Moonways pt 14

This time, when there was a knock on the door, Solaris was awake to hear it. He opened it a fraction, his lovely face sullen but resigned.
"Are they all coming?" His voice slid between the frame and the door and slunk down towards the floor in its reluctance. Niveus frowned at him, then darted her fingers in the gap and pulled the door open more. Her brows arched in surprise; Solaris appeared to have showered, and shaved, and was wearing a clean white button up shirt and dark jeans, with a fitted black jacket over the top.
"You look good," she commented drily, unable to keep the amusement from her voice. "You look like a human though. I think this is the first time I've ever seen you wear denim."
Solaris scowled, nodding to the skin tight leather pants and artfully torn white singlet she wore.
"You look like a whore."
She shrugged, lashes concealing her eyes, her lips pouting and sultry. "Brother, that's because I am a whore." She took a step closer, almost matching him for height in her towering heels, and leaned in, breathing hotly against his ear.
"You know what I do. I can do it for you too."
Angrily, Solaris pushed her away. "Just because I didn't stop you before doesn't mean I would hesitate to--"
Niveus was smirking. "To what brother?" Something like desperation flickered deep in her eyes for a moment. "To kill me?" Her laugh wasn't quite bitter. Not quite. Solaris pulled his apartment door shut and they began down the hall together. Around them, the air thickened and crackled like a gathering storm.

********

Lily trudged along, her face set with grim determination. Her feet were agonising now but still she resisted the urge to run, knowing it wouldn't do her any good to be a cripple. Several times she nearly turned around to head back, but the memory of the Fey woman's mouth full of huge, glistening teeth made her stop. She would only get herself killed, and she was sure Dusk could handle himself. Though why he would help her she still didn't quite know. After all, he had let her do something intensely stupid with the Finder of Lost Things, and was quite content to, until he learned that she and her sister were useful somehow. That wasn't very trustworthy, was it? Around and around her thoughts spun, and she jammed her hands in her pockets. With some surprise she felt something hard and cold, wrapped in paper. With a start she realised it was the thing Arthur had slipped into her pocket. Pausing, she pulled it out.

It was a ring, stained black and streaky. It was too big to fit on any of her fingers, and besides it was an ugly, raw looking thing, with no finesse at all. The paper it was wrapped in had small, cramped words on it; Arthur's, she presumed.

Girl

Wear this on your skin, but somewhere secret where they will
not see. Iron will protect you. Tell no one, and good luck.

Lily stared at the ring in bemusement. Certainly the Fey hadn't exhibited many of the traditional characteristics from the fairytales she remembered, but there was definitely something about them being allergic to iron. Interesting. She cast about for somewhere to put it before resigning herself to stuffing it in her bra. At least no one will find it there, she thought drily.



People were starting to filter into the streets for their morning business, but the day didn't seem to get any lighter. The rain slowed to a freezing, misty dribble that set beads of water all over Lily's hair and encouraged her already damp jacket to become sodden and cold. Still, she stuck her head down and limped onward. She was so immersed in her thoughts that she didn't notice the pair walking right towards her, and they might not have noticed her either but for the brief moment that Lily met the gaze of the black haired woman. Recognition flashed across the stranger's face and lightning fast a pale hand darted out and grabbed Lily's arm.

Stunned, Lily tried to free herself but the grip was like steel, despite such delicate fingers.
"You!" The stranger seemed surprised and delighted. She was gorgeous, with silky black hair pulled tight into a ponytail from her face; the rain settled across her hair like a scatter of diamonds, like it was meant to adorn that very place. It was difficult to break away from the stranger's pale, pearlescent gaze but Lily shot an angry look at the arm restraining her and then felt the blood drain from her face. A stylised crow swooped across the woman's thumb and first finger. Crowkin?

"Sister, what are you doing?" The man, the other half of the pair, was equally as beautiful as his counterpart, though he was fair where she was dark. Lily noted with mounting panic the identical marking on his hand.
"It's her, brother! It's the girl that was with Dusk!" All of Lily's paranoia erupted into white hot fear which burnt her chest and filled her with enough energy to rip free. Without a second thought she fled, as Niveus glared and Solaris watched her in confusion.
"Catch her," Niveus said calmly. Solaris shot her a sideways glance that contained the edges of admonition but obediently he began taking long, loping strides. Lily was already limping and now fire raced up her legs but still she felt the unshakable compulsion to flee, to be away, to hide, to cry and scream and--

one large arm enveloped her shoulders, bringing her to a shuddering halt. Her momentum died, and she allowed herself one great sob before she sucked it all back inside and went limp.
"Now. You won't run away." His accent was foreign in a vague, continental sort of way, and his mellow voice warmed her limbs like summer sunshine. For a moment she was melting, but then the iron at her breast thrummed and the tide of warmth ebbed and flowed around her instead. He released his arm, but she decided not to run anyway, even though his spell hadn't worked. Lily turned to examine her captor, lips pressed shut, eyes narrowed and distrustful.

Solaris in turn looked her up and down - skinny, pale, bedraggled, limping, with a face full of suspicion, wearing clothes too old for her, barefoot, carrying worn out shoes. He met her eyes, and beneath that steely gaze he saw a bubbling pool of anger, just waiting to erupt. This girl was dangerous, like a cornered animal, and his sister was playing a very silly game. Niveus had sauntered over and now studied Lily with fascination.
"Do you know who we are?"
Lily weighed her options before settling on the path of least resistance - for now. Hopefully Dusk's trick with her name would hold up against these two. Still, she would have to be careful.
"Yes."
When she didn't elaborate, Niveus smirked with amusement.
"And who might that be?"
Lily paused a moment, just long enough. "Crowkin."
Niveus clapped her hands with delight, grinning wildly in that way that all the Fey seemed to do, somehow involving too many teeth, too sharply.
"Very good little girl! What is your name?"
"You called me little girl, that's a name."
The grin faded quickly from Niveus' face.
"Fine. Be that way. But you're coming with us."
"What?!" Surprisingly, it was Solaris who made the exclamation. Lily's expression set mulishly.
"I can't. I have somewhere to be."
But Niveus was smiling again, and it was an altogether different sort of smile.
"You have nowhere you need to be more than this, little girl. This is important, and I think you can tell us things. So you're coming with us."
It was like being caught in a rip, Lily thought miserably. And each passing moment she was being dragged further from the shore. But what else could she do? She looked from one Fey to the other, and sighed.
"Where?"

Moonways pt 13

Lily sat at her kitchen table, a sort of morose numbness stealing into her limbs, making her head heavy. Dusk sat opposite, his face sunk in shadows cast by his falling hair and the dank, miserable weather outside.
"What's going to happen?" Her words fell into the silence and sank heavily.
"I don't know. This is... not how things are supposed to be. The Balance... I should have seen it. I should have realised." Was that regret in Dusk's tone? It was difficult to say. For a moment, his eyes wavered blue, then green, then darkest brown, and his skin flickered across milky paleness to a weathered tan. "We should get going."
"Can we still look for the Moonways in this weather?"
Something like pity pulled at the corners of the Fey's mouth for a moment. "No, I'm sorry. We can hope that the weather clears up by tonight."
Lily felt the apprehension like a knocking in some distant hallway of her heart. It was muffled by too little sleep and too much emotion.
"Fine. What is it that's so urgent?"
"We should get you better prepared for crossing the--" He paused suddenly, head jerking to the side at a sudden, soft sound. Lily felt a tickle behind the back of her eyes, as though feathery fingers were brushing along the inside of her head. They seemed to be searching for something. She shut them out stubbornly, but they were persistent...
"Lily. Listen to me. You need to go to Arthur's house. Do you remember how to get there? Go there and stay there." Every muscle in the Fey's body was tight with tension. His voice was calm but pitched low, and his movements were slow and deliberate as he stood and seemed to draw a sword from some hidden place inside his jacket. Lily stared at the blade in fascination - it seemed to be made of some sort of black, shiny stone that glittered and flickered with silver fire deep in its heart. Just like starlight... she thought in a daze as the world erupted in slow motion around her.

She was thrown backwards as the table shattered into splinters. There was a woman, impossibly beautiful, where her kitchen table used to be - I liked that table, a stupid voice protested weakly inside her malfunctioning mind - and the beautiful woman was holding short swords in either hand, turning towards Dusk with the grace of a ballet dancer turning en pointe. She had long, long hair that flowed and curled in its own liquid gravity, ignoring the laws of physics to float and swirl mesmerisingly about her head. It was a thousand gorgeous shades of green, from the deepest forest shade to the palest new spring shoots, and it framed a face that was like the morning sun, filling Lily's limbs with warmth and joy and... but there was something wrong with the apparition floating before her. It was the eyes. They were black, completely black, and as they turned on her the smile below them widened and the teeth...

Then the spell was broken and Lily scrambled backwards, Time rushing back into the room as the two Fey leapt simultaneously into action. Twin swords, cast in finest rippling metal, crashed into Dusk's strange blade and rang like a melody of bells. Dusk's expression froze in calm determination as he whirled around his attacker, the singing of their weapons creating discordant music that they danced to in perfect time. Though the new Fey had seemed to fix upon Lily in that one impossibly long moment, she was clearly interested in Dusk now. Her mouth opened again and she hissed, a long, forked tongue flickering between her extended fangs. Suddenly she didn't seem so beautiful any more. Frantically, Lily grabbed her backpack in one hand and shoes in the other, and burst through the front door into the rain outside.

She ran like she had never run before, the road beneath her feet disappearing in great swathes. From grey mist, into grey mist. Nothing into nothing.... The strange thought echoed down the halls of Lily's panicking mind and soothed her. She held onto the idea of darkness, of nothing, of sinking into cool depths where no sensation touched her and no fear could reach her. After a while there was an insistence she couldn't ignore - a frantic thumping that seemed to fill her entire body. Reality rushed into her darkness and she realised it was her heart beating and she was still running.

