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I know I look the same as I did a year ago. Save for the blue turned white streak in my hair. And, you know, some grime from having missed more than a few showers. But as I look down at my reflection in the water, it just feels off. Every detail of my face that I’ve seen, like, a gazillion times, doesn’t feel like my own. It feels like I’m looking at...her. But that’s ridiculous. She's gone. It's just me. I am not that monster. Or maybe I am? I’m sitting here wallowing in my own self-pity while poor Jim’s off somewhere probably having another mental breakdown over the fact that he’s been turned into a troll. “Ugh!” I throw a pebble in the water. I’m the worst.What was that? I rise to my feet and inch closer to the treeline. More leaves crunch under something’s weight. “H-hello?” A squirrel runs out of hiding and across my feet. I rest my hand on my chest and sigh in relief. Scared of a cute little squirrel? You’re losing it, Claire.“Ha ha!” A raspy female voice cackles from behind me. I turn to see Nomura perched on a boulder by the river. Crunch. Suddenly there’s nothing left of the squirrel but a clump of fur stuck between Nomura’s fangs. Seriously, ew. It’s hard to believe she passed for a human for so long.“Hey! What are you doing here? Aren’t you on guard tonight?”“I’m supposed to be.” She replies. “But I decided to go hunting instead. Why are you here, young witch?”“Ok, first of all, you need to get back to the camp. You’ve had your share of rations. If you’re that hungry you can hunt on your own time. Also, I’m not a witch.”“Ok first of all,” She remarks in a high pitched voice, obviously meant to mock my own. “Jim offered to take my shift so I could get food. And I offered to bring back some for him as payment.” She picked the fur out of her teeth and flicked it at the ground beside me. “Oops.” She laughs and licks her claws. “How are you not a witch? I was under the impression that you wielded Morgana’s scathrun.”“Yeah, for a while but it was destroyed. I can’t do magic without it.”“Why would you think that? An artifact of that power couldn’t possibly be wielded by a mortal.”“Well, I guess I’m the exception because I’ve never done magic before all this troll stuff started.”“None that you recognized as such. Perhaps you’ve experienced premonitions, but once they were fulfilled it simply felt like..what’s the human term again? Ah! Déjà vu.” She smirks. “Perhaps objects would mysteriously fall out of place during a fit of anger?" She cocks her eyebrow." Does any of that sound familiar.”“I don’t...but why would I be a witch if my parents aren’t?” “Oh, they very well could be. But lack of exposure to magic can stunt one’s potential.” She jumps off the rock, causing me to trip and tumble to the ground. “I know it runs in your family’s blood, Claire. Why do you think your infant brother was chosen for familiar status?”“Enrique is a wizard!?”“He could be. One day.” She takes my arm and runs her long clawed finger down the length of a scar I’ve had since the second grade. “Trolls don’t naturally possess the ability for Merlin or Morgana's particular brand of magic. But bonding one’s soul to a human wizard.”“What are you-?!” She wraps her hand around my scar and slams the other one across my mouth before I can finish my question.“Tui gratia lovis gratia sit cure.” She hisses under her breath. I smack her across the face and reclaim my arm. No way am I letting this chick curse me! But, I quickly realize that’s not what she was doing.“You-” I rub my forearm where my scar had been.”You healed it?”“Being bound to a human wizard can grant a changeling power a regular troll could only dream of. Even with my familiar out of the darklands, we are still bonded.”“Why are you telling me all of this?”“Because,” She pulls out a dusty old book from her satchel. “I feel as though it is in my best interest to remain on your good side.”She drops the book into my lap. The Book of Ga-Huel.“Oh no no no.” I throw it back at Nomura and scramble to my feet. “Blinky told me all about that thing!”The changeling rolls her slit eyes.“Oh? And what exactly did he say?”“That it’s evil! It’s probably like another relic of Morgana or something!”Nomura forces back a laugh. “Blinkous is knowledgeable in many fields. But magic is not one of them. It isn't all his fault though. There are few quality sources.” She twirls the book around her fingers as if the thing doesn’t weigh as much as I do. “And he’s far too hesitant to read any of the ones that do exist.” She circles around me like a predator stalking its prey. Is this lady capable of doing anything not creepy? She brushes my white streak behind my ear. “I’m willing to teach you what he won’t.”“Why don’t I just ask Merlin to mentor me?”“I was talking about Merlin. He dismembered his last prodigy because he feared she was growing stronger than him. And he’s already weary of you since her defeat.”“His last prodigy? You mean Morgana?” There’s no way Merlin is threatened by me. There’s no way. I’m a trollhunter for crying out loud.“ She’s evil. Of course, he was threatened by her.”Nomura stops circling me. Her ears drop and she sighs. “She’s not the monster you think is.”“She kicked me out my own body and then used it to try to kill Jim! Completely ruined our date fyi.”“So I’ve been told. But she only became what Merlin made her. She was barely more than a whelp when they met.” She plays with her hair in a weirdly girly way I’ve never seen from her and stares at the ground. “She wasn’t the passive, obedient bride he wanted her to be. So he tried to break her spirit. But she only became stronger. And angrier.” “Whoa whoa whoa. Hold up. Bride? You mean to tell me they were married?”“Hmm, nearly. The night before the wedding he took her left hand and melted it into the Daylight amulet. It was meant to make the armor more resistant to her magic if she ever became an issue.”“Which she clearly did. We’ve all been through stuff but we don’t all try to destroy humanity. Admit it, Morgana's nothing but a power-hungry jerkface.”“We’ve all been through dismemberment, huh?”“Well, Draal did. And he didn’t turn evil.”Nomura seems almost startled by my mention of him. But she quickly shakes it off and snarls.“I thought you hero types were all for seeing the good in everyone. But if you’re so worried about becoming nothing but a 'power-hungry jerkface' like her, perhaps we should start with working on your self-control. Or lack thereof.” She mutters that last part under her breath. She returns the book to her satchel and takes out a can of what looks like...coffee? She pops the lid off and shows me the sparkling purple powder inside. Nope. Definitely not coffee. “Go on.” She nods expectantly.“What is it?” I reach in and pull out a handful to inspect it. My curiosity momentarily overruling my caution.