes at his brother. “And your injury?”

  Jasper grinned at him. “I ran into a Jij and Gold helped me stop it.” He rose from the toilet and the door creaked as he left.

  What is Jasper doing?

  Archie feared he’d never get an answer to that question. Jasper had always been here and there and everywhere at once. But, at the end of the day, he always came home. Who cared what he did in between to keep himself busy or entertained? As long as it was safe. But now he truly had his Purpose to think of.