Dancing Days

by Val St. Crowe

  * * *

  Maddie remembered the story too. “Oh, I know that guy!” she said. “And that story was really cool. I think Phoebe was in it.” She was so excited, she insisted they go to the story enclave right away.

  Most of the muses in the story enclave were not up and about yet either, but they were able to find the head of the enclave, Angelia Frost. She knew exactly who they were talking about. “You mean old Ned Willow,” she said. She got a sad look in her eyes. “Ned was ancient. He started aging normally about ten years ago, so he was fading fast. Eventually, he left the enclave. He went out into the woods outside Helicon to die.”

  Nora was horrified by this, but Maddie explained that it was fairly typical for muses. Apparently, at some point, muses had lived for so long that they decided to die.

  And apparently Ned was the only muse who remembered the story. So the three went back to the tweens and rebels enclave.

  Nora noticed something strange when she walked under the arch. Her tent was open. She quickly checked the Catling tracker that she’d made with Coeus. She wore it around her wrist like a bracelet. Catling was still in the tent. “Why is my tent open?”

  “It was closed when we left, wasn’t it?” said Maddie.

  “Did Catling get loose?” asked Sawyer.

  Nora shook her head, approaching the tent. As she got closer, she could actually hear Catling inside the tent, squawking away. She peered inside. Owen was there. She felt her stomach turn over. “I don’t want to talk to you,” she said, her voice hoarse. She backed away from the tent.

  Maddie and Sawyer looked confused. They crowded close to see inside, but Owen was coming out.

  “We need to talk,” said Owen.

  “No,” she said. “I’ve got nothing to say to you.”

  “Please,” he said. “Come on a walk with me.”

  Nora laughed bitterly. “You think I’m going to be alone with you? I don’t think so.”

  Maddie put a hand on Nora’s arm. “What happened?”

  Owen glared at Maddie. “It’s between Nora and me.”

  “And the little green fairy you were screwing,” Nora said.

  “What?” said Sawyer.

  Owen held out his hand to Nora. “Please come with me. Let me explain.”

  “There’s nothing to explain,” said Nora. “Nothing at all. You don’t get to control me anymore, Owen. You can’t use your little mind tricks on me in Helicon, apparently, and I’m not letting you mess with my head anymore.”

  “Mess with your...” Owen furrowed his brow. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

  “Sure you do,” said Nora. “I saw you do it tons of times in the mundane world. When people didn’t do what you wanted them to do, you’d have them look into your eyes, and suddenly they’d be putty in your hands. It used to work on me too, didn’t it?”

  Owen’s jaw twitched. “Just come with me.”

  “No,” said Nora. “Because if I do, you’ll pull whatever crap you always pull that makes me feel like everything I do is wrong, and that I should feel sorry for you or whatever. But you’re just trying to control me. You don’t care about me. You only want to use me. So go away.”

  Sawyer smiled. “You tell him, Nora,” he said softly.

  Owen’s nostrils flared. “You sound crazy, you know that? I can’t control you.”

  “Not anymore you can’t,” said Nora. “Leave.”

  Sawyer stepped in front of Owen. “I think she asked you to go.”

  Maddie stepped behind Sawyer, so that the two of them were in between Owen and Nora. “Yeah, I think you should leave.”

  Owen sucked in breath audibly. “Okay, sure. I’ll go. But you need me, Nora. You’re going to see how much you need me. You’re nothing without me.” He stalked off.

  They watched him go.

  Maddie grabbed Nora’s hands. “He cheated on you with a fairy?”

  “I’ve never liked that guy,” said Sawyer.

  Nora burst into tears.