All at once she collapsed onto the ground, heaving and gasping for breath as her starved lungs shot agony through every corner of her body. For a horrible moment she thought her heart might burst and she clutched her chest desperately but then there was heat beneath her fingers and it settled back into an almost regular rhythm. With a creeping suspicion, she glanced inside her shirt. The snake mark had darkened a little more - it was about a third of the way full around its circumference. It had barely been a quarter full when she'd looked at it that morning. Did it save her? Was that how it worked? She stood up, realised it was still raining, and looked around. She had probably covered about two thirds of the distance into the city - about ten kilometres. No wonder she was hurting. She took a glance at the soles of her feet and winced. They were shredded from the assault.

Gingerly Lily slipped her shoes on and started trudging onward. Could she remember where the old man Arthur's house was? Probably. It was in that long street full of terraces... not too far, she realised, and turned toward it. The rain soaked deep down into her, cold filling her bones, until she was chattering and shivering. Her thoughts swung obsessively between Dusk and the terrifying reptilian woman and Mona and the mysterious Percontors. They had somehow imprisoned Dusk's partner in a dreamland, and they had her sister. Had they sent an assassin to take out their other opposition in the remaining Keeper of Laws?

Lily had struggled to understand the convoluted laws that bound the Fey, but weren't the Keepers of Law important? She supposed they were just positions, not people. They could be replaced, in the same way that the King and Queen had been replaced. But that hadn't exactly worked out well, as far as she could see. Now maniacal fairy priests were trying to destroy the world, and somehow her sister's blood would make that happen, because she was a bastard half fairy whose tainted bloodline was against their laws. Hot determination settled in next to the rain in her bones and she stopped shivering. Whatever happened, she would save Mona. She was all that mattered.

Moonways pt 12

As she slept, Lily dreamed.
At first it was dark, and warm. But the darkness spun into gossamer pictures, woven lightly across her eyes, and as easily, they drifted away. There were trees, dark and strident, reaching for pastel skies with majestic limbs; Lily felt herself dwindle into insignificance in their presence. Then there were still, silvery pools in the distance that cut through the gloom of the forest with their delicate illumination. Details jumped in that staccato way dreams have, and suddenly she was leaning toward one, but her face would not form a reflection in their gentle mirror surfaces. Details of her own features would not stick in her mind; was her nose long and thin, or short and broad? Were her eyes blue or brown or green or grey? Sharp eyebrows or full lips or high cheekbones... In a panic, she splashed from pool to pool, sending ripples shivering outward. Why was her reflection so important?

The hairs on the back of her neck prickled with a sudden watchfulness. She wasn't alone. Breathing heavily, she spun around, and found herself face to face with Dusk. But no... that wasn't right. Though the man before her was tall and broad shouldered, and he too wore some sort of old fashioned double breasted jacket that shifted against the forest, absorbing its shades, she thought there were differences. This man, she realised, wore his hair much shorter than Dusk, it was an ashy blonde where Dusk's was a peppery brown, and his face seemed younger somehow, though all the Fey she had seen had a sort of agelessness about them.
"Who are you?" Lily's voice warbled through the air, flowing around thickly to her dreamy ears. The stranger seemed sad.
"I am sometimes called Dawn."
Lily felt a blurry recognition at the name, but it slipped away. Thoughts were hard to hold onto in this place.
"That's a pretty name. Why can't I see my face?" She gestured to the pools, which had finally settled now that she had stopped thrashing.
Dawn looked troubled. "I... don't know. This is a strange place to find yourself. You're lost, just like me."
"Oh. Why are we lost?"
"The Interrigators have found new and interesting ways to twist the Laws to their own end. I am lost because they made it so; they pulled me from my body, and hid it from me. You just wandered off your path. Though, I suppose, it's very lucky for me that you did." He smiled, and it wasn't the predatory grin that Dusk wore. It was a more mirthful gesture; though Lily still faintly noticed there was something wrong with his teeth. Sharp inscisors. It unsettled her, and she felt a distant echo, like someone far away shouting. It sounded important. As though Dawn too had heard the call, his smile faded and he stepped forward.
"This is quite important. I can feel Dusk near you, but in my current... predicament, I can't reach him. Tell him they've got me. Tell him they also have the Gate-- no! Don't listen to that! This is important! Stay with me!"
But Lily was distracted; over Dawn's shoulder was a shape, slinking through the deep green shadows. Its eyes glowed a deep, fiery gold, and flames seemed to flicker and lick down its tail and around its paws.
"I think I'd better go..." she murmured, fear crawling down into her belly and setting a jittery energy in her limbs. The creature in the shadows leapt forward, and Lily turned to run.
Lily...

"Lily. Time to wake up."
Lily sat up, gasping and panting, her heart thudding painfully in her chest, confusion setting her scrabbling away from the source of the noise, tangling sheets and limbs and clothes until she caught up with her waking body. Dusk was in his shirtsleeves, looking bleary in the morning light.
"You were dreaming." There wasn't much of a question in his tone. She nodded, trying to piece together the broken fragments of her dream.
"I was in a forest...." It was sliding away from her, details blurrying and hazing... but there was something important wasn't it?
"I think I saw Dawn. Your... your partner, or whatever." For the second time, Lily saw Dusk's face still its wandering and she saw it clearly in its surprise.
"In your dream?" Lily nodded and described what had happened. The look of surprise furrowed into a frown as she spoke, until his face was lined with worry.
"The Percontors play a dangerous game. I don't know what they hope to achieve by this..." He seemed to retreat deeper into himself, until Lily cleared her throat.
"Can you give me a minute? I need to... change and stuff."
He startled, then nodded. "Oh. Of course. I will be downstairs. We need to get going though, so please hurry."

Once he was gone, Lily opened the curtains and stared outside in dismay. Rain hammered down on the window, making the view run and dribble away down the window in a streaky mess. How would they find the Moonways if it was raining? Didn't they need the light of the full moon to bring the gate forward? She would have to ask Dusk. Apprehension settled on her chest next to the snake mark and dulled her senses. She was still horribly tired but felt energy borne of impatience and fear for Mona. For reassurance, she pulled out the mirror shard and watched her sister sleep for a while. Finally she sighed, and got on with getting ready before heading downstairs.

Moonways pt 11

The hall was stark in the deepening shadows, its huge windows stretching several stories up to reveal twilight's pastels in the sky. Its splendour could only belong to a grand palace, but around the edges lurked decay; the creeping signs of neglect showed in dusty corners and cracking plaster. The two figures who walked down the hall were dwarfed by its immensity, but one wore about him a cloak that seemed to swell and fill the surrounding space with golden brightness. It snapped and curled like fabric but it was clearly made of light; nonetheless he seemed agitated by it and flicked it off one shoulder in irritation.

"I thought he would have come by now. We've had Dawn for three days." He was dark, with smooth black hair and charcoal eyes though his skin was pale in the way of the Percontors. At that moment, his lovely face was misshapen by a scowl that made shadows in the corners of his eyes and lips, somehow making him more sinister. His companion was dressed in the traditional white, his arms bare in the cool evening, revealing three thin red ring marks around his wrist to indicate his rank; number three. His hair was cropped very short; it dusted across his skull like gold. He folded his arms behind his back and smiled faintly.

"Dusk is in the mortal realms, my lord. Have patience. You know the link between them grows tenuous when one crosses without the other." His tone was soothing. "He will know we have taken the girl by now, which means he will be back soon enough to try and save her. Once he realises what has happened to Dawn, then I'm sure he will be more... agreeable. Have no fear, my First."

His pacification seemed to be working. The Percontor in the cloak made of light sighed a short, sharp sigh of frustration and then took a few deep breaths. "And the other?"

A secret smile crossed the Third's face as he considered for a moment. "Oh yes. Everything will work out just fine. The Balance restored." The last part was intoned reverently.

The First nodded, his eyes shining with fervour. "The Balance restored."

Moonways pt10

Lily swam upward through thick treacle layers, reaching for her body, floating on the surface what seemed to be a mile above. Her limbs were heavy and unresponsive, and she couldn't remember why she was swimming... just that it was important. Urgent, even. She struggled harder, until after an eternity of slow strokes, she reached herself, and opened her eyes.
“Lily.” Her name, cutting through the grogginess like a knife, brought Dusk's face blurrily into the darkness. “Lily Patterson.” Now it pealed and clanged like bells, filling her with jangling energy, and everything came into focus again. She realised Dusk was crouched next to her, and the old man Arthur was peering down at her from over the couch. She sat up, and groaned as her head burst with stars.

“I fainted.” Dusk straightened, and nodded, and Arthur pushed a fresh cup of tea into her hands which she took shakily. All of a sudden memory crowded back into her head, hammering with its urgency. “Mona!” The tea was dumped hastily on the table as she took out her shard of mirror and huffed on it anxiously. There was the same ornate room, its lush interior seeming overbearing and somehow rotten to Lily's view, but there was Mona, still in that unnatural sleep on the soft bed. Lily sighed, and let the mirror go clear again. A hot spike of pain as it brushed over the snake mark reminded her that she needed to keep moving. Panic had been replaced with a kind of dull horror; all her passion had been blunted by the constant assault.
“How long was I out?” She had precious little time to waste being squeamish; she would simply have to get used to the strangeness, the darkness. Her sister would not die, and that was that. There was no other alternative.

Dusk shrugged, settling his coat back on his shoulders and buttoning it up.
“About an hour. Let's go. Thank you for your help Arthur.”
Lily hadn't even realised he had been in his shirtsleeves; as with the rest of his clothes, his shirt was plain and somehow colourless, though Lily knew it had a colour and she was looking right at it. With sudden insight she looked at him sideways, not quite bringing him into her direct field of vision. His shifting cleared immediately, and she saw that he had a face in its mid thirties, sharp and stern but undeniably handsome. His hair was a dusty brown, short and shaggy, and his skin was pale and smooth. His jacket was dark and velvety still, but it no longer shimmered under her gaze. He caught her look and nodded, a small smile plucking the corner of his mouth.