“Your first test.” She blows the powder into my face. The dust flies up my nose and before I know what's happening my throat and lungs feel like they’re on fire. I cough so hard I worry I'm going to hack up a lung. Every muscle in my body tenses up. And the world around me becomes a red blur."How does it feel, young witch?”I want to curl into a ball on the ground and wait for the pain to pass. But a voice in my head keeps telling me I can get rid of the pain. All I have to do is beat it into someone else. Nomura smirks. I clench my first and lunge forward. I miss and trip over Nomura’s stretched out hoof.”You’ll need to be faster than that.” She cackles. Her voice rings in my ears like thunder. I shake my head but it doesn’t stop. Why won’t it just stop? She leans down to pick me up.I scramble backward and somehow manage to kick her in the stomach. She doubles over and growls. I jump up and break a branch off from a nearby tree. Ok, so it's not a magical shadow staff capable of conjuring portals to another dimension. But at least it's something.Nomura draws her duel swords and strikes. I counter the best I can but it only takes a few strikes to split my makeshift weapon in half. The final blow also slices through my forearm. Blood soaks my sleeve.“How disappointing. I expected more from the slayer of Morgana.”“No, no.” Tears flood my eyes. The anger, the burning throughout my body fades. Replaced by shame. And realization. "I'm sorry.”“Don’t apologize.” She resheaths her blades. “It shows vulnerability.”“Well? What if I am vulnerable, Nomura?”“Then don’t be. Not if you want to survive.”"You make it sound easy. But I’m...I'm not strong enough.” I slip my jacket off to get a better look at the cut. It’s so deep. What’s Blinky going to think of this? Oh god, what’s Jim going to think of this? “And I don't think any amount of….anger dust is going to fix that.""It's called Grave Sand. And fixing isn't its purpose. Its purpose is to bring out your most primal instincts." She rambles on about whatever the heck it was she gave me but I’m not even listening at this point. All I’m worried about it the smell of my blood attracting bears and other animals I’m apparently too pathetic to fight off. Nomura kneels in front of me. “I just fixed that you know?”“I know. Do...do you mind doing it again?” I hold out my arm.“Actually I do. How else are you supposed to learn? Do you remember the spell I used?”“If I can memorize Romeo and Juliet, I can remember that.”“On with it then.”“Fine.” I hesitantly wrap my hand around the wound. “Tui gratia-”“Wait. I have an idea.” Nomura picks up the broken branch I’d fought her with. “Try it on this first.”“What? Why?”“In case it doesn’t go right, you won’t lose the arm. And it’s also less likely to go wrong if you have a staff through which to focus your power.”“It’s a broken stick.”“Just fix it.”“Ugh. You’re really frustrating. You know that right?” I hold the two pieces of the branch together in my hand. I glance back up at Nomura and she nods. “Alright. Here goes nothing. Tui gratia lovis gratia sit cure.” Nothing. Absolutely nothing. I sigh. “See, I told-”“Slow down. You need to mean what you say. You want to heal. Focus on that want, that need, to heal.”I take a deep breath. “Ok ok. I want to heal.” A slowly breathe out. “ I need to heal. Tui gratia lovis gratia sit cure.” A bright purple light shines through the gaps in my fingers. Veins of light climb up and down the branch then up the length of my arm, stopping at the cut. The light mends the skin back together leaving it good as new. “Holy shish-kebab! I did it! Nomura, I did it! Look!”“I know. I have eyes.” She peels my fingers away from the branch. “Hmm. And that’s not your only success of the night.”“Oh, I fixed the stick too!”
“You also instilled part of your own power into it. In time, it will become a great weapon, worthy of your talents.”“Weapon?”“A magic staff to rival the power of Morgana’s Scathrun. Again, in time. I wouldn’t recommend trying anything more than healing or a simple levitation spell right now.”“That’s so awesome!” The veins of light return and a trail of purple sparks follow the staff as I twirl it through the air. This can definitely work. “Oh, oh! Can I decorate it?”“If you bedazzle the staff, I’m taking it back.”“I mean, it’s cool and all but it doesn’t look all that imposing. And by the way, I haven’t had a bedazzler since I was 10. Maybe I’ll carve Shakespeare quotes into it!”“...I suddenly have a new found respect for Sticklander. The fact that he didn’t murder any of his students is nothing short of a miracle.”“So, uh, “ I clear my throat and tug at my collar. “Same time tomorrow?”
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Leaves rustle outside the tent. Crap, crap, crap. I slip Nomura’s book into my backpack and hit my head to the pillow and yawn as if I’m just waking up. I sit up and stretch my arms as Jim crawls into his own makeshift bed beside mine. “Tough night?” I yawn. He groans in response and rolls over, removing the amulet from his chest. His armor dissipates, leaving him in only his old ripped jeans and the red button up flannel I bought for him a few towns back.“Understatement of the year,” Jim complains. Dark circles hang under his bright blue eyes and there’s dried blood smeared under his nose. “Orlo got into a fight with one of the Quagga...Quagga whatever they’re called.""Quagawumps?" I chuckle and brush my fingers through his thick black mane, attempting and failing to dislodge all the twigs and leaves trapped in it."Yeah, those guys. It took me and Blinky an hour to pry them apart. One of them scratched me. I don’t think it’s too bad though.” He unbuttons the lower half of his shirt to reveal three long claw marks that extend across his abdomen. It’s not “needs stitches” bad but it’s also not great. I let out a deep sigh. Jim’s ears droop, noticing the change in my mood. “Hey, if nothing else,” He pushes my chin up to look me in the eye. “ I’ll probably get a cool scar out of it.” He shrugs and lays his head on his pillow. “Night, Claire-Bear.”I roll my eyes at the pet name, but I can’t help the tiny smirk tugging at my lips. "Goodnight," I reply. I can see his tensed muscles relax as he slips out of consciousness. I glance back at the scratches and trace my fingers over them. He winces but doesn’t wake up. The boy was raised by a doctor and still thinks sleeping in this nasty, ratty old sleeping bag with open wounds is a good idea. I sure can pick ‘em. Guess it’s once again up to me to keep this dork alive.I dump my backpack out onto the blanket and shuffle through the wadded up receipts, protein bar crumbs, and loose change to look for the first aid kit Barbara packed us. Where is it? Where-oh, wait. Notenrique borrowed in yesterday and never gave it back. The little imp probably ate it. Now what? I rest my head on my knees. That’s when my gaze falls on Nomura’s book and the branch turned magic staff next to it.I pull both items into my lap and flip through the pages to the healing spell I learned earlier with Nomura. I hold the staff slightly over Jim’s wounded stomach. “Tui gratia lovis gratia sit cure.” The staff glows the same vibrant purple as before and the wounds seal back together seamlessly. Sorry, Jimbo, no cool scar for you.
