Chapter 9: Chapter 9

The two aging brothers stood awkwardly outside the small one-bedroom house. The lilac-blue paint job needed a few touch ups, and a wicker chair sat in the corner of the rooftop patio. There was a small folding paper fan resting on the cushioned arm.

“I can’t believe I let you talk me into this.” Matthew said, half to his brother, half to just let the nerves out of his lungs.

“C’mon, Matt! I’ve heard you talk about this lady for years now, it’s only fair you introduce me.” Art replied with his slap-dash signature smile. That smile got him out of, and in to, more trouble than either of the two brothers could ever remember. His focus quickly returned to the present when the front door opened in response to the knock Matthew had given.

“Matthew! Good to see you and welcome back. And you must be Art. Please do come in.” came the voice Matthew would always describe as “regal” and Art could see why. She was picturesque despite her casual clothes. She was wearing her daily cat-eye eyeglasses and had her hair in a top knot and had on a simple light blue silken tunic top and smelled faintly of lilac and copy paper. Matthew assumed she must have been grading when they came to knock, and Art shook his head to clear it. Walking in, the house’s basic layout showed that it was small, but the feeling it gave was nonetheless welcoming. The den was to the right and a kitchen further inward where a kettle was coming to a boil, and Art could make out a couple of closed doors down the small hallway to the left.

“Tea will be ready in a few, why don’t we sit out by the backyard? It’s one of the last few nice days of the year.” She continued. She left the front door open and Matthew walked in first and Art followed as Cathy headed off to the kitchen where both the tea and the back door was ready for them.

“Thank you, Cathy, that sounds lovely.” Matthew said, a little happier than he was just a moment ago, which Art picked up on. He turned to his older brother and raised both eyebrows as if to say, “You still like her, huh?”. Matthew rolled his eyes at his brother. He knew he wasn’t going to get out of this unscathed, and he was wondering once more if he could come up with some excuse to get out of this mess, but he hadn’t seen Cathy in so long that he decided he’d just grin and bear it.

“I hope Lady Gray is okay for you, Art. It’s my favorite, and Matthew has always been amenable.”

“Of course.” Art replied. A bit of the earlier teasing creeping into his voice, just enough for Matthew to pick up and. He shot his younger brother a quick glance and Art replied, “Though I’m more used to sweet.”

Cathy laughed and backed into the back patio door with a tray of tea; the door opened for her in a way Matthew would describe as “kindly”. He was beginning to realize just how very not over his confession he was but resolved not to let it get in the way. He knew how much those feelings could destroy friendships, and he was bound and determined not to let that happen here. He would just have to get over it on his own.

“Mrs. Carlyle” Art began, but Cathy quickly interrupted.

“Just Ms., thank you. I never married. And please, call me Cathy.”

“Right, my apologies.” Art blushed slightly, “It’s lovely to finally meet you. I’ve heard a lot about you from Matt here.” He said as he took the cup and saucer he was handed and settled into the patio furniture. The backyard was well manicured, and he assumed she had a service take care of that for her. She didn’t seem like the type to use a lawnmower. There was a small, raised platform for a rose bed just by the back porch, and it was currently empty due to the impending winter temperatures.

“All good things, I hope?” came her reply and clearly didn’t expect an answer because she continued, “but I hear you’ve recently moved here from Florida. Tell me, how are you going to manage when the weather dips below freezing?”

“I figure if the cold doesn’t get to me, I can always annoy Matt here into turning up the heater enough to make the house a livable temperature.”

Cathy gave a slight giggle at that and Matthew as a bit astonished at that. She didn’t normally giggle so easily at new people’s small talk. “Of course, if he doesn't give me a call, I’ll bully him for you.” She gave Matthew a quick side glance to let him know she meant it only in jest, and he nodded back, having quickly understood the quiet conversation.

“Though I must say” Cathy added, “Even though I knew Matthew moved down to help, I’m surprised you came back with him. It wasn’t too much trouble to move everything up here?”

Art enjoyed the sip he had already taken when Cathy had started her question and replied, “Honestly, ma’am, I didn’t leave much behind. I’m not a fancy homeowner like my brother, and anyone I’d call a friend has already gone ahead of me.”

