Monsters & Magic

Cora walked down the street in silence, stealing glances at Idris. Curiosity ate at her as she replayed the interactions in the market. He had said they traded instead of using money, but he had not given either of the stand workers anything. She uttered her question in a whisper, not really looking for the answer. “Who are you?”

“What?” Idris asked, looking over at her.

“What did you trade in the market?” she asked, glad he had not heard her whispered thought.

He hesitated a few paces, facing forward again. “I have helped rebuild most of the stands in the market,” he finally said.

Cora frowned down at the stone street. Overhead the sun beat down from the center of the sky, unobscured by clouds. When they stepped under a shadow, her heart jumped and she looked up expecting to see a monster. Instead, a building stood in front of them, taller than the houses, its roof just over the market wall.

“What is this place?” she asked when Idris knocked on the door.

“This is the home of Gabe and Marian,” he answered.

“This is a home?” It had to be double the height of the rest of the houses in Phaedra, and it was definitely wider. She took a step back, anxiety twisting her stomach.

“Cora?” A look of concern crossed his face when Idris turned to her.

Before she could say anything, the door opened to reveal an older man with gray hair, slumping shoulders, and bags under his eyes. He looked more like a servant than a wealthy homeowner. He straightened and his face lit up when he saw them. “Idris,” he said, ushering them inside.

“Hello Gabe.” Idris waited for Cora before crossing the threshold into the house.

She crossed her arms and adjusted the bag on her shoulder, following him inside. The house looked nothing like either of the other homes she had been in.

The large space on the first floor was broken up by a wooden staircase in the middle, leading up to the next level. The ceiling was made of long wooden boards, and she could hear footsteps shuffling around overhead, accompanied by several voices. On the other side of the stairs, a round table, much larger than the ones she had seen and surrounded by a mess of chairs, sat in front of a counter that stretched along the wall. To the right, the wooden beams that supported the walls and ceiling curved to meet in an arch, creating a doorway to another room, this one with a circular rug decorated in small toys. She spotted cushions at the other end of the dimly lit room.

When she looked back, the man met her eyes in a smile. “Welcome,” he said, moving away from the door. “Come in, come in.” He motioned toward the room with the toys on the floor and hurried over to light a lamp she had not noticed hanging from the ceiling.

“Thank you,” Idris responded, setting the bed roll he had been carrying down beside the door. He followed the man into the next room, navigating the minefield of toys with ease.

Cora followed close behind, unnerved by the strange that she could not connect with anything she had experienced. It matched neither the houses she had seen in Phaedra, nor the mansions in the city. Not even the apartments she had watched above the city's market shops matched this house.

“Gabe? Who’s here?” A woman’s voice sounded above the noise on the second level.

“It’s Idris,” the man called back.

“Oh!” With a clatter, a woman appeared at the top of the steps. She adjusted a toddler on her hip before descending. “Hello,” she greeted with a smile that reached her eyes. “Welcome back. It has been such a long time.”

She stood tall beside the man, gray streaked black hair pulled back into a tight bun. A short sleeved dress revealed part of a scar that ran down to her elbow on her free arm. It stood out to Cora in contrast to the image of the older couple.

“Hello, Marian,” Idris replied.

“Who is this?” she asked, adjusting the child on her hip and turning her attention to Cora. Blue eyes looking her over as if assessing her for something.

“This is Cora,” Idris responded.

The woman nodded to her. “It’s very nice to meet you, Cora. What can we do for you?” She pointed the question to Idris.

“We came to ask if you have room for two more children,” Idris explained. “Mattias is hosting a brother and sister who need a place to live.”

“Oh no.” The woman put a hand to her chest. Her voice held more concern than Cora had expected. “What happened?”

“We are not sure. The brother is recovering from a Shadow-Walker attack.”

“Oh my…” the woman’s reaction was quiet.

“They have no other family?” the man clarified.

Idris shook his head. “They have not been able to tell us what happened yet, but Mattias is working hard to heal them.”

The woman nodded. “Of course we can take them. No child should be without home and family.” She bounced the toddler on her hip, smiling when he giggled.

Her words stabbed at Cora's heart.

“How is Oceanus?” Idris asked, looking around as if he expected to see more people.

“Oh! He is doing well. He found a shield since you were last here.” The man turned to the woman who continued.

“Yes. Gabe had been taking him along to the market. He met a girl there, very sweet. Actually, you might know her family. She is Dean’s youngest daughter.”

Idris nodded.

“She came to visit a few times, before asking. I’ve never seen him so happy.” The woman smiled, glancing toward the door.

“I am glad to hear it,” Idris responded.

The woman sighed.

“How long do we have to prepare?” the man asked, changing the subject back to the children.

“A couple of days, I expect. The boy is recovering fast,” Idris answered.

The woman smiled. “Bring them over any time. We will be ready.” She narrowed her eyes in what looked like mock irritation. “And make sure to tell Seth to come visit. It has been so long since we have seen him.”

“He’s been busy,” Idris said, throwing a quick glance to Cora. “We will see that he gets the message.”

“Good.” The man followed his gaze to Cora for a moment. “We often think of him.”

Idris nodded. “We will be on our way then.”

“Would you like to stay for a meal? Lizzy and Bay brought us fish from their last journey and we have plenty to share,” Marian offered.

Idris shook his head. “Thank you, but we have to get going.” He motioned toward the door and Cora gladly led the way.

She waited for him to pick up the bed roll, her hand on the door ready to open it.

“Idris…” The woman spoke up before they stepped outside. When they turned, her eyes flicked to Cora and back. “It’s nice to see you’re not alone.”

As they walked the streets of Phaedra, heading back home, 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.

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

Idris opened it and waited for her to go in, then followed and shut 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.

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. It felt like a different kind of shield, one that she wore not only to protect against the heat and sand, but to hide from the watching eyes she always felt on her.

She jumped at a knock on the door.

“Cora? Are you alright?” Idris asked.

“Yeah,” she answered, grabbing the edges of the cloak together to pull it tightly around her shoulders. Then she let go and quickly shoved the rest of the new clothes 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, brow raised. “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. I’ve had worse.

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 can have a bed.”

She glared at him. “Why not?”

He looked back at her in silence for a 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 wasn’t sure. What does he know of hunger or homelessness? Those things don’t seem to exist here.

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 and added to the tightness constricting her chest.