“Claire?” Jim shakes my arm. I groan and hide my head under my pillow. “Fine. I guess I’ll eat this awesome breakfast in bed all by myself.” My eyes shoot open and I sit up. Jim is seated across from me with a tray holding two plates. One with bacon and eggs. The other with raw hamburger and chicken. “Take your pick.”I take the edible plate. “Oh my gosh! Where’d you get all this?” I question as I scoop a fork full of egg into my mouth.Jim tears a chunk off of the chicken leg and gags. “Ugh. Yeah, well.” He forces himself to swallow. “ I woke up in the middle of the night puking my guts out and-”“Oh my god! Are you all right?”“I’m fine! Really, I’m fine. Blink’s pretty sure it’s my diet. Not enough raw protein or something. He went into town with the glamour mask and got a bunch of stuff he says will help. I didn’t feel like eating 40 pounds of raw meat and eggs, thus, breakfast in bed... For everyone. He went a tad overboard.”“Did he by any chance pick up coffee too?” I raise an eyebrow and take another bite of bacon.“No, but there’s a Starbucks in town. I can get the mask back from Blink and-”“Jim, I was kidding. We seriously don’t have the money for that. Also, ” I lean forward and kiss him on the nose. “Have I mentioned you’re the best?”“I’m awful but I appreciate the sentiment.”“Okay, enough self-deprecating humor. I gotta go pee. Be back in a minute.” I stand up and head for the entrance.“TMI, Claire. TMI.” He shovels raw hamburger into his mouth, obviously much fonder of its taste than the chicken. "Seriously, I'm trying to eat."“Oh is that what you’re doing? I thought you were trying some new, forward-thinking face-mask.” I gesture to the two pounds of food that somehow missed his mouth. His ears perk and he quickly wipes it away.“Oh, leave me alone.”He takes another bite. "Only God can judge me."I stick my tongue out at him and he returns the gesture. "Clean yourself up. You smell like where I’m heading.” I kick his backpack over to him and his semi-clean laundry tumbles out."Fine, you butt, I’ll change." He grabs a blue t-shirt and unbuttons his flannel. I unzip the tent door to leave and only look back for a moment. But it's more than enough time to take notice of the newly reformed claw marks across Jim’s stomach.
Those stupid scratches were gone. I healed them. With magic! How in the world are they back? Jim glances down at me and raises his eyebrow. So turns out you can only stare intensely at someone's stomach for so long without weirding them out. I squeeze my hand a little tighter around his own and force a grin.He gently pulls out of my increasing vice-like grip. “Are you feeling alright?”“Oh yeah, just a little tired. That’s all.” I fake a yawn and checks my texts. Anything to escape those big blue eyes of his that never fail to break me. Oh, geez. I hadn’t realized how much the girls messaged me when my phone was dead. Even Aja, the foreign exchange girl, texted me to check in.“Ugh, god. If we don't have a rest stop soon, my legs are going to fall off." Jim groans, in a joking way, and rubs his aching, not in a joking way, thigh.I tuck my phone away and rub my equally sore hip. Dang, it Jim. Why’d you have to go and remind me I’m dying. “I know right? It feels like we’ve been walking for years." I sigh and I brush my hair back behind my ear. "But I guess that makes sense for me. Don't you have trollish super endurance?"He breathes a laugh. “Yeah I don’t know, I’m still feeling a little… icky.”“Icky? What, did you catch the cooties?” I mock.“Oh shush! ” He laughs and shoves me away with a little more force than I think he intended. I stumble a bit but keep my footing. “I haven’t thrown up anymore so Blinky was probably right about my diet.”“For reals though, if you’re still feeling sick…” I stare awkwardly at him for a minute unsure of how to bring up my concern.“Those scratches you got last night.” Jim’s eyes widen and his ears perk up. “Are they any better? Maybe they're getting infected or something?”“Oh, yeah. Those. Uh…” He rubs the back of his neck nervously. “They're really not that bad.” I take a step closer and he takes several back.“If you'd just let me look-” He smacks my hand away and growls. He quickly realizes what he’s done I swear it looks like he’s seen a ghost.“You did not just growl at me!” He whimpers and lowers himself to all fours. We’ve officially stopped moving and the other trolls are giving us weird looks as they pass.“I’m really, really-” While he searches for what better be an apology, I lunge at him. He’s too quick for me and leaps into the tree above. The rest of the migration grinds to a halt. Some of the nosier trolls form a circle around us. “I’m sorry! Can we please just drop it?! You’re causing a scene!”“Oh, I’m causing a scene?!”“Yes! You are! Please just leave me alone!”“Not a chance!” I try to follow him up the tree but fall back with nothing more than splinters to show for it. “Oh for the love of-get your big blue butt down here and take off your shirt!”“Hmm, not even gonna buy me a drink first! Classy!” He smirks, realizing there’s no way I can get up there to him, and dangles his feet over the side of the branch.“That’s it!” I reach into my backpack to search for my staff. But before I can blast my stupid half-troll boyfriend back to earth, Blinky bursts through the crowd.“What in Deya’s name is going on here?!” He scolds. Nomura emerges from behind him, talons resting on her hips as she spots the staff in my hands. I quickly hide it behind my back.Blinky rubs the bridge of his nose and sighs. “Would you mind getting him down?” He looks over at Nomura and gestures to the younger troll perched on the branch above us. She rolls her eyes but does as asked. She leaps over the branch and roundhouse kicks Jim to the ground.He yelps and hits the dirt with the thud. “That felt unnecessary.” He wheezes. I rush over to help him sit up. Clutching his abdomen, his ears droop and a deep groan escapes his throat.“That is not what I had in mind!” Blinky points his staff at Nomura accusingly.“Be grateful I didn’t kick you, Mr. holier-than-thou.” She snarls.They continue to bicker as I check on Jim. “Please, I’m just trying to help.” I trace my fingers across his cheekbones and cup his jaw in my hand, pushing it up so he can look me in the eye. “Please.” His bright blue irises have faded to a dull gray. And it looks like his skin is following the same path. Even his hair looks less shiny. He doesn’t say anything in response but stops fighting me. He moves his hand to let me see the injuries I was so desperate to examine.“Why must you always be so combative?” Blinky growls.“Uh, guys?” I interject.“Why must you always be so useless?!” Nomura roars.“Guys!” I scream. Blinky stumbles back at my outroar. Nomura draws one of her swords on instinct. But they both fall dumbstruck at the sight of the black tar leaking from Jim’s wounds. “Get Merlin. Now.”