“Oh… I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay” Art replied with a bit of nonchalance, “none of us were ever the healthiest bunch. It’d be more surprising if they were all alive right now, especially with how we used to drink.” Despite the gruesome subject, Art had a big smile on his, most likely remembering some long ago meet between his friends. There was a moment of silence to let the air clear.

“So, Matt, how was Florida? I know you’ve only been down there for a month or so, but I don’t think you complained once over the phone. You’re not thinking of retiring there, are you?”

“Not if I can help it.” Matthew replied, “Art is doing much better now, so if he’d like to go back, he can, but I hated every minute of it. There’s not a single hiking trail to be had down there, in fact, you can’t even walk along the roads! You’re likely to be run over if you try.”

Art and Cathy shared a laugh at that, and Art spoke up, “honestly, I might move out here with you. I always considered moving away, but you know how it can get once you get settled somewhere. If I hadn’t gotten so ill, I’d probably be content to live down there for the rest of my days. But now that I see what kind of view you two have been enjoying…” Art motioned with the cup in his hands towards the twin mountains visible from their position on the back patio, “I’m kind of angry at Matt that he took so long to grab me by my collar and pull me up here.”

Matthew smiled at that, “If you’d ever like to go hiking, just say the word. I know every trail from here to Hill County.”

Art made a disgusted face, “And deal with all that wildlife? No, thank you. I’d much rather enjoy the scenery from afar than climb it.”

“You two get along so well.” Cathy said with a big smile on her face. “What do you two want for dinner? I haven’t had the time to cook anything today, but I’m sure I can whip us up something quite fast.”

“If you’d like, I’d love to help. Despite how I look, I’m actually a pretty decent chef and my apple fritters are to die for.”

“Is that so?” Ms. Carlyle said with a hint of incredulity.

“Mhmm. Art even owned a restaurant for some years. It did well until the market crashed and no one could afford to eat at restaurants anymore.” Matthew added

“Well then. I’d love to see what you can do in a kitchen.” The two headed in, so Cathy could show Art around the kitchen. Meanwhile, Matthew sat alone on the porch and enjoyed the view as he finished off the last bit of his tea. He knew he’d have to get to work as soon as the sun came up again and sort out the mess at school, but for this moment he took the time to stop and enjoy everything around him. A couple of blue birds took off south for the winter as a slight chill in the air made itself known.

◊◊◊

“Hey Eris?” Tyler asked the ceiling of her bedroom. She had gotten ready for bed, and the knowledge that she’d have to go to school in the morning as herself for the first time had finally caught up with her. So to stave off the nervous jitters, she decided to distract herself by talking to Eris. The goddess had spent the last couple nights sleeping “within the bound” of whatever magic and tied their souls together.

“Yes?” Came Eris’ voice from the foot of her bed, where she had not been previously. Tyler turned to the nightstand and turned on the small lamp, then pushed herself up against her headboard. The goddess was wearing a simple black nightshirt that seemed to shift a little, like there was multiple colors of pitch black and the shirt was slowly changing between them. Tyler didn’t have anything to ask Eris, or rather she had so much she wanted to ask she was having difficulty picking just one, but the colors of her shirt gave her a good starting point.

“I have, like, a million questions about everything, but I guess first I wanted to know where your clothes came from? The nightshirt you have on is pretty, with how the black shifts a bit.”

Eris looked a bit surprised, “You can see that?” Eris asked, looking down at her shirt. “Most people can’t see magic; you must have a natural talent for it.”

“Natural talent? Wait, no, the color of your shirt is magic?”

Eris nodded, “More accurately, I’m using magic to make my clothes. You’re just seeing the residual magic flow through the fabric as it finishes making the fibers. You can see it more clearly if I make something thin or see through.” At that, she held up her hand and concentrated on the palm. Eris focused intently on a spot on her palm and mumbled some words Tyler couldn’t begin to understand, but she could feel the intention behind them. Like, the words themselves had a will, and it was being exerted on the air between them. It felt a bit like a breeze on a spring day, the kind that gives you a little shiver of invigoration in your legs and makes you want to run fast enough to fly. Tyler noticed that she was able to see the words as well, or rather, the effect the words had on the space above the palm of Eris’ hand. They looked like little threads of fiber light enough to dance on still air, and they started to waltz, pair off, and tangle together. As they touched and wove together, there was a light spark that seemed to go into, through, and out of the fibers as more and more appeared to join the others. Tyler stared transfixed as this happened over the course of a few minutes, before she finished and held up a small square pane of glass and held it out to Tyler, who gingerly accepted it.