“It's called a glamour. It makes moving about much easier. But you can look through it, if you try hard enough.” He headed for the door and Lily was about to follow when Arthur brushed past her. His gnarled hand pushed something into her pocket so gently Lily barely even realised what had happened. Keeping her face impassive, she kept walking. Whatever he had given her, he didn't want Dusk to know about it, so she would examine it later in private.
“Goodbye Arthur. It was nice to meet you,” she called as they headed down the stairs. When she turned back to look at him, his expression was hard, and his eyes shone fiercely.
“I'm sure we'll meet again, girly. Good luck with your sister.” He closed the door with a dull thud that Lily found ominous. A part of her registered dreamily that she wouldn't see him again. The Finder had numbered her days to a bare handful. For some reason, Lily found it difficult to care. She followed Dusk into the grey pre-dawn darkness.

“Why would the Percontors want to open the doorways between your world and mine?” Her head still felt a little heavy but she fought to understand. Ignorance had proven to be very dangerous.
Dusk's forehead wrinkled in a thoughtful frown.
“I'm really not sure. After the War of the Crows the Percontors were appointed by the other Firstborn kin to protect the Balance. But they have taken to that task with great zeal, which has been causing me growing concern.”
Lily struggled with all the unfamiliar terms, but continued, “but... isn't it your job to protect the... the Balance?”

“Yes and no. The best way to understand the difference between the Balance and the Laws is by thinking of them like your religion and your legislation. They are the priests who are supposed to guide the spirituality of the Fey, which is irrevocably linked to all living things and natural forces in your world. Me and my counterpart are more like your policemen, protecting the Laws by which everything is bound and kept in order.”
“The Crows... they broke the Law and upset the Balance? And who is your counterpart?”

Dusk nodded solemnly.
“They broke the Laws very badly. I fear the damage they did will never be undone.” He hesitated for a moment before continuing, “my counterpart is called Dawn.”
Lily mused on that information as it slotted into place next to the rest.
“Midnight, Dawn, Noontime then Dusk. If you two were the Keepers of the Law, then the King and Queen must have been the Keepers of the Balance.”
“Yes. But they could not keep it. So they were exiled. It seemed the only way at the time.”
“You think it was a bad idea now?”
“Yes... no... maybe. I don't know. We'll have to see.” His face became closed, and Lily got the distinct impression that was the end of the conversation. She noticed they were coming up to a bus stop.

“Where are we going now?”
“Somewhere we can rest. It's been a long day, and tomorrow will be even longer.”
Though she felt like sleep was wasting precious time, she realised she was beyond exhausted and it was probably for the best. The bus pulled up with creaky punctuality and they boarded.

Lily led them back to her house, so alien to her now, like a stranger lived there. It made her think about her mother. She didn't doubt that it was possible her mother had been seduced by a Fey, she just wondered why. The Percontors must have been planning for a very long time, why choose a woman so unreliable? And why wait, why not take the baby and... A sudden thought occurred to her. Someone had tried to take Mona as a baby. Amber. But Amber was an exile, wasn't she? And the exiles weren't involved with the Percontors. Or were they?

Lily could only imagine the tangles of fairy politics. They were sly and deceitful to their bones, and she couldn't fathom their strange rules and codes, so she stopped trying. All she cared about was saving Mona. They could wage their wars until every last one of them was dead for all she cared. Once they were inside, Dusk declared he would sleep in the living room. Lily's eyes were drooping already, and she merely nodded before shuffling up the stairs and collapsing into her bed fully clothed. She was asleep in minutes.

Moonways pt 9

Nothing. Blessed nothing, a warm, gentle place, a safe place... but the tide was rushing back in, and sensation returned to Solaris' body with the same jolt it always did. He cracked one eye open with difficulty as gummy sleep rimmed his lashes, and examined his surroundings resignedly. He had made it back to his apartment well enough, but obviously his bed had been too much effort, because he was on the floor. His back ached, and he permitted himself a small groan. Peeling his cheek from the floor, he rolled onto his back and let out a grunt of surprise. Niveus was sitting on his old, grubby couch, watching him with a small frown on her face. He glared at her balefully.

"What are you doing here?" His voice was thick with sleep and the sour taste of last night's whiskey. He sat up warily.
"I saw Dusk." It was a simple statement but it coursed through the room like electricity. Between them hung the unspoken fear, the memory of that terrible day...
"What was he doing?"
"He was with some human girl in the city. They got off a bus. That's all I saw."
"A human girl. How strange." He paused. "Is that all?"
Niveus arched her eyebrows, "You're not concerned about what he's doing here?"
Solaris gave no response, instead going into the bathroom and closing the door. He stared into the small, splotchy mirror, and shuddered. Whatever had brought Dusk back into the mortal realm only meant trouble for him. He washed his face and changed his shirt with another that hung on the back of the bathroom door, and went back out into the tiny, bare living room. Niveus was still there, absently plucking loose threads on the arm chair. She looked up at him, and her eyes were the cold silver he remembered. He looked away, scowling.
"What would you have me do, Niveus? What can he do to us that is worse than this?" His arm jerkily swept in the peeling wallpaper, the bare floorboards, the dank mould creeping in the cornices and the dirty morning light creeping in through the one stained window.
"You live like this of your own accord, Solaris. You know things could be better for you."
"I don't deserve better."
"We need to do something. We failed our kin before. Will you let it happen again?" Silence stretched out between them, thickening the air until the tension crackled. Finally, Solaris nodded.
"We won't fail them again. Bring the kin together."
As Niveus left, she cast one last look at her brother. He was leaning against the kitchen counter, his face obscured by his shaggy golden hair. His fingers curled and uncurled in small spasms, sending little flexes up the crow on his hand. She snorted softly under her breath and closed the door.

Once Niveus was gone, Solaris collapsed down onto his knees, breathing hard. What did the Keeper of Laws want with the human realms? And what was he doing with one in his company? He wasn't known for consorting with the cattle, so to speak. But then it had been a long time since he had seen or heard of either of the Keepers; maybe things had changed. It was odd, to think of the Keepers changing, though he supposed that was their nature; they were the ones who walked between the worlds, they were the ones who were supposed to dance with Time, to keep the Laws, to hold the Balance. It had never meant to be he and his kin who felt Time's embrace. And a cold embrace it is too, he thought bitterly.

He had wanted it though, once upon a time. He and his kind were born without Time, and in the Kingdom the Balance was perfect, as long as the Laws were kept. That was the duty of the Fey; they would forever watch over the earth's heart, its soul: the trees and the grass and the animals and the wind and sky, and verything in the mortal realm was linked by the Laws to the Kingdom. But then came Man, and the Balance had to change to accomodate His needs. Solaris supposed that he and his kin, so tied with the Balance were they, had changed too, and not for the better. It was the power of men to take and transform, to turn everything to their own ends. Solaris had only wanted to bring them back into the Balance, to stop them from spoiling everything...

But those thoughts were not helpful. He would pull himself together; he would redeem himself, and his family, just as Niveus said.

Moonways pt 8

The night was wearing thin on Lily's feet by the time they made it to their next destination, on the other side of the city. People were pouring themselves from the bars and clubs now, staggering merrily, their shouts cracking the heavy silence between her and Dusk. They ignored the silent pair; some stumbled into Lily, though they seemed to shy away from her companion, some magentic polarisation sending them gently backward if they strayed to close. When he strode through a thick throng of young men in the middle of the footpath, they seemed to fold and sway like wheat in a breeze before him. Disturbingly, Lily realised she could see him much more clearly now, though his coat fluttered slate greys and charcoal blacks in imitation of the dark city streets.

A world was forming before Lily's eyes, one that existed around and between those things she knew and understood. Amber had told her of the importance of rules, and Lily supposed Dusk was a guardian and enforcer of those rules. She gingerly brushed her fingers over the snake mark, and winced as it burned anew. She had been thrown into the deep end, with lead weights tied to her feet. As much as she baulked at the notion, she knew that she would have to learn a lot more about the Fey, and quickly. But Dusk's words came back to haunt her... Every step you take with me brings you further away from them... What would happen when she passed the Gate Man, into that other world, a world without time? More importantly, what would happen when she came back?

With a pang, she remembered her deal with the Finder of Lost Things. Her heart... she had given her heart away. So it wouldn't matter, really. Mona was young, she would grow to forget her sister... Her chest constricted painfully, and she let go that line of thought before it crippled her. There was no point in dwelling on dark futures; the present was grim enough.

Finally, just as Lily thought she might drop from exhaustion, Dusk stopped. With a start Lily realised they had come to a row of town houses, preserved from the turn of the century, now made trendy by gentrification. Dusk walked up the short set of stairs and then pressed a doorbell, sending a peal of cheap chiming down some unrevealed hallway to the tune of Fer Elise. Soon came the shuffling sound of slippered feet, and the door was yanked open angrily.

Harsh words died on the lips of a very old man as he saw who stood before him. His moustache quivered as he hurumphed pointedly, but still he opened the door and admitted them, sparing a considering look for Lily. Lily in turn looked him over in mild surprise. Either she had misunderstood the nature of the Fey, or this was a regular human.
"So you show up at my house, all hours, no warning, with some bint what I don't know, and expect me to just do a little jig and say thank you very much sir for the visit?" Though he looked about ninety, his voice was still strong and hearty.
Dusk grinned, and Lily shuddered. It was less an expression of mirth and more... a baring of teeth. She was reminded sharply that he was one of them, when it came down to it, and she would have to be careful.
"I need to visit your library, Arthur. And you'll show the proper repect for guests in your house." Arthur muttered darkly, his eyes shifting, but then with a grumbling cough he cleared his throat, and offered Lily a cup of tea. She nodded uncertainly, watching Dusk as he padded down the hall silently. After a moment of indecision, she followed him.

