Arcane Dropout 6

by Edmund Hughes

  “I met Tess when I first arrived at Primhaven,” he said. “During my entrance exam, in fact, nearly the same time I met you.”

  “Is that so?” said Harper dryly. “Well, Tess. It’s nice to finally meet you.”

  “She’s over here.” Lee took Harper by the shoulders and gently turned her so she was facing Tess directly. “Appearance-wise, she’s a teenager. She has brown hair, um, cute face. She’s short, but with a huge personality. She likes to play pranks on people.”

  “I’m aware of that much,” said Harper.

  “Can you…” Tess’s voice seemed to squeak out. “Can you tell her that I said it’s nice to meet you?”

  “Tess says it’s nice to meet you,” said Lee.

  Neither woman said anything for a few seconds, a silence that Lee found rather uncomfortable. They were standing face to face, but not seeing each other. It was understandable enough for Harper, but in Tess’s case, she was blushing and outright averting her gaze.

  “I’m still not sure how I truly felt when I was first told of your existence,” said Harper. “After I got past the various stages of disbelief, that is. It wasn’t jealousy, really, but more… a sort of confused, competitive, malaise. As though I was being measured against you, and the fact I was so oblivious of it was the main reason why I came up short.”

  Lee winced. He glanced toward Tess, expecting to see her cringing out of her skin. Instead, she’d dropped down to the driveway, where she was busily writing letters into a section coated with a thin layer of dirt.

  I LIKE YOUR HAIR

  Harper let out a genuine laugh. “Thank you, Tess.”

  SORRY FOR THE SNOWBALL

  Harper furrowed her brow. “Er… the snowball?”

  “Remember, Lee?” said Tess.

  “Of course,” he said. “Harper, when I first arrived at Primhaven, the snowball I supposedly threw at you with my telekinesis was, in fact, thrown by Tess.”

  “Is that so?” Harper was still smiling and gave a small shrug. “Well then. I officially forgive you, Tess. There were a few small chunks of ice in it, though. You should really be more careful in the future.”

  DO YOU HAVE A NOTEBOOK?

  “I do…” said Harper. “It’s upstairs. Why?”

  Tess grinned and immediately headed back into the mansion. Lee made a halfhearted attempt at stopping Harper from moving in a similar direction.

  “Is there an issue, Eldon?” she asked.

  He sighed, remembering how Tess had immediately begun disclosing his various secrets to Eliza when she’d first revealed herself previously.

  “Just… take the context into consideration if she tells you anything that seems outrageous,” he said.

  CHAPTER 36

  Lee spent some time sitting outside amongst the cherry trees. He’d woken up late, and it was less than an hour later when Ryoko emerged from the mansion to call him to dinner. Harper and Tess were already at the table, the notebook set between them.

  He tried to read into Harper’s reaction as he sat down, but it was impossible to guess what sort of incriminating secrets Tess might have shared with her. Harper simply smiled and raised an eyebrow, an expression he’d grown used to in his time as her apprentice, one that seemed to imply that she found him deeply amusing.

  “The power is still out, so I’m afraid we’ll have to eat by candlelight,” said Ryoko.

  “How very romantic,” said Lee.

  “I’m sorry.” She gave him an apologetic bow. “I do still have the camping stove we used on our journey, so it shouldn’t interfere with my cooking.”

  “It’s quite alright, Ryoko,” said Harper. “Thank you for being such a welcoming host.”

  “Of course, Ms. Black. If you’ll excuse me, I should let Mira know that it’s time for dinner.”

  Lee realized that he hadn’t seen Mira at all that afternoon and watched as Ryoko headed down into the mansion’s cellar instead of upstairs. A minute later, she returned, leading a visibly intoxicated Mira along with her.

  “Ah,” muttered Mira. “The sorceress and the spy. I wondered if you’d still be here or if the two of you would have fled from the mess you made.”

  “Mira,” whispered Ryoko. “They’re our guests. Please.”

  “Oh, you misunderstand me!” Mira flashed a fang-filled grin. “I’m delighted that they’re here. It saves me the trouble of tracking them down to kill them.”