“Wow” Tyler had sparkles in her eyes as she stared at the newly made twenty-centimeter square piece of glass. Like Eris’ nightshirt, there was a color she couldn’t quite describe flowing through the glass. Though unlike the nightshirt, this one was closer to a deep blue than a dark black.

Holding the impossible object, she looked up at Eris and asked, “How is this possible? Everything I know says magic can’t exist. Like, I’m pretty sure this violates some kind of scientific theory.”

Eris shrugged her shoulders, “I don’t know much about what you were taught, or why magic seems to have left this world for long enough to make everyone think it was just a fantasy, though I have an idea. As for how I’m able to do it, I’ve always been able to. I just gave an intent to the magic I carry with me, and the glass showed.”

“Intent? Is that what the words you were mumbling were? What did you say exactly?”

Eris nodded again and smiled, “Yes. The words don’t matter so much as I just say the words to help me focus the will. Magic is fluid enough to latch onto that intent and flow with the will to do as I want.”

Tyler looked back at the glass in her hand and back up to Eris, “Could I do this as well?”

“Maybe in the future. Right now, I’m pretty sure it wouldn’t work?”

“Why not? You were able to make this.”

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Eris smiled back. Tyler recognized the smile she wore as the same ones her teachers wore when she asked a question, and they were about to go through something basic again, and it gave her a small feeling of frustration, but she quickly smothered it with her curiosity.

“That’s because I carry the magic with me. This planet never actually had magic to begin with, or if it did, it was gone somehow by the time my kin and I showed up. When I say the words that make me think of glass, it pulls whatever magic I have from where I came from into this body and then into your world.”

“Wait. Your kin? There’s more of you?”

Eris’ face took on a bit of pained expression, and Tyler quickly responded with, “Oh. I’m sorry, I asked without thinking. I didn’t mean to hurt you with that question. You don’t have to answer it.”

“No, it’s okay. Really. I don’t know if I’m comfortable enough talking about it now, but maybe someday I’ll tell you about my family.”

“Okay, Eris.” There was a bit of an uncomfortable silence that hung in the air for a moment, and Tyler turned her eyes to the piece of glass in her hand, in part to distract her from the uncomfortable silence. It had weight and felt real, and the blueish color seemed to have vanished from the glass entirely. Tyler figured whatever the magic was doing had finished and was gone now. Looking back at Eris’ shirt, she noticed the color was a solid black there now, too. She thought hard about what it looked like and felt like when Eris called upon her magic to build the magic piece of glass, and she felt the room expand a little. Or rather, she felt her senses expand, like her room was suddenly a lot more real to her than before. In fact, her whole room felt a little more alive. She looked around at her walls and room. The light-blue wallpaper was the same as before, and the desk in the corner didn’t look any different. She felt a tug and looked at the source on her dresser. Opening the drawer, she pulled out a small brass locket. She hadn’t thought about this piece of jewelry in a long time, but she always kept it by her bed as she slept. It was a gift from her first friend and held a picture of each of them from the first year of elementary school and reminded her of all the good times they shared. She had moved away before they both moved on to middle school, and this was the goodbye gift she gave her.

Holding it now, though, it felt warm, and Tyler could swear she could feel it breathe. She opened it and the feeling only got more intense. She almost asked Eris what was happening but as she was about to, she noticed her focus slipping and the feeling floating away, so she focused back on the locket and held the image of her friend in her mind and the feeling came back stronger now. Before she even knew she was talking, she had already muttered, “I miss you.”

“Tyler!”

“Huh?” Eris almost shouted. She must have been trying to get her attention for a minute or two, and Tyler felt her focus slipping away, the feeling lost for good. “What’s up?”

“Tyler, you just did magic! What did you do?”

A flutter went through her chest as she processed her words. “I did? I don’t know, I just remembered what it felt like when you made the glass and suddenly, I felt a pull from this locket. All I did was think about my friend.”

“Do you know what your intent was?”

“I—” Tyler had to think for a minute. “I don’t think I had an intent? I was just missing my friend.”