At the end of the hall to the left was a cramped room, and it seemed to Lily that there were far too many books for such a small space. Books were stacked in shelves on every wall, they spilled, dog-eared and half-opened, from stacks and tables, they crowded into every corner and nook and cranny in all shapes and sizes and with no apparent order whatsoever.

The dusty disorganisation gave Lily an instant headache, and her fingers itched to tidy and clean. She wondered how anyone would find anything in such a colossal papery mess, but Dusk had already picked up a yellowing tome and was flicking through the pages intently. He made a small sound of sucess under his breath and a long finger pinpointed the desired information. His expression might have been grim; it was difficult to tell this close, as it blurred and shifted unless she focused and she was too tired. "Read this," he rumbled, and she carefully took the book from his hands.

The script was typeset but close and cramped, and the prose was thick and formal. She squinted, concentration pulling her lips down at the corners.
Struggling, she read aloud, "and... and the children shalt, I mean shall... be born out of the bellies of animals... and they will be... promisca. What does that mean?"
"It means mixed, impure, common."
Lily frowned, but continued, "The promisca can break the bones of the Law, they are the kiss of Time, they are the endless dark Nothing." It was far too late, and Lily was at the end of her tether. "What does this all mean?"
"It means someone's been and done somethin' bad." Arthur's voice from the doorway made Lily jump with surprise; she hadn't heard him approach.
"Something bad?"
"Mmmm," he nodded, "Crow kin used bad magic to get a human pregnant. Promisca. Mixed blood. Bad business, that. All sorts of trouble. Definitely not in Keepin' with the Laws, if you know what I mean." He shot a pointed look at Dusk, who was scowling in a very definite and not at all blurred way. Lily's head swam with weariness.
"I still don't foll- are you suggesting my sister is this... this mixed blood? This promisca?"
Dusk was silent, and Arthur's eyebrows shot up.
Lily scoffed, "Don't be ridiculous."
Dusk nodded. "You know your father, then."
"Well...." she trailed off, feeling suddenly desperate. "She's not like you! She isn't!"
"It would explain many things, namely, what Percontors want with her."
Lily felt light headed. "And what might that be?"
"They will spill her life's blood on the Moonways, breaking open the doors between your world and mine forever." It was too much, it was all too much. Pitch closed around Lily's vision, filled with spinning lights. She had fainted.

Moonways pt 7

Lily pressed her hand against her chest, then winced. Giving Dusk a wary look, she turned around and peered down inside her shirt. There was a symbol burned into her chest; a snake curled in a circle, biting its own tail, bubbling her skin with black just above her heart. Dusk was looking at her inscrutably, and she blushed.
"It's a snake. What does it mean?" His response was flat.
"It means you have a contract with the Finder of Lost Things. It's so she can keep an eye on you. What you did was very rash."

Lily felt like she would burst with rage.
"What did you want? You didn't warn me about anything! I did what I had to!" Her voice cracked with the pressure of her rage, and she swallowed a sob. With great strength of will, she forced everything back down until she was stony still again behind her wall.
"If I'm going to get my sister back, I need some answers." She realised she was still clutching the shard of mirror. "Like what this is, for example. And why they call you Law Keeper. What are you? Where did the.. the Percontors take my sister? And why do you care? And why do they hate you so much?" Lily felt strangely bare, asking so many questions, but Dusk gave her a small, wry smile.

"Nothing for nothing, girl. You know that much at least. I will tell you nothing until you tell me your name." Remembering Amber's long ago tales, Lily hesitated. Dusk sighed.
"You just handed over your heart in exchange for a piece of junk. I should think your name would be a small price to pay for such illumination."
"But... you can use it to.. to control me, can't you?" Despite the escalating strangeness of her evening, the question still sounded stupid in her ears. She blushed again. He shrugged, and then abruptly started walking again.
"That's a risk you'll have to take, if you want your sister back." She gave out her name with no trouble to anyone else, what difference would it make? The mark on her chest throbbed dully, reminding her with a pang that there were worse things.

"Lily. My name is Lily Patterson." The words hurt her mouth unexpectedly, gusting out heavily into the evening until they hung in front of Dusk like mist. He reached out and gathered them into his hand, and put them in his pocket. Lily watched, confused and frightened again, but he merely nodded.
"Now I can keep it safe from the others."

Somehow, she didn't feel comforted by the idea of Dusk having her name under his control, but he hadn't done anything really to suggest he would misuse it. Still she felt thrills of danger in his very presence; there was something about all of the strange people she had encountered that made her deeply wary. She resolved to hold her own counsel; but it was difficult when she knew so little about what she was getting herself into.
"Alright, you know my name. Now will you tell me what the Hell is going on?"

Dusk continued walking a little way until they were at a bus stop, and then sat down, crossing his legs at the ankles with lazy grace.
"The mirror can be used to see your sister. Breathe on it." Heart thudding in sudden excitement, Lily did as she was told. The glass fogged over as it should have, but then it turned a strange, warbling marble black.

Lily watched it, hardly daring to breathe, until after long moments, it cleared again. It was no longer reflective; instead, Lily could see a small, ornate room as though she was looking through the ceiling. Its walls were circular, and painted with some grand mural of a forest, filled with details of animals and people she could barely make out. The carpet was a deep shade of green, making it look like the room was floored with thick moss. Against one wall was a low, squashy looking bed, spread over with russet brown covers, and laying gently on it was Mona. Tears filled Lily's eyes as she watched her sister sleep, her dark, messy hair fanning out around her head. Mona was breathing steadily, but she was oddly still; normally, she slept curled in a ball or tossing this way and that with restless energy even in her dreams.

Lily didn't want think about why she was so still; instead, she angled it down so Dusk could see it. He peered into it, brows furrowing deeply.
"Do you know where that is?" Lily asked anxiously. Dusk nodded.
"It's the former palace. The Percontors live there now, though most of it goes unused. Your sister seems unharmed, though her sleep is clearly unnatural."
"What have they done to her?" Fear and anger made her words sharp.
"Just kept her sleeping, by the looks of it." He grunted softly. "I don't know what they want with your sister, but I can't imagine it's good." When Lily opened her mouth to interject, he held up a hand.

"Let me answer your questions as you asked them. They call me Law Keeper because that's what I am. I keep the Laws, the sacred rules that bind my kind. I believe traditionally, men have called us Fey. That's well enough, if you want a word. The Percontors are law enforcers of a kind as well, but they enforce their own laws, not those that keep the very Balance of existence in check. They enforce the laws of our kingdom, now that the Queen of Midnight and the King of Noontime are gone. They took your sister past the Gate Man, and now she sleeps in the old palace, for what end I don't know." His rough voice seemed unused to so many words, and he cleared his throat."Now, maybe you can tell me what thing it is in your past that makes you tremble at the mention of the Gate Man."

Lily was taken aback. Was it that obvious? She hunched defensively, but told him about Amber and the Moonways. A single, fine eyebrow shot up.
"You can find them? You can use a compass to find the Moonways? Interesting." He glanced at her sideways.
"Fey who cross over into this realm without permission can't find the Moonways themselves." Lily digested that information, still thinking of the Gate Man's terrible vengeance.
"So everyone here... is trapped?" Dusk shrugged.
"More or less. Most of them are exiles. Most of them are Crow kin."
"What does that mean?"
"There was a war. The Crow kin didn't win. They paid the price, and now they're exiled here."
"What was the war about?"

Dusk's expression grew stormy, and his face swirled in a dizzying array of different features.
"That's a story for another time. We should be going. There's someone else we need to see tonight." With that, he stood again, stretching slightly, and continued walking. Lily followed in silence, processing everything the Fey - fairies! She was definitely going crazy - the Fey man had told her. It certainly was a lot to think about.

Moonways pt6

Niveus watched the bus trundle closer from her seat at the opened french windows of a small bar. Her small frame was curvaceous, snug in a tight black dress that complimented her smooth, flawless white skin; her hair was cropped short, falling in loose, silky black curls to touch her shoulders delicately. Her eyes flickered in shadows cast by the angle of her seat, but they seemed to glitter every now and then, like silver caught in passing light. A stylised crow swept reaching wings from her thumb up to her forefinger, its tail curling toward her wrist.

It was just after midnight, so she was crowded on all sides by men and women far gone into their drinks, laughing too loudly, their voices clamouring and bouncing at counterpoints to the music. She felt the damp heat of too many bodies at her back, but her face was cooled by the breeze that swept down the street in front of her. Though there was a drink in front of her, she was sober; alone she sat in the wash of sticky, thumping merriment, feeling thoughtful. She felt the thrum of other Fey close by and thought little of it, until she noticed the tall figure climbing off the bus.

In one smooth motion Niveus slid from her seat and back into the crowd, immersing herself in the noise and sweat. It was a close call, but if he had noticed her, she would know. He seemed pre-occupied, which suited her just fine. Was that her heart she could feel, thudding against her chest? It had been so long since she'd seen him, that she had forgotten how much he frightened her. A vision came to her, flowing across her mind from some hidden depth.

An emerald field, crowned by a sky awash with the pastel shades of twilight, spread out below the ridge she was standing on. Shining armour glittered and flashed as swords and pikes met in a terrible, beautiful song of death. And with the song, was the dance; the deadly graceful waltz of each individual battle between soldiers, entrancing her, calling her forth into the frenzied mass... But something wasn't right. She stopped, turning to look over her shoulder. Solaris was behind her, his eyes fixed on the battle, and tears were streaming down his dirty cheeks. His broad shoulders heaved with great sobs, his face twisting with anguish, and Niveus frowned.
"You wanted this, Solaris! You wanted this too!" Finally he tore his eyes away from the grisly tableau.
"Not like this," he choked. "Not at this price!" Niveus was about to speak when she saw three figures coming up behind Solaris. She drew her sword, but there was no strength in her arms and her head felt full of water; slowly, trembling with strain, her arm was lowered.
"You were supposed to hold the Laws in your heart, Noontime King. You were supposed to keep the Balance. This is the price you pay." Dusk stood before them, his armour dented and darkened with splashes of drying green blood.