  The sun had just finished setting, necessitating the candles that Ryoko was still in the process of lighting. Mira was a significant threat, under the circumstances, a fact that was enough to make Lee reach for his dagger. Harper, on the other hand, simply ignored the threat, barely paying any mind to the vampire in their midst.

  “A joke,” said Mira, after a deliberately long pause. “Just a joke. Am I not allowed to have any fun?”

  She was carrying a bottle of wine, from which she took a generous swig before lowering herself into a chair on the far end of the long dining table.

  “Mira,” said Ryoko. “How much wine have you had to drink?”

  “Not nearly enough to quench my thirst.” Mira let out a long sigh. “Though it goes without saying that no amount would be enough.”

  The wine bottle thudded down against the table’s surface, hollow glass on hard wood. Lee felt as though he was the only one paying real attention to Mira, with Ryoko back to being busy bringing out the food, and Harper lost in her own thoughts.

  “I made ginger beef stir fry,” said Ryoko. “I had to use up the steak in the fridge, with the power out, so there’s plenty, maybe more than we can eat.”

  She smiled as she began spooning portions onto plates. Mira folded her arms, leaning back in her chair with a cold smile.

  “Ginger beef stir fry,” she said. “That was Jack’s favorite, wasn’t it?”

  Ryoko gave a tiny, reluctant nod.

  “Is it working for you, Ryoko?” snapped Mira. “Playing pretend at being a maid in an empty house? Acting like nothing at all has changed, and the world just… keeps on turning?”

  Ryoko’s serving spoon rang as it clicked the edge of the pan. She pressed it downward, scraping pieces of beef and broccoli into position to load them onto the next plate.

  “We all grieve in our own way,” she said. There was contrition in her tone, coupled with resolve, as though she was trying to tell Mira that she wouldn’t fight her—not simply then, but not ever. She simply wasn’t that kind of person.

  “Is that so?” asked Mira.

  Ryoko had brought up a bottle of wine for those not already equipped with one. She opened it and began pouring some into glasses for herself, Lee, and Harper.

  “I have a memorial planned for Jack once Zoe regains consciousness,” she said, softly. “When the town returns to normal, we can secure him a plot at the cemetery. There’s an empty one next to Katherine’s. I think Jack would very much like it if we—”

  “If we what, Ryoko?” Mira did an imaginary flourish with her hand. “Set up an empty grave and pretend it’s meaningful? There’s a certain irony in that, don’t you think? We never recovered Katie’s body, either. No body, no problem. It only gets deeper when you consider that he always secretly loved her the most, out of all of us. But it’s fine, truly! We’ll have a nice piece of granite to stare at while contemplating our eternal shortcomings.”

  “Do you want a fight that badly, Mira?” whispered Ryoko.

  The wine bottle came down against the table again with a deeper, emptier thunk, and Mira let out a defeated sigh. “I just want to go to sleep. Sleep, and… dream of better times.”

  The first few minutes of the meal were eaten in dead silence, each scratch of fork and knife against plate seeming to ratchet up the room’s tension a little further. The food was delicious. Ryoko had managed to knock the dish out of the park on a simple camping stove, which Lee found doubly impressive.

  He was the one who finally stood his ground against the mood of the room. He set his fork and knife down a
nd looked at Mira, who’d only been poking at her own food.

  “Do you want revenge?” he asked. It wasn’t a question that needed to be asked subtly.

  “Revenge…” echoed Mira. “Do you know how old I am, Lee? Don’t answer that. My point is, I was out there getting my revenge long before you were ever born. Possibly before your parents were even born. Here it is, all the revenge in the world!”

  She held one empty, cupped hand out, weighing nothing with an eye of exaggerated appraisal.

  “You didn’t answer my question,” said Lee.

  “I beg your forgiveness. I’m not currently in the state of mind to answer hard questions.”

  Lee spread his hand out on the table. “I’ll make it an offer, instead. Help me, Mira, and I’ll give you a drink.”

  “Lee…” Tess was sitting next to him, and she reached out an ethereal hand to set a warning touch on his knee.