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
I peek through the blinds at the rising sun. The air smells like an odd mix of freshly plowed dirt and musty old caverns. The latter I’m betting is due to the 100 or so trolls hiding in the barn. It’s a bit cramped but it’s all we could find on such short notice. Honestly, I feel worse for the family that’s gonna get back from their trip to Hawaii to find massive bite marks in their farm equipment.The bathroom door creaks open and steam fills the hallway. “Feeling better?”“Well, I feel cleaner.” Jim wraps a towel around his mane and horns. “Though I wish they’d had more clothing options.” He gestures to the fluffy pink robe and ratty PJ pants that I’d laid out for him.“Oh, it’s not that bad.”“Really?” He turns around to reveal the word “Princess” written in rhinestones on the back. “This is an insult. I’m a queen thank you very much.”“Alright your majesty.” I chuckle. “Hold still so I can send this to Toby.” I pull out my phone to take a pic but he snatches it from my hands.“ No way! He’ll never let me live this down!” He holds it high out of my reach.“Give it-” I jump on him and cling to his horns for support. “back!”“Hey! Get off!” He laughs. He stumbles back and falls on the couch. The wooden frame shatters, leaving a huge dip between the cushions. I snatch my phone and hop up. Leaving Jim stuck in the couch.“You think they’ll notice?” He questions as he nervously tucks his hair behind his pointed ears.“Uhh…” Before I can answer, hooves hit the staircase behind us and Nomura rounds the corner. She looks between us and the couch.“What were you doing down here?” A size 4-X jean jacket is draped over her scrawny frame. She pulls a dead farm mouse from the from one of the pockets and tosses it in her mouth like popcorn. I can see Jim drooling in my peripheral vision. I offer my hand to help him up.“Oh, you know.” He rolls his eyes at her. “Destroying people living rooms. It’s become somewhat of a hobby for me. Are you alright?” He looks over at me struggling to pull him free of his IKEA-made prison. I keep forgetting he doesn’t weight 90 pounds anymore. I step aside and Nomura has no problem pulling him to his feet.“You welcome.” Nomura says before chomping away on another mouse and tossing one to Jim. Who catches it with his mouth like a dog with table scraps. I can hear the tiny creature's bones grinding against his carnassials. I look away. If I gag I’ll only hurt his feelings. He senses my disgust anyway and his cheeks take on a violet tint.I take a couple steps towards the basement door. “I was just gonna go check on Merlin’s progress. I’ll let you guys enjoy your...breakfast in peace.”Nomura gulps down three more mice like a snake. Yeah, there’s no fighting the gag on that one. “I’m coming with you.” She looks expectantly at Jim. “What of you? We weren’t the ones bleeding black.”He fakes a grin. “I’ll just stay here. I’m not a science...or magic I guess kinda guy.” Says the actual troll with a glowing amulet hanging around his neck. “You can catch me up later. I’m gonna go toss my own clothes in the dryer so I can get out of this dumb thing.”“You sure?” I lay a hand on his shoulder.“That I want out of this thing? Absolutely.” I raise my eyebrow. “Yes, I’m sure. You guys are totally overreacting. Nomura has purple blood and nobody thinks anything of it.” Her’s is supposed to be purple honey.“Alrighty then.” I grab his jaw and face him towards me. I stand on my tip toes to kiss him on the nose. “Oh, and don’t you pop any stitches trying to fix that thing.” I gesture to the couch.“Alright, mom.” That one earns him a smack upside the head.
Glass hits the floor as Nomura and I dash down into the cellar. “Whoa whoa whoa! What’s going on down here?” We find Merlin standing over a spilled vial of black liquid. I immediately know what it is. Nomura crouches on all fours to examine it.“Get away, impure!” Merlin smacks her into the wall with his staff. “We don’t need it spreading!” The changeling groans and rubs her head where it hit the wall. A hiss forces its way through her teeth.“Don’t want what spreading?” I step between the two and lower Merlin’s staff. The last thing we need is another injured troll slowing us down.“Corpus sanguinis.” He leans against the table behind him and sighs.“Corpus what now?”Nomura steps up in front of me, sizing up the wizard, like she does everyone else. “He refers to the Changeling Plague. Roughly translated, it means Corpse Blood.” She pushes me away from the contaminated blood toward the staircase.“Where in the world did you get a plague?!” I shout. Footsteps rush towards the cellar door. Merlin sends the door slamming shut with a gust of wind. Jim yelps on the other side. “Hey! Why’d you-”“Your knight in shining armor up there.” He groans. “Unfortunately.”“What’s going on down there?!” Jim calls from the other side of the door. I can feel the blood drain from my face.“Claire.” Nomura lifts my chin to look at her. “Do you remember that spell I taught you?” I nod. I see Merlin about to say something but is interrupted by banging at the door.“Guys! Is everyone okay down there!?” He sounds desperate now. Who knows what he thinks is going on down here. Last time he was left with Merlin...His voice begins to fade into silence as Nomura runs her claws through my hair. Unnervingly motherly. Nice Nomura is almost creepier than mean Nomura. “Did you use it on the trollhunter?” I hesitate for a moment but nod. She sighs and looks back at Merlin. “I...I showed her the death cure.”Merlin’s eyebrows furrow and he raised the staff to Nomura again. “Why am I not surprised?” The emerald on the end begins to glow.“Did I do this?” She doesn't answer but I don’t need her to. “H-how could it...it’s a cure!” I stammer, breaking away from Nomura’s grip.“I didn’t think she’d use it on him!” The changeling snarled at Merlin.Pounding against the door echoes even louder through the cellar. Nomura once again runs strokes my hair and pulls me closer. “That spell wasn’t made for trolls. It was made for changelings while in their human form. Dark magic is naturally difficult to control. Used incorrectly it’s entirely unpredictable.”I see her lips continue to move but all I hear is white noise and my own voice pounding in my head. No no no no. This isn’t happening. I didn’t do this. I couldn’t have done this. But I did. I did. It’s my fault. It’s my fault. My fault. My fault. The world around me fades to black and the last thing I hear is shattering wood.