With him stood Dawn, the other Keeper of Laws, and looming behind them, head and shoulders above their already tall frames, stood the Gate Man.
"And you," Dusk's fury was cold as it curled around Niveus, binding her in place, "you broke the Laws to further your own selfish ends. You violated our most sacred trust. There is only one way to repair the damage you and your kin have wreaked upon us." Solaris merely slumped down, sobbing brokenly, but Niveus struggled against her invisible bonds, realising at last what the Gate Man must be for.
"No!" He stepped forward, blinding light snaking from his body, wrapping around Solaris, ensnaring Niveus though she fought wildly, flowing down the ridge to encircle their doomed army...

Abruptly, Niveus blinked and returned to the present. The music flowed back into her, and she realised she had broken out in a cold sweat. It had been mere moments, a simple brush with Dusk's presence... but it was enough to chill her to the bone. What was Dusk doing there anyway?Unconsciously, one finger traced the lines of the crow on her hand. She felt the pressure rising... but that could be fixed. She swept onto the dance floor, swaying her perfect hips to the beat of the song. It didn't take long for a young man to join her, and she whispered suggestively in his ear. She would fill his head with her pain until she could plunge back into nothingness and wash away the sharp reminder of her exile.

Moonways pt 5

It was almost midnight, Lily realised. The moon was at its zenith, casting the silent streets into stark relief, making monsters in the shadows of daytime things like cars and discarded bikes and trees and shrubs. Everything seemed like a dream to her now; it didn't help that she couldn't focus on her companion, though she tried. He was wearing a long, flowing coat of some smooth, dark fabric that looked like it would be very soft to touch, but shared the unsettlingly shifting quality of his face, never the same colour under her scrutiny. It buttoned, double breasted, from his neck to his waist, then split out to his knees like an old fashioned riding coat. Underneath were fitted dark pants and well worn looking boots, again looking out of place under the flickering buzz of electric street lights. Lily supposed it didn't matter, if other people couldn't see him anyway. She wondered briefly if she was going mad.

"Where are we going?" The question was more to distract herself from that bothersome thought than anything else. Dusk kept up his steady pace, but was turning towards a major road that headed into the city.
"I told you, to see the Finder of Lost Things. She lives in the city. We will ride the bus." A giggle bubbled up in Lily's throat and she choked it down, realising she was one step away from hysteria. But still, the bus rolled up, filled with revelers on their way to the bars and clubs that snaked their way along the main streets of the centre of town. Lily blushed as she boarded with Dusk, expecting stares at his outlandish outfit, but nobody seemed to notice very much. In fact their eyes fixed on the pair, then seemed to slide away with sudden disinterest.

Lily couldn't resist. She stuck a hand in front of a young man's face and waved it about. He frowned for a moment, bemused, then his eyes drifted to the view out the window. Lily scowled at Dusk.
"What did you do to me?" He shrugged, a small smile tugging at the corners of his lips.
"Every step you take with me pulls you further from their world. It serves me well to go unnoticed, so now it serves you too. Deal with it." Anger and fear rose up and battled across Lily's face. Then she thought of Mona, and the Gate Man.... She threw herself beside him unceremoniously, though her eyes burned as fiercely as a cornered animal.

Neither broke the tense silence as the bus chugged and rolled down the streets until finally it was puffing and heaving its way past skyscrapers and elaborate city lamp posts that cast bright, warm light over the friday night revelers. They disembarked, Lily jostled by the crowds, Dusk passing through them like smoke. He waited a bare moment for her to catch up before he dipped his head at a side street.
"This way." Lily's jaw set, but she still felt her heart hammering with nervousness. What manner of nightmare would be waiting for her this time? Dusk turned and turned and turned again as the streets grew progressively narrower, until finally they were in an alley squeezed between two buildings, barely wide enough for the pair to walk abreast. For the first time, Lily felt almost glad for the strange man's company, as the darkness grew thick like pitch around them. At the end of the alley was a grubby old door, with a small neon sign next to it declaring it to be "The Grotto". Dusk rapped smartly on the door three times.

It opened almost immediately, and a tall, skinny man eyed them suspiciously. Lily tried to figure out what was wrong with his face; looking closer, she realised he had a fine sheen of flesh coloured scales instead of skin. Despite herself, she shuddered. He looked at her sharply, then back at Dusk.
"You got no business bringin' her sort here, Law Keeper." Lily noted the title with interest, storing it away in her mind for later.
"She has lost something very precious. She needs to find it. It was taken by the Percontors. That makes it my business, and I'm making it your business. Let us in." For a moment the scaly man looked like he might argue, but with a sigh he conceded and stood aside. Dusk swept in, and Lily followed, careful not to touch either of the men.

The hall within glowed with a red, dirty light that made Dusk look like some sort of Biblical demon, and the steps that led down might have been a stairway into Hell. Still, Lily followed, chin thrust out in defiance. At the bottom was another door; the scaly man left them there with a grunt. Dusk paused.
"You go first." Lily looked at him incredulously.
"Are you insane? Do you think I'm stupid? No!" He sighed a long-suffering, patient sigh, then turned the door handle.
"Go, or I will make you go." Though there was nothing but cold promise in his tone, Lily bristled.
"You don't scare me!"
"Are you going to stand and argue on my doorstep or are you going to come in?" The mellow voice melted through the cracked open door, oozing into Lily's ears like butter, sending pins and needles to the tips of her fingers and toes. Without further argument she stepped through the door and blinked in surprise.

The red glow was gone, replaced with clean, white, fluorescent light that filled a large, high ceilinged room. It was lined on every wall with shelves that reached the entire span from roof to floor, and those were filled with things that made Lily's eyes widen with wonder. There were glass domes covering carefully preserved animals, next to large and small leather bound books that seemed to rustle and then settle like startled birds; there were glass vials supported neatly on wooden racks containing liquids that glowed with shifting colours, or seemed to suck the colour out of things nearby; broken pieces of spyglasses and bones and gems and teacups and lengths of fabric and thread all crowded Lily's mind until she felt quite dizzy. A polite cough drew her from her stupor.

Sitting at an expansive table that was scattered with more junk was a small, plump young woman. Her hair was a silvery sort of pale blonde, wild with loose curls that had feathers and beads tied in almost like they were stranded in a retreating tide. She was wearing small, round glasses with red lenses, though one lens had a cracked and wavering piece of glass fixed over it, which made the eye underneath seem huge and grotesque. Her clothes were a clashing and mismatched tumble of bright fabrics, though they were all of a fine cut to Lily's eye.

"So," again those smooth, lilting tones bewitched Lily, "you've come to find something you've lost." The Finder of Lost Things adjusted her glasses, and peered at Lily intently. "Oh my... oh my yes. It's written across every line on your body." Suddenly, she smiled, but it wasn't a kind smile. Her inscisors were sharp, like a predator's. "The most precious thing you have. And it's lost! How unfortunate..." a pause while her smile widened a little, "for you that is." Suddenly, she seemed to notice Dusk standing behind Lily, a stony frown fixed for once in his shifting face.
"You." Her voice lost some of its honey, and she looked less human. "You know I don't work for free, Keeper of Laws. The girl pays the price, same as any. And a costly price it will be too. That's the Law, and you know it." Dusk stepped forward, and the Finder of Lost Things seemed to shrink back a little.

"It is the law. If her need is great enough, the girl will pay the cost." He turned an inquiring look to Lily. Again, Lily felt the situation slipping out of her control, sliding through her open hands and into God knew what sort of deeper mess. Her shoulders pulled back unconsciously and she stood rigidly.
"My need is great enough." A smug look flickered across the Finder's face.
"So it would seem. The price to pay is proportional to the lost item's worth. I think you know what I'll be needing from you." Without warning, Lily's heart began to beat harder in her chest; it seemed to fill her up as though it was expanding, each moment thundering a thousand echoes of her blood in her ears until she thought she would burst.... Then it was over. She realised she was on the floor, clutching at her chest.
"Is the price still worth it?"

Lily gasped for breath, sweat pouring off her.
"My sister for my heart. The price is worth it." She struggled to breathe. "Only when she's back in my arms, living, breathing, and... normal. Not... not like you. No tricks. That's my deal." Her voice was harsh and ragged. She couldn't see Dusk's furious expression at the Finder, who poked her tongue out at him and giggled with glee.
"Deal! Use this! It'll bring you to her." She tossed a large shard of broken mirror in front of Lily on the ground. Its edges had been worn smooth, and there was a leather band tied around it so it could be worn around the neck.
"Now go away Law Man, before I decide I don't like you."

Dusk's anger radiated from him like waves of heat but he was silent as he hefted Lily off the ground and set her straight. They left without another word, but once they were out in the street, he spun on Lily, suddenly seeming very tall and broad.
"You were looking for your sister? Why didn't you tell me?" Lily glared up at him.
"I don't trust you! Why would I? What difference does it make?" He made a few angry noises that sounded almost like words, then flung up his arms in defeat.
"You don't understand anything at all. Nothing." It was Lily's turn to flare with anger.
"No I don't! I don't care about your world! I just want my sister back! And I don't care what it costs! I would die for her!" She realised she was shouting, and bit off her words, her mouth clamping into a tight, bitter line. Dusk seemed to calm down slightly.
"Come. We have even less time than I thought."

Moonways pt4

For long minutes, Lily's brain shut down in horror, spinning and lurching in panic and fear. Finally, steely anger settled over her, bringing brittle calm. How far could she have gone, really? Grabbing Mona's backpack, she unceremoniously dumped its contents on the floor then went to the kitchen, considering briefly before throwing in a bottle of water from the fridge, a utility knife, carefully slid into its case, a notebook and pen, and a flashlight.

