Monsters & Magic

As they walked the streets of Phaedra, Cora stared hard at the ground trying to shake the discomfort she felt.

So many times in her life she had wished for something like what she had just seen; for a family with enough heart to care about the rats living on the streets. It wasn’t fair. The thoughts stewed in her mind, filling her with a mix of emotions that felt too big to contain. She gritted her teeth against them.

When they came to a stop, she looked up, surprised to see the door to the house.

Idris opened it and waited for her to enter before following and closing the door behind him. “Go get changed, then we can rearrange the room and set up your bed.” He set the roll on the ground with a dull thud.

Cora jumped at the chance to be alone and hurried across the house into the sleeping room. On the other side of the closed door, she dropped the bag of clothes on the bed and began rifling through them without really paying attention.

When she heard shuffling on the other side of the door, she grabbed the first pieces of clothing her hands touched; a loose-fitting sleeveless dress with pockets in the sides and light colored pants that ended halfway down her calves.

Carefully, she removed her cloak and laid it on the bed, running her hand over the soft fabric. Then she changed as quickly as she could before tossing the cloak back over her shoulders.

The cloak felt like a different kind of shield, not only keeping the sand and dust and desert heat out, but also hiding her from the watching eyes of everyone they passed.

She jumped at a knock on the door.

“Cora? Are you alright?” Idris asked.

“Yeah,” she answered, pulling the edges of the cloak together so it was tight around her shoulders. Then she let go and grabbed the rest of the clothes, shoving them into the bag. She took a slow breath before opening the door.

“You don’t have to wear that inside,” Idris commented when she exited the room.

“I like it.” She strode with purpose toward the counter in search of food, ignoring the feeling that he was watching her.

“We can set this up when you’re ready.” He picked up the bedroll and carried it into the room.

The closest she had come to a bed before now had been the pile of pilfered towels and sheets she had gathered in a crawlspace above a large store. The little nest had kept her warm through a good part of the winter, until her hiding place was discovered and raided.

Now that she was being given a real bed, all she could think of were the kids left in the city. Winter was coming…

She gritted her teeth against the pain in her chest, shoving food into her mouth to distract herself. It did not take long for her to feel full.

“I don’t need one,” she said, coming to stand in the doorway of the sleeping room.

Idris had the bedroll undone and lying out on the floor near the far wall. He paused to look at her. “What?”

“That.” She pointed to the roll.

His expression turned into a frown. “You need a bed, Cora.”

She crossed her arms. “I don’t.” The argument sounded foolish even in her own ears. Before, she would have given anything for somewhere warm and dry and safe.

He stood, eyes focused on her. “Where do you plan on sleeping?”

She glanced around the main room and her eyes fell on the cushions arranged on one side of the room.

Idris approached, and she took a step away. He followed her gaze and shook his head. “No. You’re not curling up on a cushion when you have a bed.”

She glared at him. “Why not?”

He looked back at her in silence for a long moment before speaking again. “Because—“

“I didn’t ask for it,” she exploded unwilling to hear whatever he had to say. “I never asked for any of this.” She motioned to the clothes she wore, then to the room at large. “I don’t even belong here.”

“Cora…” he started.

“Just forget it!” she interrupted, storming past him and into the room. She slammed the door behind her and stood still, searching the smaller room — for what, she didn’t know.

What does he know of hunger or homelessness? Those things don’t seem to exist here, the cynical voice in the back of her mind noted.

Tears welled in her eyes against her will, and she crossed to the narrow space between the wall and the bed roll, sinking down to the floor to pull her knees to her chest.

I should just go back to the city. The thought echoed loudly in her mind, adding to the tightness constricting her chest. She rocked back against the wall and let her eyes close as the tears fell.

When she woke, the light overhead had shifted, casting half the room in shadow. She sat up and rubbed her dry eyes. She did not remember falling asleep.

Standing with a sigh she glanced around the empty room. The bed roll still laid open on the floor and she stepped carefully over it, heading for the door. Slowly, she eased it open and slipped out into the main room.

Idris sat at the table, leaning over a book, a pen in hand and a piece of dried fruit in his mouth. He pulled it out to speak without looking at her. “Are you feeling better?”

She swallowed hard, her throat dry. “Yeah.” The word came out scratchy and quiet.

“Do you want to talk about it?” he asked.

She shook her head. “No.”

After a moment he turned to face her. “Cora,” he started, closing the book. “I made a promise to protect, honor, and care for you, and I intend to keep that promise, but you have to let me do so.”

She crossed her arms and looked at the table, staring at the lines on the wooden surface rather than at him. “Why?”

“Why what?” he asked.

She narrowed her eyes. “Why me?”

“Why not?” he responded after a moment of silence.

She shook her head. “That’s not an answer.”

“Because you needed someone,” he said.

“So? Lots of people need someone,” she argued.

“That may be, but it is you we are talking about.”

She lifted her glare to him. “I could have gone back.” I should go back.

“You could have,” he agreed. “But you chose to stay.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” she demanded, looking around the room.

“Things happen for a reason, Cora.” He caught her gaze and held it with dark eyes. “You are here for a reason.”