A rough stone hand brushes the hair from my forehead. I hear voices before I can see who they’re coming from. I can feel that my eyes are open but everything is just so
bright.“It’s okay. Take it slow.” Jim holds my hand and helps me sit up. I yelp as I fall into the very much still broken couch frame. He quickly scoops me up onto his lap. I would have preferred the recliner but I know he’s just being protective. Eventually, his features start to sharpen, as does the rest of the room. He’s back in his regular pants but his flannel is wrapped around his waist, right below his bandages.“What happened?” I massage my temple and wince. I turn to look out the window and see only pitch black. Man, how long was I out?“I think you had a panic attack? You hit your head when you fainted and wouldn’t wake up.” He sighs. “You had me worried out of my mind.”
“You’re dying and she’s what you were worried about?” Nomura snarks.
The memories hit me like a train. Don’t faint again. Don’t faint again. “ ¡Dios mío! Jim, you know?” He nods hesitantly. “Oh god, oh god.” I bury my face in my hands.
Don’t faint again.“It’s okay.” He moves my hands and presses his forehead to mine. “You were just trying to help.”I brush his bangs away to see his eyes. Puffy and bloodshot. I settle my hand on his still damp cheek. He leans into my touch and cups his hand around mine. “I’m fine, Claire. Really. Merlin said wizards can’t get it which I guess keeps you safe. Though I will need to stay away from the trolls until we get the cure.”He’s still worried about everyone but himself. I swear, this boy’s gonna give me cavities. Wait. “Cure? Isn’t that what made you sick in the first place?”Merlin steps forward. “The cure
you
used. It was originally meant to eradicate the plague and when used properly, is known to work on most ailments. Your
improper
use, however,
gave the spell the opposite effect of its original purpose.”“I still don’t understand how that’s helpful to curing Jim. If it made him sick once, wouldn’t it make things worse now?”“Once again, the one you used, is what made him sick. The one created by the Nimue Knights. But they were not the only faction hit.”I open mouth to ask another question but Nomura interrupts me. “The Knights were a changeling faction hit by the plague. Only two survived and they formed the Janus Order.”“Okay...so wouldn’t the Janus Order have the
other
cure then?”“There was no need for the cure by the time the Order was former so it was all but forgotten. Though if I remember correctly there is a Moririd temple still standing. They were the other cured faction. The temple was abandoned in its present condition around the time the cure was created. But my information isn’t fresh and we’ve know way of knowing if the cure doesn’t adhere to the same human restrictions.”I jump to my feet. “We have to at least
try
, Nomura. What other choice do we have?” I rest my palm on Jim’s shoulder.“The temple is in a jungle outside of Rio.”“...Like De Janeiro?” She nods. Of course, it is. “That does make things a bit more difficult.”“Not as difficult as you might think.” Nomura taps her chin.
“Stop, stop, please I think I’m going to be sick.”“Oh,
you’re
going to be sick.” Jim groans clutching his stomach. “God, I miss my Vespa.” Nomura glances back at us in aggravation and slams her hoof on the break. The pickup truck lurches to a stop and Jim leans out the door to throw up.“Did you get it out of your system?” The changeling deadpans.“No, not really.”“Good, now shut your mouth before I shut it for you.” She slams her foot on the gas but we’re still hovering on 32 miles per hour.“How are you so certain this gyre is still functioning?” Merlin scowls from the passenger seat. Jim chuckles, amused by the blue polo shirt and khakis the legendary wizard has been reduced to. It's already going to be hard enough sneaking a 7-foot troll through town, we don’t need renaissance man drawing more attention. So Jim’s cute little belly laugh is just a bonus of the situation.“Because it’s not powered by a heartstone like the others.” Nomura pulls the glamour mask from her satchel and switches into her human form. “As long as the base hasn’t lost its electrical power, we shouldn’t have a problem.”“Uh, well. We might have a problem then.” The truck again slows to a stop, much gentler this time. Jim and I step out the car and Nomura leans her head and arm out the window.“Am I missing something?” Merlin tries to fight past Nomura for a view.“What in the
world
did that?” Jim gasps as we all gape up at the mangled power plant before us.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Wires litter the ground. Jim reaches for one and I smack his hand away “Don’t do that! It could be-” Electrical crackling assaults the air, followed by a yelp. “Live...Seriously?” I rest my hand on my hip.Merlin spits out the wire and smoothes down his beard. “Rather...what’s the word?” His eye twitches. “ Refreshing isn’t it?” I raise an eyebrow. I guess that’s one word for it. “That’ll wake you right up!” He rolls his shoulders and continues examining the wires like he didn’t just do the dumbest thing any person has ever done.Jim leans into my ear. “How did that not kill him?”“Don’t think too much into it, Jimmy. Nothing he says or does makes sense. Like, ever.” I kick some loose branches from my path and I run my fingers along the switchboard. Most of the lines appear to still be switched on. Thankfully the damage isn’t near as bad as it looks.“Wait, Jimmy?” Jim’s ears perk up and he glances down at me.“Yeah. What, would you prefer ‘Gunmar’s Bane ’ or ‘Bular Slayer’?” I pronounce his trollish monikers in a much deeper voice. Which is only counteracted by my admittedly very girlish laugh.He chuckles. “It’s just, I haven’t been called that since I was like 5. My dad was Jim so I always Jimmy. Or Jr. I also got the occasional champ, sport, tiger. All the usuals.” His voice trails off.I turn my attention back to the switches. He’s mentioned his dad, like, twice in all the time I’ve known him. Counting this mention. Thankfully, Nomura cuts any tension with one of her trademark rude comments.“If you two are done being awkward, we should be going.” Merlin and Nomura head back for the truck.“Wait, what?” Jim steps in front of me. “We can’t leave yet? This is clearly a troll thing. We’ve gotta fix it!”“This isn’t what we’re here for. Besides it was more likely a storm. If a troll did this, there’d be nothing left. Especially not still working power lines.’