She fought with the absurdity of her actions for a moment, then, sighing, opened the junk drawer and picked out an old brass keyring, some thumbtacks, a pair of dice, and shiny plastic beads. She made sure the house was locked up tightly then stepped out into the night.

The park was bright in the clear evening, and Lily tipped her head at an angle to catch the signs of... that couldn't be right, could it? She crouched down, bringing herself close, brows knitting. Hoof prints? There was nothing even resembling a farm nearby. Pulling out her flashlight, Lily shone it on a print, dug deep into the grass. The horse had been galloping. The exposed earth glittered oddly, and a finger pressed gently into it came away with what could only be gold dust. Lily's frown deepened, and fear fluttered in her chest.

Straightening, she strained to see as far as she could in either direction, then jumped as she realised there was a figure striding towards her. Her hand fumbled into the backpack to grasp the knife until she noticed that he wasn't even looking up; he was following the hoof prints. Several times he stopped to bend and examine the ground, until he was close enough that Lily could see he was probably about thirty, though as he finally seemed to notice her, she thought he looked older than that. Or was it younger? She couldn't even fix a firm idea of the colour of his hair. Was it light brown, shimmering, or white as white? His features seemed to slide off her memory, so that even looking at him was like staring down from a great height; dizzying and uncomfortable.

Finally he slowed his steps, and hesitated. It felt like every muscle in Lily's body was tensed to breaking point, her hand trembling around the knife handle. But he didn't come any closer, merely giving her a bemused look. When he spoke, his voice was honey dripping on sandpaper; gravelly but musical.
"You can see me." The ridiculousness of his statement unfroze Lily's limbs and her eyebrows shot up.
"Of course I can. Why wouldn't I?"

Considered silence followed her response, building until Lily's chin tilted defiantly. "What are you doing?" She fixed him in an imperious glare, though it was giving her a headache. To her surprised, he chuckled.
"Mostly, I'm being impressed. Otherwise, I'm looking for someone." He paused. "What's your name, girl?" The back of Lily's neck prickled, and she tensed again, as something brushed her memory. The power of names....
"You just called me 'girl'. That's as good a name as any." Now it was the stranger's turn to frown.
"Crowborn?" Lily had to relent a little and rub her face in confusion. Everything swum before her lazily like a mirage.

"What are you talking about? Are you following the hoof prints? Do you know who they belong to?" Urgency clawed at her suddenly. Mona! Her vision cleared, though the man's features were still difficult to fix upon. When he didn't answer, she twitched with impatience. She turned to walk away, and suddenly he spoke again.
"The horse belongs to one of the Percontors. Why do you track them?" Lily's mouth formed the strange word; it tasted sour. Percontors.
"They have... they have something of mine. I think." She stood ramrod straight, trying to control the trembles coursing across her limbs.
"Something... precious?" His eyes suddenly glittered strangely.
"...yes. Something precious. I need it back."

Expecting further questions, she drew on a cloak of flat hostility, but he merely nodded, and his eyes were cast in darkness again.
"We have a common purpose then, at least for now. However I fear we came too late to catch them this way. They will be through the Gate by now, and it will not open here again." Lily gasped in horror. Through the Gate? The shining figure, burning her eyes with his terrible brightness... If the stranger noticed her expression, he made no sign of it.
"We should go." Lily hesitated only a moment before nodding.
"Where are we going?"
"To see the Finder of Lost Things." His loping strides took him off back the way he had come. He turned to wait for her. "You should call me... Dusk. It's as good a name as any."

Moonways pt 3

It was 8:45am and Mona still wasn't out of bed. Lily sighed, put down the dish in her hand, and stomped up the stairs.
"Mona! Get your sorry butt out of bed! You know what'll happen if you miss any more school!" She hammered on the door for emphasis. "Mona! Come on!" Silence leaked under the peeling door, but it was a sullen, shifty sort of silence puncuated with the sound of dragging feet and school books being gathered. Lily waited, hands on hips. Finally, her sister emerged, her chocolate curls still tussled with sleep, her green eyes flat and defiant. Suddenly, her lip trembled.

"But... Lilibilly... I don't like school! My teacher is mean. She makes me write lines." Lily's own thundery expression softened slightly.
"I know, Momo. But it'll be summer soon enough, and then you'll be in high school, which is much better." Mona's shoulders hunched, but she was defeated. The argument was an old one, but for the past month it had usually ended this way. Lily followed Mona down the stairs and sat back at the kitchen table. The house was well on its way into decay but Lily kept it spotless; so while the table had an old book wedged under one splintery leg, its surface was smooth and clean and there was a chipped plate with scrambled eggs and toast waiting. Mona slumped into her seat, shoulders still hunched, but nonetheless ate her breakfast.

Lily picked up the paper and continued reading, keeping one eye on her younger sister. It had been a battle, and the current ceasefire was precarious, she knew. For a moment, a stark memory bubbled to the surface of her mind. Their mother's blank, glassy expression as she lay on her side on the floor in a pool of vomit and blood. That one, terrible moment had stretched into an eternity, until it snapped and spun away into a shattered mess of moments containing serious looking social workers and friendly, concerned police men. In Lily's heart, in the place behind the walls she kept between herself and all others, she had been relieved that her mother was dead. It was a feeling that persisted like a guilty itch every time she thought of her mother.

Lily's good standing in the community and steady job at the local doctors' surgery meant she had somehow convinced child protective services that she was capable of caring for a five year old, though she was barely sixteen. As it was, she didn't see Mona for two months while they were both sent into foster care pending the decision. The thought of it still caused a strange pain in her chest that made it difficult to breathe. Ever since then, there had been the fear it would happen again, this time for ever. It made Lily wake up in a cold sweat at night, and it made her hand slide around Mona's shoulders if they were standing together. A month ago, they had been paid a visit by another social worker.

She had sat down on the threadbare couch, looking around with the same scrutinising gaze that all the social workers wore. They noted the crumbling mantle, clear of even one speck of dust. They noted the neat, mismatched curtains. They took in the yellowing lace on the coffee table, then they settled on the slender young woman in front of them, her dress simple and cheap, a lifetime of heartache written in her white knuckled hands and across her world-weary face, so out of place on one of so few years. Lily was well used to it but still she sat stiffly on the edge of the other seat, her eyes burning fiercely in her coldly polite face.

It was Mona; her teacher had expressed growing concern about her learning. The girl was terribly bright, she said, but refused to participate in many class activities, instead choosing to draw pictures, with scrawling stories in some private script. The words attention defecit disorder pulled Lily's lips into a scowl. But she was an expert in the intricate games of beaurocracy, and she promised that Mona's attendance and her attentiveness would get better. She promised to have a meeting with the teacher. With her eyes, she promised she was a good sister; a good mother. To herself, she promised to talk to Mona about the narrow faced, blonde haired girl, shining in pencilled darkness with a scribbled white halo.

So far, the only promise she had broken was the last. How could she raise the topic? They didn't talk about the time before their mother's death. Mona had been so young, she would barely remember anyway. Except for Amber. Why did she remember Amber so clearly? It was a memory that Lily shied away from; she had faced down every single nightmare, but those strange summer days and that night... Again, she fled it, standing up.
"Come on, I'll walk you to school."

That night, Lily sat on the back veranda and stared out over the back fence at the park. She could remember Amber's pale face that night many years ago, strange and wild somehow in the darkness. She thought about the shining path she had created, and for the first time, she allowed herself to wonder where it went. She allowed herself to wonder about the place in Amber's stories. Amber had mentioned a war, a civil war... she couldn't remember what it was about. Something to do with the Queen and King... the ruling family was overthrown, thrown out of their eternal lands to wander amongst mortals, along with everyone who fought with them. That was it. Lily wondered about that too. She supposed Amber must have been one of them. Did that make her some sort of princess? Not that it mattered now... A small shudder crept up her spine as she remembered the blinding white light, and Amber's screams.

A small hand on the back of her neck startled her and she jumped violently. Of course it was Mona, but Lily had been so caught up she hadn't heard her. Mona sat down on the step next to her. When Lily looked at her, she still saw the same chubby little girl, always getting into mischief... but that wouldn't do. Mona was getting older, and though she was still round faced, she was growing into a very beautiful woman. Lily supposed their mother must have been beautiful too, at least, maybe once, or maybe her father. Lily had always assumed their fathers were different, because of the age gap, and their mother's string of transient lovers. Suddenly, she realised Mona had fixed her with an intense green stare.
"Do you remember how to find the Moonways?" She might have slapped her, for all Lily reeled in shock. Her mind spun dizzily before she recovered.

"What? No. How do you remember that?" Mona shrugged, suddenly sullen again.
"Don't know. Just do. I want to find them. Help me find them?" The shining Gate Man filled Lily's vision and she shook her head violently, gripping Mona by the shoulders.
"You must never ever look for them! Forget about it! Forget about her!" Mona shrank back, fear filling her eyes, and Lily realised she had grabbed her with more force than she intended.
"Momo... please... I'm sorry..." But tears had filled Mona's eyes and she yanked away, fleeing back into the house, setting the back door banging against the frame. Lily sighed heavily. That really didn't go as she planned. Still, she was frightened and angry with Mona for her strange fixation. Pride kept her from following, and she wandered into the living room and switched on the television instead, zoning out in front of some trite American sitcom.

As she headed to bed, she knocked softly on Mona's door.
"Mona?" Silence. "Momo?" Carefully, she opened the door. Mona's room was dark, but her bed was bluebright with the full moon shining through the open window. She was gone.