  “You’ll give me a drink?” asked Mira.

  “Yeah,” said Lee. “I will, and if we manage to come back alive afterward, you can have my blood whenever you want. Whenever you need it. I’ll be your personal blood bank loan officer.”

  Mira let out a tired laugh. “Is that how you’ll play your cards, Lee Amaranth? Using your blood as leverage in an attempt to lead me by the fangs? I fed off your sister out of convenience. Disregarding her current state, I can always head to the bar, bring home a willing candidate. Or simply hold out, for days, weeks, maybe. I’m good at being a vampire.”

  “Mira,” said Lee. “I’m asking for your help. I’m not trying to trick you or control you. I just want to fix things, as much as they can be fixed, and I need help to do it.”

  “You’ll have my help, but not chasing down the monster who created this mess,” said Mira. “She knows about the mansion, clearly. We can’t leave your sister unguarded. I will remain here and make sure she’s safe for the indefinite future.”

  Lee leaned his head against his palm and closed his eyes. He gave Mira a small nod, trying to keep his disappointment from showing on his face. Everyone he’d asked for help had refused him, and everyone had given him a perfectly valid reason.

  He briefly considered reaching out to Toma and Kei as he returned to eating his stir fry. It was a fantasy, even assuming they’d be willing. The Fujino family had been through enough over the past few months without him guilt-tripping the two brothers into what was beginning to seem like a suicide mission.

  Mira and Harper excused themselves with varying degrees of politeness as the meal ended. Lee stayed behind, helping Ryoko clear the dishes and bring them into the kitchen.

  “You’re welcome to stay,” she said. “I enjoy your company, Lee, and I can tell Mira has begun to warm to you, though she might not outwardly show it.”

  “Thanks for the offer,” he said. “And thank you for taking care of my sister. But… I have to go. I have to do this, Ryoko.”

  He thought of Tess, slowly fading like an old memory. He thought of Zoe, locked away in sleep. Last of all, he thought of Eliza. Would he save her too, or would their next encounter end with one of them dead?

  “When will you go?” asked Ryoko.

  “Tomorrow morning,” he said. “Might as well face a demon on a full night’s rest. If it’s not too much trouble, can you help me get to Primhaven?”

  “Of course. You’re sure that’s where the Unavowed Queen will be?”

  He nodded, feeling a strange, unshakable certainty.

  “Tomorrow then,” said Ryoko.

  She returned to loading plates into the dishwasher. Lee made his way through the mostly empty mansion, wondering how he’d get any sleep.

  CHAPTER 37

  Lee was alone in his room upstairs and took the opportunity to check over his equipment for the coming encounter. Faithful kris dagger. Walther P99 with eight silver bullets. A travel packet of tissues for nosebleeds.

  The plan was simple. He would alternate between trying to kill Eliza and bargaining with her. It was the ol’ classic, like jiggling a locked doorknob in hopes it would miraculously come open on its own.

  He briefly considered grabbing a bottle of wine to add to his supplies for the sake of keeping himself in good humor before dismissing the idea. He’d pre-game with a few shots of bourbon instead.

  He was in the middle of wondering whether Tess had already followed through on her promise to leave him if he committed to his insane plan when a knock came at the door. It was already open a crack and slid wider to reveal Harper’s bemused face as she surveyed his weapons and Kleenex spread out across the floor.

  “Eldon,” she said, eyeing the tissues. “Is this a bad time?”

  “Not in the slightest,” said Lee. “Come to say goodbye?”

  Harper entered his room. She took a seat on the bed, looking downward at him where he was, cross-legged on the carpet.

  “I got a voicemail from Willow,” said Harper. “Apparently, cell coverage isn’t affected by the lack of power. She’s okay, and she’s already made it to stay with my mom and brother.”

  “Good for Willow,” said Lee.

  Harper locked eyes with him, holding his gaze with such intensity that Lee felt paralyzed and strangely turned on.

  “I’ve decided to help you,” she said.

  He blinked, trying and failing to contain his confusion outside of his expression. “Why?”