“A storm, huh?” He holds gestures to the long claw marks along the side of the switch box. “What do you think a storm is Nomura?”“Listen, I never claimed to be a meteorologist.”“What do meteors have to do with anything?!”Oh for the love of-. “Would you stop bickering? Jim, I don’t know if this is a troll thing or not but we just don’t have time for it.”“We’ll make time, Claire. A trollhunter answers every call and this seems like a call to me. Look at this mess. Whatever creature did this is more than a threat to that town.”“I know but-” He buries his face his hands and whispers something muffled. “Hey, come on.” I reach for his cheek but he avoids my touch.“I can’t do anything anymore. Not school, not sunlight, for pete's sake Claire I eat raw hamburger for breakfast because blueberry waffles make me sick.”“I don’t-”“Did I tell you about the whole convenience store incident. Scared the living daylights out of the poor cashier” Okay we’re definitely coming back to that later.“I don’t get to be a person anymore Claire. It sucks. But saving people from monsters. Like this. It’s all I’m good for. If I can’t do that why are we even trying to find this stupid cure, to begin with.”My breath catches in my throat. I just stand there frozen looking at that heartbroken look on his dumb face. Those big blue eyes. That always destroy me. I finally exhale pull him to a hug. I squeeze my arms around him as tightly as I do my eyes shut. “I’m sorry, Jim.” His face nuzzles into the crook of my neck and his arms weakly hold around my waist. I step back and wipe my nose. I pinch his chin with other hand and pull him down to look me in the eyes.“You’ll be okay. We’ll find whatever did this and be back on the road in no time. I promise.”As my hand wanders to his cheek, he stands up higher. “I love you.” He leans his forehead against mine. I freeze again for a moment before regaining my wits.I peck him on the lips and pull away. “I love you too.”“Well, as touching as this all is,” Merlin knocks on the car to get our attention. “Claire’s initial observation wasn’t wrong. We haven’t the time. Young James here has a far more valuable fate in the grand scheme of things. Far more valuable than any of the mortals in that town. Curing him needs to be top priority.”Jim’s lips curl into a snarl. I pat him on the chest and he backs down. “Listen, I want to save Jim too. But those people’s lives have value and it’s wrong for us to abandon them if they’re in danger. You chose Jim to be your ‘honorable champion.’ And it’s too late to change your mind now.Merlin scoffs. “I will not be told what to do by a-”“If you say, woman, I’m slitting your throat.” Nomura flashes a deadly serious glare.“I was going to say, child.”“So you do know she’s a child? Then why are you always staring at her-”“ Let’s take a vote!” I interrupt.” I vote we stay and help. All in favor, say aye.” I raise my hand.Jim raises his four-fingered hand.“Aye!”Nomura looks down the road. “Surprisingly enough, I think the wizard’s right. We should really be going.” She looks back at Jim, giving her I swear the biggest puppy dogs I’ve ever seen from someone. She lets out a deep sigh. “Aye. I suppose.”I smirk at the wizard.“Well, it looks like we have our decision.”“Democracy.” Merlin rolls his eyes as we pile back into the truck.” Whatever happened to good old monarchy decided by a sword from a stone?”The town isn’t at all what I expected. It’s not abandoned by any means. There are street lamps illuminating the streets. The occasional car. There are a couple of small shops, restaurants, and a city hall. I say ‘city’ generously because this place is practically a village as far as land mass. At least compared to Arcadia. “Hey,” I take Jim’s gloved hand. “Are you doing okay?”Jim slumps forward a little more and pulls the strings on his hoodie. “Yeah, I’m good.” I look down at my phone. 5 in the morning. So I guess we just don’t sleep anymore.A girl slightly older than us bikes by on the road. She slows down a little to get a better look at Jim. I notice his horns have pierced through his hoodie. Oh boy.
“Move along buttsnack! And stop staring at my boyfriend!” I pull Jim closer to make it seem like I’m just being jealous. She shakes her head and continues on her way.“Thanks.”“Tryin’ to steal my man, who does she think she is?” I chuckle and I lean my head on his arm as we walk.“We haven’t got all day.” Nomura holds open the door on some building and nods for us to go in. I look up. Lone Pine Cafe. The sign says closed. How’d she even open the door? “Or, I could just throw you out in the street and let the sun have you.” Jim sighs and grips my hand a little tighter as he follows her in.Nomura removes her glamour mask and flips the sign to say closed.
“Zelda is that you?” I swear, I almost go flying when I see the woman behind the counter. She has to be at least 90. Her silver hair is pulled into a bun. She adjusts her inch thick glasses and approaches the changeling. “It’s been so long!” Nomura willingly leans down to hug the woman. Did we just step into an alternate dimension or something? “Oh! And you’ve brought friends!”The woman snatches my hand and examines my palm.
“Ah, a shadowcaster? Very powerful. I didn’t know there were any more of you?“Uh…”I yank my hand away. “Thanks?... Who is this? ” I mouth that last part to Nomura.She steps forward and places a hand on the woman's shoulder. “This is my, um, my mother. Sort of.”“That’s quite the nasty cough you have sweetie. I’ve got something that’ll clear that right up.”“Kaida, that’s really not necessary and she’s gone. Alright.” He shrugs and turns back to Nomura. “You know, I thought revealing your identity was like a huge changeling no-no.”“She figured it out on her own.” She takes the last sip of her cat-blood, cinnamon tea. “When her daughter was selected to be my familiar, the order had no idea her family were practicing witches. For so many, it’s simply a lost art. An ability that dies as they don’t use it. Her family never lost that art. They passed down many trollish books through the years so Mother quickly knew how to spot a changeling. But to prove it, she melted down a gaggletack and made it a spoon for my tea set. But she wasn’t scared or angry. By blood or not, I was her child. She raised me...She loved me.”“Did you get in trouble?” Jim pours more tea into Nomura’s cup. “You know. With the Janus Order for being found out.”