A Lord In His Glass and Iron Tower

"So brother, where are you these days?" Her voice was silky down the phone line, but he wasn't impressed.
"How did you get this number?" A small, indulgent laugh, rattled about by poor reception, greeted his words.
"You know I like to keep tabs on my siblings, brother. So where are you?"
"No where you need to be."
"Aww. Still living with the rats then I take it. Scurrying about like them, playing at being ratty? Tell me, do you still go to all their funerals? Are you married now?" More laughter at his stony silence.
"That is precious! So you just hold onto her until she withers and dies, then toss her away and find a new one? You, the lord of your glass and iron tower? You amuse me so." Click.

Caedus didn't bother answering the mobile phone when it rang again. He wasn't married. But he had a good life, and he didn't want her ruining it. He had been happy with the way things were, with the Balance and Order. He had never wanted dominion over Man; he had stayed away from the conflict. But apparently being neutral was a punishable offence also. He found it ironic that of all his kin, he was the most successful. Sure, they had been powerful once, but they wouldn't move with the times, and they still had a terrible disdain for Man, which he considered unwarranted. They certainly were industrious creatures, men.

He turned to face the window, leaning against it slightly and looking out over the magnificent city view, skyscrapers splashing their neon ornaments across the darkness, light and shadow in constant battle. His clan's problem was that they couldn't admit that their supposed inferiors had bested them.
We're a dead race. If only we would die. His hand strayed almost unconsciously to brush his crow Marking. Nothing he could do would hide it, and trying to cut off his hand was both pointless and painful. Besides, it leant him an air of mystery that he used to his advantage; that and it complimented his usual dark Armani suit and black tie. It was a combination calculated to make him look dangerous, and it worked. He was comfortable, he was successful, and he was powerful. Good men and bad tried to court his favour, and he ruled his corporate kingdom with an iron fist. Ironic, indeed.

But the sea of his years ebbed and rose, and he wore a skin of time to hide his secret - that he had no time, and all the time in the world. He lived a thousand lives, and he died a thousand deaths, though all of them infinitesimal under the weight of each waking moment. Endlessly he built his empires, and endlessly they were destroyed. But what else was there to do? A shiver ran through his body as he thought of the void, that blissful dark place where nothingness ruled. No, there would be none of that.

He knew what some of his siblings did to ease their burden, and if his sister thought his actions were worthy of derision, then she obviously hadn't spoken to Niveus. At least he didn't debase himself by joining with men for money. Though he suspected why she really did it, which was somehow worse. She wasn't the only one who used humans to reach the void; but she was the only Firstborn to do so. Still, it called to him, that moment of clarity... The weight of his years bore down on him, filling him with weariness. He fought it off with some effort, then straightened away from the glass and sat back down at his desk. He would deny it. He would live, even if it meant he must live forever.

Once I was a King

He rode the bus, glaring out the dirty window at the streets blurring past. This? This is what it had come to? Years washed past as the bus droned on, his seat bouncing beneath him at the slightest bump in the road. Countless years, fading at the edges of memory, reaching back beyond cars and buses and skyscrapers and walls and wheels and men, into the deep dark forests that used to march across every corner of the earth. He pulled his jacket tighter about him. Yes, he had ruled once. Once, but that was long ago. Things were different.

He fingered absently at the crow swooping down his hand, one wing brushing the knuckle of his thumb, the other reaching toward his middle finger. It was green-blue with age now, though the skin that bore it was still a smooth, golden brown. Once, he had been the King of Noontime. Now, he rode the bus. Now, he stalked the night, trapped in an endless bitter swirl of his own regrets. He understood it was his fault; he understood that. He should have kept a better eye on the rise of Man, but it was an insidious thing, and already his anger was dimming in a wave of helplessness.

"All things have their time in the sun," he murmured. At least the rule of men was short; they buzzed like flies for a few moments and then died noisily, to be swept away by the rushing tide of history. That was the way of Man, and that was the way of the world. Time stopped for no-one. But he and his bretheren existed out of the flow of time; it was their reward and their ultimate punishment. Accumulating years, faithful keepers of History, bearing eternal witness to each spin of that wretched blue ball. The bus came to a shuddering halt and wheezed black smoke into the air.
"End of service," came the gruff, disinterested voice of the driver from the front.

The city streets were grey and blue in the twilight as he stepped off, and Solaris felt the sea of his years accutely. He took long, loping strides towards the nearest bar. His hatred had burned and then simmered down into a smoulder again, leaving him hollow. He would have oblivion that night, one way or another. A small death, all too brief, but enough to douse the flame, for a little while at least. He sat down at the bar.
"Whiskey please. Neat." One way or another.

Moonways pt2

To Lily's surprise, Amber didn't say much at all, let alone anything strange. She nodded to Lily, then leaned down and asked Mona about her doll, and her dress, and told her she looked lovely. For the way that Mona smiled, Lily felt a rush of appreciation for the other girl's presence. Her hair still looked like it needed a decent combing, and Lily had to resist the urge to pluck a small twig from the back, but she had a way with Mona, and that made her alright. Maybe.

Amber led them to a small wood at the back of the winding streets crowded with cheap housing. Lily didn't think much of the little reserve; she heard older boys went there and drank from sacks of two dollar wine, looking for trouble. But that day, there was no one else, or so it seemed. Amber began pointing out types of trees, and plants, and even flowers, as though it were some carefully tended garden and not a grubby little reserve between ghettos. Carefully moving aside a clump of ivy, she revealed a delicate collection of tiny blue flowers, each nodding their fluted heads as though dozing.
"Bluebells!" Lily exclaimed, impressed despite herself. Amber grinned, then held up a finger to her lips.
"Shh... they're sleeping." Gesturing sharply, she tiptoed away, around the base of a taller tree, and pulled back a screen of creepers. Behind the leafy curtains lay a small grotto, soft with moss, dappled and dewy in its shaded corners, hidden from the world by scrub and trees and held in the arms of the tall oak protecting it.

"This is my secret place," Amber whispered, as Mona looked about in awe. Even Lily wondered at the change. Then she noticed the small pile nestled away to one side. It was a collection of glass shards, and discarded, brassy earrings, and bottlecaps, and dried flowers and chains of leaves. Amber, noticing Lily's gaze, shuffled a little closer. "Gifts for the Gate Man... and a compass for the Moon Ways."
Lily was confused. "Where's the compass?" Amber merely nodded, then picked out an earring, three strings of daisies and a single, carefully dried bluebell. With deft movements she arranged it all, adding little knots here and there, until the earring was swinging between a spidery criss cross of threads. The bluebell helmed the strange contraption, and daisies ringed its edges. To Lily's eyes, it was simply a mess. But it had a strange beauty, and as Lily watched it, she thought the light caught it just so, sending shivering sparkles down each fine strand, like beads of water... Blinking, she looked away. "That's not a compass," she mumbled. But Amber's eyes had a strange glow to them. "You saw, didn't you! I knew you would. Tell me which way they went!" Her expression had become oddly hungry. Lily shook her head in confusion.
"I didn't... I don't.... well... sort of this way I guess?" She gestured down and out. Amber watched, her golden brown eyes hungry.
"Yes, yes I see it... I understand. Thank you." The tension of the moment was broken by Mona tugging on Amber's skirt.

"Show me boo-bells?" The hunger vanished from Amber's eyes and with a quick glance at Lily, her smile was back in place for the little girl as she took her to the other side of the grotto where all sorts of wildflowers were growing. Lily's head felt strange. It had been a surreal exchange, and her skin prickled from the warm stillness. But the moment passed, and they spent a pleasant afternoon wading in the creek, looking for turtles and little fish as well as Amber's "diamonds".

Day after day they slipped out early, away from their snoring mother and the cloying, musty heat of their broken down house, to go join Amber in the wood, or on the banks of the creek. After that exchange in the grotto, Amber mostly talked about fairly normal things with Lily, though questions about where she lived or went to school slid off her smile like drops of water. She would interject sometimes to offer a fact about some animal or plant, and sometimes she would tell Mona fairytales.

They weren't the fairytales Lily was used to; they spoke of dark halls and secret places, of the immortal King of Noontime and the eternal Queen of Midnight. How to talk with fairies, how to pass their doorways and paths unhindered. How to trick them with gifts and how to keep names secret. Mona always listened, wide eyed and open mouthed, but Lily frowned and became thoughtful. One evening, Lily and Mona's mother had gone out. She left no indication of where she was going; she just wasn't there when Lily brought Mona home. The rusty Camaro was not parked out the front, and the house was dark. Lily sighed with relief.

They ate toast with jam for dinner and Lily was sitting on the back veranda, fanning her face lazily in the dense, sticky air, when a pale face suddenly appeared in the darkness. It was Amber. Lily started; she had never come around after dark before. She was bathed in the blue light of the bright full moon, and her hair shone silver in the washed out twilight. Lily stood.
"What are you doing here?"
"Tonight's the night, Lily. Will you help me?" Mona, hearing Amber's voice, tottered out onto the veranda and then, like usual, dashed down the back stairs and through the yard. This time was different though. Lily leapt up, straining with sudden fear, and took bounding leaps to catch up but it was too late. Amber reached over and snatched up Mona, who, not understanding the danger, wrapped her arms around the older girl's neck happily.

Amber was off then, still fast and agile like a deer. Lily was long legged but for some reason, she simply couldn't keep up with the shorter girl. Mona wasn't crying. She just looked dreamy as Amber murmured into her ear. Lily ran faster, screaming, but her voice was hoarse suddenly, disobeying her desperation. The park was cast in stark whites and blues and blacks by the moonlight, but there seemed to be a glow developing around Amber as her strides ate up the grass.

Lily's head spun as she realised what was happening. Soon, each step Amber took splashed moonlight before her, and a glimmering path was forming. With strength she didn't know she had, Lily surged ahead, just as the darkness seemed to gather in an archway above the grass. Amber slowed down, and a shining figure stepped from the arch. The Gate Man! Finally, Lily caught up, chest burning and limbs trembling with fear and adrenaline. Amber was shining now, her hair floating in a wreath about her head.