  A second face poked into his room from the hallway. Tess had an interesting smile on her face, almost like the one she showed when she’d just set up one of her pranks.

  “Tess and I had an interesting conversation tonight through the notebook,” said Harper. “She really loves you, and…” She let out a sigh and dropped her gaze. “…so do I.”

  Lee felt a sudden surge of gratitude toward her, but paired with concern. “Harper, are you sure about this? You do realize how dangerous this is going to be?”

  “I’m aware,” she said. “I also understand your motivation.”

  She looked toward the door where Tess was standing, and for an instant, it almost seemed to Lee as though Harper was seeing her in the same way he did.

  “It’s for Zoe, too,” said Lee.

  “It’s for the world,” said Harper. “I know how unlikely it is that we’ll manage to succeed at this. But if we don’t try, who will?”

  “Thank you, Harper.”

  Lee stood up, pulling her in close for a kiss. He half expected her to stop him, but she didn’t. She kissed him back and set a finger to his lips once they’d finished.

  “There will be time for us to catch up once we’ve dealt with unfinished business,” said Harper.

  ***

  Lee awoke earlier than he needed to the next morning. Tess was at the window in her ethereal form, turning and smiling at him when she saw that he was up.

  “You’re not holding to your promise?” he asked. “I thought you were against me facing Eliza.”

  “I was.” She shrugged. “I still am. But I know how stubborn you are, Lee. At the very least, I convinced Harper to go with you and keep you as safe as she can. It’s a small victory, but I’ll take it.”

  “Come here.” He grinned and curled a finger at her.

  Tess glanced away, her hands dropping to fidget at her dress. “It’s… probably better if I stay outside of your mystic stream from now on, Lee.”

  “From now on?” He frowned. “You mean until I’ve settled the situation with Eliza and saved you? Right?”

  “Right,” she said. “Of course.”

  “I still… Tess, I need to see you.”

  “You’re seeing me right now.”

  “Will you at least tell me?” he asked. “How long you… think you have?”

  Saying those words felt like a betrayal of his hopes, as though even mentioning the fact that she could fade completely out of existence might doom him to that scenario. He wouldn’t let that happen. He simply wouldn’t.

  “I don’t know.” She sniffled and blinked. “I’m scared, Lee.”


  “It’ll be okay,” he said. “Just stay close to me, no matter what happens. Just… stay close to me.”

  He pulled her into a hug despite her refusal to enter his mystic stream. It was cold and full of prickling tingles, like hugging the wind of winter, but it was still Tess. He hugged her for all he was worth.

  Ryoko was waiting downstairs along with Harper, who was wearing a dress for once. It was a simple white cotton shift, ill-suited for the battle they’d likely be headed into. Lee raised an eyebrow at her.

  “Ryoko suggested it,” she said. “We’ll be using her water teleportation, so my main outfit is already packed away.”

  “That’s a really good idea,” said Lee.

  He opted to do the same, exchanging his jeans and jacket for sweatpants and a t-shirt. They set out as a group, Ryoko taking the car to drop them off.

  “I’ll be here tonight at sundown,” she said. “Then again tomorrow morning, and every morning and evening after that for the rest of the week. I’m afraid if you haven’t returned by that point…”

  “It’s okay, Ryoko,” said Lee. “Regardless of how this plays out, I doubt it will take long.”

  He’d meant the words to be reassuring, but they came out ominous, as though death and failure were already foregone conclusions. Lee had taken the backseat, and he took hold of Tess’s ethereal hand, reminding himself where his courage came from.

  They parked at the pier, Ryoko giving them one last warning about how cold it would be on the other side of the water before silently slipping beneath the waves. Harper stepped forward as soon as the whirlpool appeared.

  “I’ll go first,” she said.

  “You sure?” he asked. “It’s been a while since you’ve traveled this way, hasn’t it?”

  She gave him a fond smile. “It’s been a while for many things.”

  She entered the water with a simple pencil dive, a tiny gasp escaping her lips in the time before her head disappeared. Lee rubbed his hands together and looked at Tess.