“No. They don’t know I was ever found out the begin with. We moved to the United States after Hiroshima. That’s when Mother and I bought this cafe together. The order took control of the basement. At the time they still didn’t have a base in the area. They ran operations down there for years, thinking Mother was oblivious. Eventually, a base was built in Arcadia, and I was transferred. They left the gyre because it was scrap at the time. She’s is the one who rebuilt it.”“Open wide!” Kaida grabs Jim by the horn and holds a cup of blue liquid to his lips. He shakes his head and she kicks him in the shin. She throws the liquid down his throat as he yelps.“Oh.” He licks his lips. “Okay, that’s not quite as bad as I thought.”“Unicorn blood is known for its incredible healing abilities.”“Unicorn blood!?” Jim gags. “What kinda weird juju is this place? Oh my god .”Nomura leans into Jim’s ear so Kaida doesn’t hear. “We’re still going to Rio. Unicorn Blood for this is like using tea tree oil to cure cancer.”“Rio?” I guess she heard anyway. “Is that why you came here? For the gyre?” We all avoid looking at her. Except for Merlin who is busy nib nosing in all the potion ingredients behind the counter.“I wouldn’t suppose you have any gerbil liver?” Not even going to dignify that with a response.I look back at Nomura. Her ears are drooped, guilt etched across her face. Not an emotion I’m used to seeing on her. “Actually,” Jim chimes in. “We were also here to investigate some damage done to the power plant outside of town.”“Oh yes. Yes. That’s just the devil.”Tea flies out my nose and I cough into my napkin. “The what now?” I can handle trolls. I can handle witches. But my inner Catholic isn’t having this demon nonsense.“The Lone Pine Mountain Devil. He’s not a real devil. He only got that name because he eats children and small pets.”Jim goes grey again “I’m gonna be sick.” He reaches for a flowering pot by the window. Those poor daffodils.“Oh, not to worry dear. He swallows them whole so there’s no mess.”Cue the vomit. “Ugh, the mess-” He gags. “Isn’t what bothers me.”“James here is the trollhunter,” Nomura explains. “His sworn duty is to protect mankind. Including children being eaten alive by monsters.” And more vomit.“Ah, an empath I see. Wait, why are you friends with the trollhunter?” She gasps “Did you finally leave the Janus Order?”“It’s...a long story.”“I’m listening.”Halfway down the street I can still here Kaida’s excited rambling to her daughter. Thirty years. Three decades of not talking to your own mother. If I don’t text my mom every three seconds , she thinks I’m dead and has a mental breakdown.“How in the world are we supposed to kill this thing without Nomura?” Jim brushes his bangs behind his pointed ears. He scoots further into the shadows as the sun peeks over the mountains.“Especially with that whole thing.”“We’ll stick to the shade. It’ll be fine.” I’m only half paying attention as I scroll through my contacts and hover over
‘Ophelia’. I click the edit contact button and delete her name, replacing it with ‘Mom’. She may be a pain in the butt sometimes but I don’t want to end up like Nomura and Kaida.“Do you think she’s going to tell Kaida about the familiars?” We turn into a dark alley. I climb on Jim's shoulders and he leaps over the back fence into the woods. “With her daughter out of the darklands…”“Maybe...but didn’t Barbara already find a family for her?”“Yup. So that’s another fun little mess to be anxious about.” He grips his horn and sighs.“Jim, are you okay?”
“I’m fine.” He responds a little too quick. I open my mouth to speak again but he speed walks ahead of me. I hear some more hurling from behind a tree. Yeah. Fine. He steps back on to the path and wipes his mouth. “You think that clearing will work?” He points to a patch of grass a few yards down.
“Hopefully.” I take his hand and force him to walk beside me.Once in the clearing, I dump out the bag Kaida packed us. We dip our paintbrushes in the two potions and draw the symbol onto the ground. I motion for Jim to step back and I
take my place in the center of the rune. I hold my staff a couple of inches out from my chest as it glows the same bright orange as the symbol in the grass. Now, we wait.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
The sun is now fully up, marking the 6th day since leaving the safety of Arcadia for our “magical quest”, as Jim has taken to calling it. My skin sears under the hot California sun. Sweat pours down my face and glues my hair to the back of my neck. The rune around me begins to fade as I let out a deep breath
I can hear Jim’s armor clanking from behind the tree line, where he has found refuge in the shade. He whistles a familiar tune as he sharpens daylight against a small rock. I
know
that song.
Where
do I know that...wait a minute. I begin to whistle along, involuntarily loosening my grip on the staff.
“Toda mi esperanza, eres tú, eres tú.” The lyrics hit me like a ton of bricks. That boy can
sing
, holy crap! I glance back at him, he’s still sharpening the sword as he sings. He doesn’t even seem to notice me listening in.“ Como fuerte brisa, eres tú, eres-”
“Is that another troll thing?” I laugh, in reference to his newfound musical abilities.
Jim chokes on the last word and his cheeks burn a deep violet.
“I don’t, I uh...is what a troll thing?” From the look on his face, he hadn’t realized he was singing out loud. He’s sung to me before. On the cliffside after Spring Fling. But it wasn’t anything like that. “Uh….Is it supposed to be doing that?” I fall from my train of thought back to reality.
The orange rune around me has shifted into a dark magenta color. A loud buzzing circles around me and I’m hit with a sharp headache. The rune shifts into the shape of a gaping mouth, full of pointed fangs and drool dripping from its jowls. “Oh my god!” I practically leap into Jim’s arms, knocking him to the ground.
“I take it the purple is bad?” He rubs his horned brow, probably sore from being smacked into a tree.
The purple? Who cares about the color ?! It’s a freaking mouth! I’m about to tell him to check is priorities when I notice a small ball of light reflecting in his eyes. I look around to find the source but am met only with swaying trees. Something is moving through them. I look back at Jim as he grunts in pain and rubs his ear. His eyes glow momentarily and widen in terror. What’s got him so- he grabs my face and forces my head around to look in the same direction.
On the other side of the clearing, a gigantic monster is looking us up and down. Its eyes are slit thinner than paper. Those jagged teeth look an awful lot like the rune that attacked me. Its wings open wide to a good 30 to 40 feet. Its long tail is lined with protruding spikes.
“Is that a-”
“Dragon.” Jim confirms my theory. “I think Kaida might have undersold it a little.” He hops to his feet and yanks me up to mine. He draws daylight from its sheath and lets out a blood-curdling roar that did not fit the boy who had just been singing a Spanish love ballad 30 seconds ago. The dragon arches its back and mirrors with a screech to shatter glass. He steps forward but is stopped by the wall of sunlight.
I arch down, ready to make a break for the staff. He holds daylight in front of me, never breaking eye contact with the dragon. “
“Get behind me. Now.” I furrow my brows and punch him in the arm as hard I can.
