The Stone Dragon

by H. M. Gooden

  Vanessa and Evelyn both considered her words, before nodding in agreement.

  "Balance is important. So I guess it's time for us to prepare to deliver it, in whatever way we can." Evelyn smiled, looking more relaxed now. "At least I know that someone will be coming to help me with the dreams. And whatever else happens, we're in this together. The possibility of another person to help would be great too. That's more than we knew before, so I'll consider it progress."

  Cat looked down at the bags they'd brought as Evelyn's words sank in. "Is anyone still hungry? I think I've lost my appetite, but we still have a ton of stuff here."

  Vanessa grabbed a cookie out of her bag but Evelyn declined, then Vanessa stood up. "Let's go," she said. "We've been here for what feels like a long time. While Mom and Dad know where we are, it may have been a few days already since we left."

  Cat and Evelyn nodded. They quickly rolled up the blanket together before Cat and Vanessa threw the bags over their shoulders and they headed back to the grandfather tree. They walked silently through the eerie gateway, emerging into an evening mist in the park. They'd been gone at least a few hours based on the darkness around them, so the girls slipped silently down the street to the McLean house, where Cat and Vanessa found their parents waiting in the living room. Their mom and dad looked up as they came in, both smiling with relief.

  "Nice to see you guys back. We were just starting to worry. You have school Monday and Evelyn's mother has called a few times asking if things were okay, but we didn't have anything new to tell her."

  Her mom stood up and hugged Vanessa and Cat before smiling at Evelyn.

  "Maybe give her a call and let her know you're okay? She gave us her extension at the hospital to call when you got back."

  Evelyn took the number and left the room to call her mother. Their dad looked at Cat and Vanessa sharply, curiosity evident in his dark blue eyes.

  "So? Did you find the answers you were looking for?"

  Cat curled up on the couch and grabbed a pillow, hugging it tightly.

  "Yes, and no. We saw Robin again and he told us a story about the old days. Basically it sounds like we are in big, big doo-doo."

  Her dad looked at her quizzically. "What do you mean?"

  Cat squeezed the pillow with a death grip now. "He said we're up against something that took a god to scare away last time, but apparently it didn't die the way they'd thought. Instead it went into hiding until the old gods had gone away, then crept out and stole a human body to work it's evil with. Sounds like he's been working undercover for a few thousand years and building up strength. The dark hooded man we saw last year is some guy called Dub, a.k.a the darkness, and it basically wants to destroy all humans."

  Cat's mom looked a little sick, clearly not wanting to know but asking anyways. "And what are you guys supposed to do? Kill it?"

  Cat tilted her head in agreement. "Sounds like it. Not sure how yet, but at least we have a direction to start looking. Robin said that someone would come to teach Evelyn to control her powers better and it sounds like we'll get a fourth person to help us at some point, but he was light on details."

  Cat looked up at her dad, who'd stood up and gone over to his office as she was talking and had just returned, holding a book.

  "Not sure how helpful this is, but it talks a little about Dub and the Tuatha de Danaan, who I'm assuming were the ones who got rid of him the last time. They were a race of golden warrior-gods and were responsible for the destruction of many ancient foes in their battles. This might help to fill in some details for you guys."

  Vanessa looked at her dad with admiration.

  "You're always surprising me, Dad. I wouldn't have guessed you knew anything about this stuff before last year. You are so totally Clark Kent! You work at a bank but have secret water affinity instead of Superman's powers. And now I find out you have a bunch of esoteric knowledge, to boot."

  He laughed and patted her head fondly. "Yes dear, I'm glad you think I'm cool now."

  Vanessa snorted. "Woah, there, hold up! I didn't say you were cool!"

  Their mom smiled, her shoulders relaxing once the everyday bantering had begun, but a mother still worried, and Cat suspected that their mom couldn't help wondering why her children had been chosen to fight something so far beyond her comprehension. Cat could only hope that if such an enormous evil truly existed, there was a corresponding good that would hear a mother's prayers for her daughters.