She shifted her weight from one foot to the other. “I don’t know what reason you think that is, but you’re wrong. Things don’t happen for any reason other than bad luck. It could have been anyone.”

“Maybe where you’re from, but not here.” He looked up to the window in the ceiling, then stood. “I need to do rounds. Do you want to come along or stay here?”

She stepped back and crossed her arms again, keeping her eyes on him.

“Alright. I’ll be back soon.” He headed for the door with a nod.

She watched as he grabbed his cloak from a hook on the wall and threw it around his shoulders, then he disappeared, leaving her alone with her thoughts.

Her stomach growled in the silence of the empty room and she headed for the counter where the jars of food sat.

“He’s wrong…” she muttered, tossing her cloak back over one shoulder to get it out of the way. When she did, the metal band on her arm caught her eye.

It seemed to shine even the dimming light of the room, reminding her of the promise she had made in return. She scoffed and reached into the nearest jar. “It was all just words. It didn’t mean anything.” As if in response to her words, a warm glow surrounded the piece of metal.

She took a step back, eyes fixed on the strange light. Instead of the fear she knew she should be feeling, a sense of calm surrounded her. “What is this?” The answer to her whispered question came into her mind before she had even finished asking. Magic.

As quickly as it had come, the light faded away, leaving behind the lingering sense of calm.

Cora’s legs carried her to the table where she sank into a chair. She tore a bite off the dried meat she held without thinking.

The book Idris had been writing in caught her eye and she reached over to slide it across the table. Its cover felt like old leather, worn and soft. She opened it and began to flip through the pages, unable to read the words that were written there. A few pages in, she stopped.

A map was drawn across both pages. The area was shaped like a large uneven crescent moon and filled with a maze of rectangles and squares.

“Is this the marketplace?” she wondered out loud.

The rounded edge, drawn along the bottom of the pages, looked like it might be the entrance gate. She ran her finger along the lines that crisscrossed the map, trying to picture where they had gone. At the top of the pages, the line that curved in was filled with ridges and little oval shapes. On the map she had seen at Mattias’s house, that edge looked like water, with boats traveling between the mainland and what appeared to be small islands.

She turned the page, curious about what else she might find. The next two pages were filled with writing, and so were the ones after that. Turning the page again, she found another map. This one she recognized as the city of Phaedra. Several of the houses had little stars drawn on them.

“Do you know where that is?”

Cora jumped in her seat and slammed the book shut, heart pounding. “Wha—” She looked up to see Idris standing by the table, watching her. She hadn’t heard him return. “You’re back.”

“Yes,” he answered, glancing at the book on the table. “It’s alright. You can look through it.”

Cora slid her hands under her cloak. If this was a test, she was not going to take part.

He reached out and opened the book to the page she had been lost in. “You’ve seen this before.”

She nodded and answered in spite of herself. “It’s the city.”

“Yes.” He pointed to one of the starred houses, close to the outside edge. “We are here.” Then he pointed to another starred house nearer to the center. “That is Mattias and Seth’s house.”

“Oh,” Cora responded, leaning forward without thinking. Three more starred buildings were scattered throughout the map. “What about the others?”

“This is Gabe and Marian’s home,” he said, pointing to one near the opposite end of the map. “This is Maya and Rio’s home base.” He indicated one at the very top edge of the city, barely in line with those around it.

“Their what?” she asked, keeping her eyes on the map.

“Their home base,” he repeated. “They are always traveling. That is where they come to rest or take a break, but they never stay long enough to call it home.”

“Oh…” Why would anyone want to always be traveling?

“This last one belongs to Felicity and Tempest,” he said, indicating the last star. It covered a house near the center of the map.

Cora nodded, stifling a yawn. Seth had mentioned a Felicity before.

“Are you ready to set up your bed now?” Idris asked, changing the subject.

Cora sighed and slid the chair back from the table. “I guess.”

“Good.” He closed the book and led the way back into the sleeping room.

Putting the cot together proved easier than she had expected and together she and Idris set it up against the far wall, opposite the first one. She brushed its soft surface with one hand, admiring the stitching that decorated the edges.

“Here,” Idris said, gaining her attention. He handed her a blanket and then turned to close the lid of the chest that now sat at the foot of her cot. “You can have it.”

She took it with care. White patches looked like clouds against the sky blue blanket. She turned it over in her hands with a whispered, “Thanks.”

“You’re welcome. You can go to bed whenever you want. I have a couple of notes to make, then I’ll be in,” he said, moving toward the door.

Cora nodded, keeping her eyes on the blanket. She waited for him to leave before putting it down. Then she grabbed the bag of clothes Isla had given her and dropped it on the bottom of her bed. Running her hands over the soft material of her cloak, she pulled it tight around her shoulders again. The thought of taking it off felt stressful, so she compromised and laid it on the bed over the blanket to make a second layer. Then, with a glance toward the door to make sure she was alone, she crawled under the blanket and cloak and pulled them over her head. The smell that surrounded her was woody and warm.

Beneath the weight of the soft material, she fell asleep before Idris came back.