“No way! We’re in this together.” I leap over the sword and grab my staff off the ground. I hear him growl in frustration but I have bigger monsters to deal with. I duck down to avoid the spines flying at me from the creature's tail. I’m a little to slow and one grazes the side of my head. Lopping off a good chunk of my hair.
I pull myself to my feet and ignore Jim screaming for me to get back. I wince at his painful cries every time he tries to force himself past the sun’s barrier to help me. “It’s just you and me big guy.” I turn to the dragon. I twirl the staff, purple light painting a new rune in the air. I recognize my own hand movements as the ones Morgana used to summon her daggers. Instead of daggers though, I summon glaves similar to Jims. I picked up more of her tricks than I thought! That excited thought quickly turns grim but I don’t have time to explore it before the dragon charges. I roll out of its way and toss one of the blades at its leg.
The beast stumbles into the tree line, smacking into Jim and hitting its head on a boulder. “Jim!” I rush over to see if he’s okay. Two little lights ascend into the sky and the dragon is tossed back into the clearing. Jim pulls himself up and cocks his head at the reptile. All fear or protective intensity gone from his expression. The dragon moves, I assume to bite Jim, and I dart forward with blades in hand.
The half-troll stops me dead in my tracks, grabbing one blade with his hand and smacking me in the back of the head. The sounds of the forest return. Sounds I didn’t even realize were gone. “Hey! What was that...for.” My tone drops as I get a better look at our attacker. The dragon is much smaller than we previously thought. Its fangs, while still sharp, are less intimidating paired with big doe eyes and a terrified whimper. Jim leans down to get a better look, grabbing the wound he came here with. Thankfully it didn’t reopen with the crash.
He strokes the dragon's muzzle and looks up at me. “Pixies.” It all becomes so clear now. Those lights. The rune. The headache. “They must’ve been using the dragon to hunt for them. Or at least scare the citizens for them.”
I crouch down next to him and put my hand on his shoulder. “How long do you think they were controlling him.”
“Who knows. These guys usually target little kids. We’re probably the only victims to ever fight back.” The kids. All those kids are still gone. Even if their killer hadn’t done so of his own free will. My blades fade into the air as does the daylight armor a moment later. The dragon starts to regain its senses and stands up. “I can’t...We can’t kill him, Claire. It’s not his fault he was used as a weapon.” He wipes his nose as it begins to run.
“I know, Love.” I get his tears for him.” We ended this. Just like we intended to. We can go now.”
Jim nods and gives the dragon one more pat on the nose. “Go home, buddy. You’re free now.” The dragon chirps and launches into the air. We watch from the shadows as he disappears into the clouds. “Come on. The others are probably worried sick about us.” He rolls his eyes. “Expect Merlin. He’s probably gonna call us to pick him up breakfast on the way back.” He forces a chuckle and I force a smile in return. He starts off back up the trail. I move to follow and hear a sharp crunch under my feet.
A small blue scale glimmers in the grass. I pick it up and toss it between my hands before stuffing it in my pocket. “Wait up!”
“It is not that bad,” Nomura remarks, pinning my intact hair back with a barret. “You’re lucky the spine didn’t pierce your skull.” I try to look up into the mirror to see what atrocity she’s committing to my poor hair.
“Yeah well…” I don’t know where I intended to go with that. Electric buzzing winds through the walls. The gyre should be charged any minute now. “Jim wasn’t quite so lucky. The dang thing nearly crushed him.”
“James is fine. He’s handled far worse. Besides,” Snip. I wince as a lock of brown hair falls to the ground. “I was discussing your safety. Not his.” Her claws brush across my ear and I instinctively tense up. It would be so easy for her to kill me if she wanted. I don’t even know why I’m convinced she won’t.
“He’s not fine. If he was fine, we wouldn’t be here, to begin with.” I wait for a response. But all I get is a soft ‘hmm’ and another lock snipped away. “Nomura?”
“Done.” She grabs my face and forces my head up to look in the mirror. “What do you think?” To my surprise, I don’t look awful. I swear I can see a small smirk on her lips as I run my fingers through my hair. It’s buzzed down where the spine hit. The rest of my hair is swooped over to the opposite side, revealing streaks of white I didn’t even know I had. Without the hair clips pinning it down, it’s returned to its natural curl.
“It’s...I don’t...my moms gonna kill me.” I laugh dryly. I cannot stop playing it, it’s so
different.
I hear a loud crunch and glance back. “Are you eating my hair clips?”
Nomura bites down on another clip. “You don’t need them anymore.” I
grab one from her clawed hand and sticking it in her long braid, which I assume to be Kaida’s doing.
“They’re not for eating.” I scold jokingly.
“Chop, chop, ladies. We haven't all day.” Merlin peeks into the bathroom and claps his hands. Nomura growls and throws the scissors at him. They clang against his armor and fall to the ground. “I’ll see you at the gyre shortly.”
“He’s lucky I didn’t aim for his fat head.” The changeling grumbles. I roll my eyes and smirk. I grab her forearm and drag her down the stairs into the basement where the gyre is stored. I don’t notice the complete shock on Nomura’s face until Jim mentions it.
“You alright, Nomura?” He leans out of the gyre. She’s still rubbing her forearm where I grabbed her.
“I’m fine. Now get your butt back in the seat before I glue you do it.” Jim obliges without argument. We climb the steps to find Merlin seated next to Jim. “Move.”
“Beg your pardon?”
“Did I stutter?” She snarls, grabbing his beard and yanking his face close to hers.
“Who do you think-” She tosses the wizard onto the other side of the gyre and gestures for me to sit down next to Jim. She then seats herself on the end, sandwiching me between herself and Jim. She maintains a death glare on Merlin. “Impure.” He spits.
“Predator.” She retorts.
“Alright you two, knock it off,” Jim interjects and peeks over to see Kaida at the lever. “Thanks for everything K! Can I call you K?!”
“Sure thing, sweetie!”
He smiles and leans back in his seat. “I like Kaida. She’s nice.” He turns to me, his ears twitching as the old witch counts down from 10. “I like your hair by the way.” He brushes a loose curl from my face. “It suits you.”
“Thanks.” I cup his cheek in my hand. “And that smile suits you.”
We all slam our eyes shut as Kaida shouts “One!”.