  CHAPTER FOUR

  The Tempest was way more confusing than A Midsummer Night's Dream, Cat thought, as she read the play during study period. Shakespeare was either a genius, like everyone else said, or truly messed up in the head, as she suspected. Either way, it was impossible for her to just read it like a story. First you had to translate whatever version of English it was written in, then figure out what the characters were actually doing, and finally figure out what it all meant. It was interesting, and maybe not so coincidental to her, that the magician in the story got rid of the witch on the island but her son hung around being evil. Once again, the choice of reading for her English class seemed to eerily parallel what Robin had warned them was coming. She couldn't help but wonder if Mr. Grayson was more than just a crazy English teacher and if he knew something about what was going on. It was an interesting coincidence, anyway.

  She threw a balled up piece of paper over to get Evelyn's attention and accidentally hit her in the face. She mouthed 'I'm sorry!' with a horrified expression, then wrote a quick note and passed it over. Evelyn opened it, read the note quickly and scribbled something before handing it back.

  Cat opened it, and read,

  Hey, E, do you think Mr. G is part of this?

  I dunno- maybe? He always seems to be on a different planet, so anything is possible.

  Cat wrote a response and waited for Evelyn to send the paper back again.

  Do you want to stay after class tomorrow and ask him about the play, maybe throw in a question about Dub?

  Be careful how you ask. But sure, let's see what he says. Maybe he can help.

  Cat nodded but when she saw the librarian staring at her, she bent her head guiltily back to the play, pretending to be deeply absorbed. Even though she'd taken away more than one of the woman's migraines, the librarian was still a cranky person in general, as well as rule oriented to the extent of measuring the length of students' skirts. In her opinion, study period and libraries were only for quiet and study so it wasn't worth the hassle to argue or draw her attention and disapproval.

  The next day when English period finished and all the students were filing out, Cat and Evelyn packed up slowly, waiting until the last person passed through the doorway. They sidled up to the desk behind which Mr. Grayson was wiping off the whiteboard and waited for him to finish. He noticed them immediately and smiled broadly as he turned around, wiping his hands on his pants.

  "So, what can I help you ladies with today? Deep questions about Miranda? Or the King of Spain? Mystical meanings and hidden wonders?"

  He sat down behind his desk, using his hands to make a temple out of his fingers while he rested his chin on it, watching them intently while waiting for a response with glittering light blue eyes.

  Cat and Evelyn looked at each other, silently battling over which one of them would speak, until Evelyn finally gave up and rolled her eyes. She exhaled an irritated breath before taking the plunge.

  "Mr. Grayson, we were wondering what you know about the real Shakespeare and the characters in the play. Are they just stories he made up, or are they, you know, based on some true stuff?"

  Evelyn trailed off lamely and Cat felt that she'd totally botched it until the look on the teacher's face made her think maybe Evelyn had said the right thing after all. Mr. Grayson sprang up from his desk and flew over to a bookshelf, rummaging around on one of the shelves, until he found a small blue book then returned with a look of triumph.

  "Aha! Here it is. My dears, we don't have time to discuss this at the moment, but i
f you'd like to come back today after classes are over, I can spare a few minutes to tell you more about this book. Feel free to take it for study period and I'll let Marjorie know that you're working on a project. She should go a bit easy on you today." He handed the book to Cat then shooed her and Evelyn to the door. "Move along now dears, don't be late! See you at three!"

  Cat and Evelyn moved toward the door, Cat still gripping the book tightly against her chest, perplexed about what had just happened. As she looked back at Mr. Grayson, she saw his eyes twinkle behind his glasses. For the first time, she noticed his aura. It was unlike any she'd seen before. Blues and reds swirled around him, with hints of gold threaded through it. She lost sight when they entered the hallway and she looked at Evelyn with consternation.

  "What the heck do you think that was about?"