Eris thought for a moment, tilting her head slightly to one side. “Magic doesn’t really flow without intent. If you didn’t have a clear idea of what you wanted to happen, maybe it just worked off your desire? That doesn’t matter too much right now, since the fact is you used magic! I know there’s some residual magic from when we were still here all those years ago, but I doubt there was enough left over to cast something. Do you know where you pulled the magic from?”

“I don’t think I pulled anything from anywhere, all it felt like was the room got more real and there was a pull from the locket, like it was alive somehow.”

“Curious. May I see your locket?”

Tyler handed over the locket to Eris but cautioned, “Please be gentle with it, it’s not all that old, but it is fragile.” Eris nodded and gingerly picked the locket out of Tyler’s hand.

“I don’t know what you mean about it feeling alive, it just seems like any other—” Eris’ voice trailed off, and she got a look of intense focus on her face. “Tyler?”

“Yeah Eris?”

“Did you know your locket has a soul?”

◊◊◊

Orlando rocked back and forth on the balls of his feet, waiting for the bus. He knew today was the day Tyler got to come back to school, but once again his best friend wasn’t at the stop on time. He wondered if Tyler ever woke up on time for anything.

“Probably too busy dreaming again.” He thought aloud.

He decided now was a good time to pull out the small welcome back treat from his backpack. Tyler and Orlando would get these hardened candies from the gas station nearest their houses. They both loved them because they were easy to share and was the cheapest thing you could buy, which was a big factor on what you could enjoy when you were in middle school, and the tradition sort of stuck. Taking one of the brightly colored candies out of the wrapper and popping it in his mouth, he enjoyed the taste of green apple on his tongue. Well, the bag said green apple, but he wasn’t sure where they got their idea of what apples tasted like. Regardless, the candy was made of sugar and reminded him of hanging out at the playground on weekends and warm school nights.

“Hey, Orlando. How’s it going? Oh man, are those rockets?” came a lilting voice from behind him that gave him a start.

An excitable girl was standing next to him with an intense look on her face. Orlando didn’t remember ever meeting her before at this stop, so maybe she just moved in? She was wearing a pair of black capris and a simple woman’s cut tee-shirt, and some tennis shoes. Orlando noticed that the clothes didn’t exactly fit perfectly but was close enough to not look weird. He held out a piece of candy to the new girl and wondered when Tyler would get here. His friend was going to miss the bus again.

“Oh, thanks, Orlando!” The girl said cheerily, as she unwrapped the candy.

“I’m sorry, do I know you? I don’t think I’ve seen you at this stop before. Did you just move here recently?”

The girl smiled at the question, like he should know the answer. But for the life of him, he couldn’t figure out who this girl was. She did look a lot like Tyler, or a cousin, maybe? But Tyler rarely had family visit.

“Silly Orlando.” She teased and started walking towards the street. The bus had arrived and sat waiting with the door open. “I am Tyler. Though it’s going to make it easier to blend in if even you thought I was a different person.”

Orlando stood there for a moment, his brain refusing to process the words that were just said. He probably just heard wrong, but the bus driver was giving him dirty looks, so he just shoved that thought to the side and focused on getting onto the bus.

He took a seat next to not-Tyler. There were a lot of open seats still on the bus, since his house was practically the beginning of the school bus line.

“Okay… Tyler. Are you that Tyler, or a new Tyler I haven’t met yet?”

She giggled at his question, “Yes Orlando, I’m that Tyler. Turns out I’m a girl and this is how I’ll be coming to school from now on. Oh, hold on.” She started digging through her backpack and then pulled out a navy-blue notebook and showed it to him. Orlando’s eyes widened, that was the notebook he gave Tyler near the end of last year when he… she didn’t have a spare one to use. She had offered it back at the end of the term, but he just asked her to keep it.

“Tyler?”

“The one and only!” She smiled.

“But… How?”

“Oh, have I got a story for you. Eris? Would you like to introduce yourself?”

“Who’s Eris?”

“I am” came a light voice from the seat to his right. He looked over and sitting on the bus seat across the aisle was another person he had never seen before. She wore a simple top and navy-blue legging and wore tennis shoes like Tyler’s. Her golden hair had a slight curl to it. He turned back around to Tyler.

“You’re not going to tell me that’s Kyle or something, right?”

Tyler burst out laughing at that.