She turned to Lily, as though in a dream, and her eyes were wild. "I'm sorry, Lily," she said dreamily, and sounded almost like she meant it. "But the Gate Man needs to be paid."
"What about your diamonds and jewels?" Lily tried to shout. Amber shrugged.
"She is a jewel. Precious, shining, beautiful. The Gate Man must be paid. I need to go home." Lily's limbs were getting heavy as the Gate Man stepped forward. Still she struggled, crying out her sister's name until she thought she might burst. Suddenly, Amber glared.
"Stop that!"

Lily found another tiny shred of strength, then another. A sweat was breaking out on the other girl's pale skin. Lily concentrated on her sister, on her fierce love, until it filled her up and spilled out between them. Amber stumbled, just as the Gate Man reached forward, and Lily stepped forward in that half a moment, snatching Mona's arm and hefting her bodily away. Now it was Amber's turn to scream, as the shining figure grew blindingly bright, his voice beautiful and deadly.
"You know the price must be paid for calling me, Ysoldir." Amber screamed and screamed as heat radiated from them both. Lily clutched Mona to her, screwing her eyes shut, wishing she could close her ears against the terrible sounds. But then suddenly darkness rushed back across her eyelids and she opened them cautiously, squinting in the gloom.

There was nothing of Amber left, and the Moon Way was fading into nothing. Lily stepped out of the way swiftly as it snaked away into the sky. She realised Mona was still sleeping, her tangled curls brushing over her cheek, and held her close, kissing her forehead. There would be no more secret bluebells and strange tales, but Lily didn't think she'd miss them.

Moonways pt 1

"Mona, Mona! Wait! Damn." The younger girl had taken off beyond hearing, though she was still visible, her pink dress bobbing wildly as she skipped down the path. Lily had asked her to stay nearby, but as soon as they got beyond the front fence she was off like a tiny, chubby brunette rocket. There was a little creek rambling through the park and Lily didn't want Mona going too close.

But Mona had stopped and Lily wondered at hearing Mona's voice. Who was she talking to? Suddenly a head poked up from the edge of the creek, with a shock of messy blonde hair and a curious, dreamy face. Lily hurried over, worry creasing across her forehead. The strange girl waved and grinned, holding up something shiny for Mona to see.

"It's a diamond," she declared, then held it out in the palm of her hand. Lily could see it was a shard of glass, worn smooth by the wash of the water. Nonetheless, Mona gasped and her eyes widened in delight. The girl winked at Lily then passed her other hand over the glass, making it vanish. Mona let out a squeal of delight, but her expression was worried.
"Dai-mun come back?" Lily noticed that the other girl's eyes were a light brown, almost golden. They danced with amusement.
"But you took it!" Mona shook her head.
"Never did!"
"Well, what is it doing in your pocket then?" Out came the shard of glass from the pocket in Mona's pinafore, causing another squeal and excited clapping.

The girl straightened up, dusting off her rather grubby knees, and Lily realised they were probably about the same age. She was thin and somewhat lanky, still growing into her arms and legs. She held out a hand for Lily to shake. "Amber." Lily took the hand somewhat hesitantly, and murmured her own name.

"What were you doing in the creek anyway?" Her voice was faintly reproachful, eyes straying to the dirt and mud clinging to Amber's bare knees and feet. Her summer dress wasn't faring much better; it had long thin green and brown stains from treebark. Climbing trees? At their age? Honestly. If Amber noticed Lily's haughty expression, she didn't show it.
"Looking for diamonds of course! And rubies, and sapphires, and emeralds and..." She stopped short, seeing Lily's frown, and met it with a wide, toothy white smile. "I need to pay the Gate Man you see. And he only takes jewels." She sighed expressively.

"But I just gave my only diamond to the fair princess Mona here, because such a pretty girl deserves all the diamonds in the world." Mona blushed and tugged on her dress happily.
"Are you a fairy?" For a moment, Amber's smile faded. Then she grinned even wider.
"Of course I am. I'm looking for the Moonways. They'll take me back to my home. Will you help me find them?"
"Come on Mona, you know Mama only said five minutes. Dinner'll be ready soon." Lily interrupted the strange girl's tales quickly. Mona looked mutinous, but met with Lily's stony expression she wilted and held out a chubby hand.

"It was nice to meet you," Lily said stiffly, and Amber nodded, looking suddenly thoughtful.
"Yes, it's always nice to meet me. I'll see you tomorrow." Affronted, Lily was about to reply but the girl had already taken off, bouncing lightly like a deer across the shallow creek and up the other side. Snorting her derision, Lily took Mona home.

"Where have you been?" The voice was harsh, cold.
"Just down by the creek, Mama... just for a moment. Mona wanted to." Lily resisted the urge to shrink down from the doorway to the kitchen where her mother sprawled in her chair, puffing on a hand rolled cigarette, her fingers drumming twitchy tunes on the battered table.
"You take orders from a three year old?" Her mother's sneer smelled of cheap rum from that close, and Lily quivered, but didn't respond.

After another moment of hard scrutiny, she was released. Mona had shuffled back, hiding slightly behind Lily's dress. In the tense silence, Lily served out the tinned spaggheti and sat Mona down on a chair. Neither girl dared to interrupt their mother's reverie; it would probably only earn a string of curses.

Later, when Lily was tucking Mona in, she smiled as she spotted the "diamond". In the near darkness of the bedroom, it looked much shinier and clearer, almost sparkling. Blinking, Lily looked again. It was just a shard of glass, nothing else.

Sleep was late coming and fitful in the stifling summer heat, and in the morning, Lily could remember the edges of very strange dreams about rivers made of moonlight. She shrugged them off with a frown, then headed outside. Mona had dressed herself and was sitting quietly on the back veranda, playing princess with her grubby doll. That was enough to get a smile out of Lily, until something caught her eye. It was Amber, leaning on the low back fence, smiling that mischevious smile.

It was a choice between waiting for Mama to wake up with a sore head and ferocious temper, or slip out before she even noticed.Mona made up both their minds by seeing Amber and leaping up, running down the stairs and out onto the footpath. Lily followed, reluctantly, wondering what strange things Amber would say this time.

Business is Business

It was his nervousness that gave him away, really. Of course I had seen a picture - there is a very careful screening process - but really, who can trust a camera? They lie all the time. Nonetheless, there he was, probably a bit younger than he had said, and definitely better looking than the photo had suggested; not that physical attributes are terribly relevant to me. He was sitting a little too far forward on his chair, one foot bouncing absently in a jitter. His eyes glanced to the door every few moments, and then he spotted me. We're hard to miss, if you know what to look for. But tattoos these days are so prevalent that it could mean anything, and most people don't pay attention to where each foot lands until after they've taken a step, so why would they notice a crow on the hand of certain strangers? He was looking for it though. He got up, and came forward, meeting my nod with a nervous one of his own. He held out his hand to shake mine and my smile widened, just a little, as I declined with a small gesture. With a start he realised his mistake and withdrew, stuffing his hands into his pockets instead.

"So... what do we do from here?" It was a big enough bar that his words wafted up into the general miasma of conversation and lounge music. I am short, but I like to think that I have good projection to make up for it. My voice was light, but cold. Business is business after all.
"We go somewhere quieter. It won't work in anything resembling this noise."
Without waiting to see if he was following, I sauntered out and down the street. He hurried to catch up, and I could see him sneaking looks at me out of the corner of my eye. I let the silence stretch, thick with the boy's unspoken questions. Let him wonder, I didn't care. We reached the building and I led him up the darkened staircase to a small, threadbare room with two seats inside; one a chaise, one a plain wooden stool. The paint flaked its age onto the floor, and dust startled into flight from our entrance but settled lazily again in the stillness.

"Lay down," I instructed. He obeyed, though warily; we were alone, and I can't deny that my people have a reputation. Light filtered through a single window, casting stark shapes across his face, smoothing away imperfections until he might have been made of marble. I observed dispassionately that he had brown eyes. Did it matter? No. Not really. I took his proffered money and pocketed it. Taking a seat on the stool, I gently reached out and placed my hands on either side of his head. The effect was instantaneous.

We plunged, spiralling, into deep, cold water. For a moment we struggled, fighting the urge to swim, chest burning until we could take it no more! Then with a gasp, water filled us, flowing through our lungs, into our limbs and out our fingers, washing away panic with cool intensity. He was a but a babe in years, and the drops of his life washed away in moments in the sea of my consciousness.

It was a callous thing, this sharing. There is nothing like an equal exchange, and if he thought his greatest desires, his deepest fears were enough to sate me, he was very wrong. He had so few; they were so unimaginative. Spiders, loneliness, discomfort with his position in society, a desire for acceptance, a desire for supple flesh and willing lips, cats and his mother and his job and a thousand other details drifted through the cool dark.

He became aware of himself again, and we separated, floating, his expression made dreamy by the water's filtered light. I watched him impassively as he took breath after breath of my years, of my battles won and lost, of my silks and rags and riches. His nervousness was gone; he shared my victories, my defeat, my desires. We came together again, this time our bodies entangled, mouths meeting hungrily. I caught him and held him harshly in that weightless place, making my demands of his flesh, filling myself with the rawness of that need until all else was obliterated and the ocean finally fled me.

That darkness, that void where nothing of myself remained, lasted only precious few moments, but they were enough. I pulled my hands away and we were back in that empty, dusty room again. The monochrome semi-darkness assaulted me like noonday sun and I blinked and frowned at the boy on the lounge. His expression was still glazed; he lay, sweat and other fluids staining dark patches on his neat clothes. Finally after long minutes his eyes met mine. They were still brown, but they held some vague memory of that sharing. A tumbled understanding made unclear by his return to his feeble waking mind, but nonetheless, an understanding. I stood, and he gestured weakly.
"Wait! Don't go. Can't we talk?"

I left him as he was, not bothering to turn around. Business is business, and I had extracted my payment after all. Precious few moments, but they were enough. For now.