  Evelyn shrugged. "It's Mr. Grayson. It could mean absolutely nothing or it could be that he knows way more about this stuff than we've ever dreamed and this book will be really helpful. Do you think the evil librarian will actually let us read it together?"

  Cat raised her eyes to the ceiling.

  "Only God knows, but I think if Mr. Grayson asked her to let us, we at least have a chance. Let's give it a shot. Plus, Marjorie? I wouldn't have guessed!"

  Evelyn snickered at Cat's mock-shock as they followed the stream of students through the hall towards the library, breaking off from the pack and entering into the silence again.

  The librarian was in her normal seat and Cat thought that she really did look like a Marjorie, although the name was fancier than what she'd expected. The girls grabbed a table and sat on the same side, pulling the book out of Cat's bag carefully and glancing over to see what the librarian's reaction would be. She did look at them, but only sniffed with quiet disdain while continuing to stamp the books she was working on without glaring quite as much as usual. It could have been Cat's imagination, but it seemed like they'd be allowed to look at the book after all.

  It was a nondescript, plainly bound dark blue book that was slightly bigger than a paperback, but not as big as a textbook. The cover had a single word, Mythology, and when they opened it up, the typeface was old but not ancient. It reminded Cat a little of the old Dick and Jane books from the 1950s, but without the happiness. The table of contents was plain, without any pictures or decoration, and was broken up into categories, such as Tuatha de Danaan, Sidhe, Fair Folk, and a few other words Cat didn't recognize. She turned the page to the Tuatha de Danaan, remembering both Robin and her dad saying that the god who had initially defeated Dub was one of them, whoever they were.

  The girls read the stories silently in amazement. These gods were every bit as incredible as the Greek gods they'd learned about in history class, but were completely unfamiliar to them. The stories were about revenge, intermarriage, and magic, very similar to what they'd have associated with Greek mythology, but with all new names and descriptions.

  Then they got to the story of Carman. Apparently she was either a witch or goddess of evil magic, depending on the source, and she'd had three sons. These were Dub (darkness), Dother (evil), and Dain (violence). She was said to have blighted the crops until the warriors of the Tuatha de Danan, who fought in service of the goddess Danu, battled her and her sons. According to the book, accounts differed about their endings, with them either being driven away over the seas or killed in battle.

  Cat looked over at Evelyn, exasperated and incredulous, with a hint of panic on the edge of her words. "Does this mean we're now fighting a god? What did I ever do to deserve this? Really?"

  Evelyn looked over to see Ms. Grimes glaring at them again and shook her head.

  "We can ask Mr. Grayson later. Let's just read quietly for now, to keep her off our backs."

  They read without speaking until study period finished before they trudged impatiently through the rest of the day, watching the clock and eager to find out what their eccentric teacher was going to tell them. Finally, after a million years had passed, the last bell rang. Instead of racing out of the building as they usually did, they found themselves rushing to get back to their English classroom. Mr. Grayson was there, sitting at his desk grading papers and he looked up as the girls walked in and put down his pen.

  "Did you enjoy the book? I find it to be most...instructional."

  Cat nodded and went to hand it back to him, but he waved her away.

  "It was really interesting, sir. Especially the bits about the Tuatha de Danaan, but I'm wondering if you already knew that when you gave it to us."

  He chortled slightly behind his desk then spread his palms innocently. "Me? Well, of course! You don't think that anything that happens is just happenstance, do you? We are all little cogs in a big machine and my role is only a small one. But you, my dears, are going to have a starring role soon and it's my job to help you prepare for it."

  Evelyn jumped in. "Who are you that you can help? And why didn't you help us last year? We had no idea what was going on and could have used a hand then."

  Mr. Grayson smiled at her kindly. "It wasn't my time. My job isn't to tell you what's going to happen or to hold your hands and walk you through it. I have a small set of skills and have been around a long time, but by no stretch of the imagination could I be considered important on the grand stage. I'm just an average Ghillie Dhu and follow instructions when I get them."

  "What's a gilly doo?" Cat asked, once again feeling like she was Alice down the rabbit hole.

  "A Ghillie Dhu, my dear girl, is a species of people from the Sidhe. Not quite an elf and not human either, but not bad or good. We're closely connected to the land and keep mostly to ourselves. We're pretty good with nature, but at times we can also see the future. I myself have some modest skills in that area."

  Mr. Grayson smiled at Evelyn fondly when she stared at him in surprise.

  "Oh, don't worry, my skills are nowhere near what yours will be. No comparison at all, in fact. But my lord has asked me to be of assistance in order for you to hone your gifts so they will be of better use. Now's the time you'll need to know about them and so I'll help you find the answers, as any good teacher would."

  Evelyn looked uncertain. "How does that work? Will we work on it outside of school?"

  Mr. Grayson smiled at her hesitation. "In a manner of speaking, yes. But don't worry, it won't take up much of your time. Robin has explained the situation to me and it sounds like we need to start with your dreams immediately, so I shall come to you tonight. When you fall asleep and are taken to the dark world you've been dreading, I'll meet you instead of Robin and we can begin working."

  Cat nodded in agreement, adding her support. "That sounds perfect, Evelyn. That's what Glory did for me and what Aurora did for Vanessa. He can make sure you don't keep experiencing those awful nightmares without being able to do anything about them. And maybe you can get more details for us to prepare for the next fight."

  Evelyn still looked uncertain, but took a deep breath then nodded tentatively in agreement.

  "I'm ready. It's completely overwhelming, but I want to learn how to do this right, and maybe sleep again in peace."

  Mr. Grayson clapped his hands together gleefully and in that moment, he reminded Cat a little of Robin. She hadn't noticed his otherworldliness before and wondered if his powers had allowed him to cloak himself until he was ready for his true self to be seen. Whatever the case, it amazed her how up until a few months earlier she hadn't even had an inkling of the strangeness of the world around her. Now she knew way more than she was comfortable with.

  "In addition to our tutoring sessions, I'd also like you to read the book that I gave you. You may take it home, but please, be careful with it. It's older than it appears. I'd like it back on Monday and you can ask me more questions about it then, if you'd like. But for now, I believe the last bell has rung and it's time for you to go home."

  Mr. Grayson paused for a moment, considering something. "You may share the book with your families. In particular, I believe you
r dad would be very interested in learning more, Cat. Now, I must be off!"

  He looked at them with a twinkle of mischief gleaming in his eyes, then vanished right in front of them.

  "Woah," said Evelyn, now looking impressed instead of concerned. "I always thought he was crazy but this is even more bizarre. Who knew?"

  Cat shook her head ruefully. "Not me, that's for sure. I had no idea and I'm the one who's supposed to be able to read auras. He was completely nondescript to me right up until we walked out of class earlier today. Obviously, he has the ability to cloak his magic. Now I'm wondering how many more of these otherworldly folk are around us. What if they all look human?"

  Evelyn looked unhappy with the idea. "I'm having a hard enough time with the stuff I can see. I don't think I really want to know about that. I'm going to stick with seeing is believing, because I can only handle one thing at a time right now."

  Cat agreed. "That's fair. Let's go home and see what Vanessa's up to. I'm pretty sure she's going to want to hear all about this."

  Evelyn agreed and the two girls walked out, still stunned following their encounter with a person who they'd thought was an ordinary, if slightly nutty, old man up until ten minutes earlier.

  "NO WAY! I DON'T BELIEVE you! You mean crazy old Mr. Grayson is actually a crazy old elf?" Vanessa looked amused. "Well, it's hardly much of a surprise. He always was odd, even for an English teacher."

  She reached over and picked up a newspaper then handed it to Cat.

  "Here," said Vanessa. "What do you think of this?"

  Cat took the paper, confused at the subject change since they'd been discussing a relatively important topic.

  "What is it?" she asked, looking at the page her sister had handed to her.

  All she could see was the Golden Gate Bridge and below it, the headline, See the sunny side of San Fransisco!