“You did what?!”

“I did what you asked me to, Goddess.”

“I asked you to see what kind of person he is, not fight him, Emily!” Thankfully, I’m on the other side of a light tablet or I’m sure Yhanna would strike me. I see her shoulders and head in the screen and she is livid.

“It was necessary when he brought guards and a Descentian goddess to confront me. What was I supposed to do?”

“Oh, I don’t know, maybe tell him what was going on?”

“And tell him what?” I put on a fake accent. “’Oi, sorry for being so forward, but I’m here on behalf of Goddess Yhannason to ask if you would be interested in her company’?”

She quiets and looks down. “Fair point,” she finally says. “Did you tell him who you were?”

“No, I wouldn’t. He’s smart, though. He’ll probably figure it out eventually.”

She looks up. “What else?”

“What else? Oh, about him?” I sense a blush forming on her face. “Well, I don’t think you’ll ever have an issue deciding on what to eat for dinner. He’ll have that chosen months in advance while he’s sweeping you off your feet in some oddly aggressive romantic move. I don’t know if I trust him, Yhanna, but I can’t stop your love life.”

She looks to have fallen into a trance, but then shakes her head. “Right. Thank you, Emily. I really appreciate it. Oh, one other thing. What is your favorite color and weapon?”

“Dark blue, and… I don’t know, my staff? Why?”

She smiles slyly. “Secret! Goodbye, Emily. Thank you again!”

I smile, then lift a hand. “Bye, Yhanna.” The screen flickers off a moment later, leaving me alone once more. I lie back in the comfort of my bed. Jeez, Yhannason sure does like her surprises. It’s not my fault I got into a bit of trouble with Arkaden and end up getting kicked from the masquerade party. At least they didn’t all figure out who I am, thanks to my expert use of a single mask and well-orchestrated phrases… or something like that. I wish I got to have a look at his face, though. I still don’t know what he looks like.

“Emily, you’re home.” Elyse is in the door of my room, peeking in.

I look up at her. “I am, and you are here, too. Why?” I know Elyse doesn’t care for the Void, but she still has limited access to come here through her own beacon room.

“I wanted to talk. Do you have a minute?” She steps a bit more into my bedroom.

I sit myself back up in bed with my back to the headrest. “I guess so. What did you want to talk about, Elysewhyr?” It’s about the time I try to get some sleep, so I’m not sure why she is here so late. Surely, it must be important.

“I wanted to apologize for my behavior, Emily. You know, at my party.” She steps a bit closer, now in the middle of the room, and clasped her fingers together. “I was drunk a bit reckless. I’m sorry I wasn’t listening to you.”

“Why do you apologize to me? I’m not your keeper.”

“You are a friend, though. A close- no, I consider you my best friend, Emily.” That’s funny to me because of how a few years ago, I absolutely could not stand her. “Also, I just felt like I was pushing you away when I should have kept you close.”

“You don’t need to worry about our friendship, Pix. I may be getting old in the mind, but I understand what it’s like to be a young woman like you are.”

She scoffs. “No way, you still look like you just turned twenty years old, Emi.” Well, that’s because this body is modified to regenerate cells as quickly as others become aged. Thank you, Mother, for something. “Also, I wanted to ask about someone I saw. Do you know anyone named Sanya?”

“The name is familiar.” I met someone who stuck in my mind a while ago. They were some kind of shapeshifting Elven woman named Sanya Ringleton, or something along those lines. “Why do you ask?”

“Well, they came to me and warned me about you. They said that I shouldn’t be around you at all. She said you angered the wrong people.”

“What? That was… years ago.” Do they really hold grudges for that long?

“I don’t know the full extent of what it was about, Emily, but they asked me to give you their information. They said they can help ease things if you wish.”

“I don’t need their help, Elyse. Did they say who was angry?”

“I don’t know, I’m sorry. Emily, promise me you’ll be careful.”

“I promise.” I don’t want to worry Elysewhyr, threat or not. I’m not too worried either way. “Please shut the door on your way out,” I tell her as she walks out of the room. I check to make sure the door is closed, then look down to flick on my tablet. I go to the Internet and search a name, receiving almost no results. Damnit. I tap the edge of the light tablet and it becomes dim, going to sleep. I think it’s weird how we talk of technology having human-like characteristics, like sleeping. I hear some facilities are working on technological soldiers like the metal ones my mother and I are capable of making, but those ones aren’t magical golems. Those soldiers would not have ever had a childhood and will be created to do one job with no memories but what is recorded after they are built. I can’t imagine that is very human-like at all.

When I wake up the next day, I open my eyes to fake sunlight shining through my window. I get up, stretch, clean myself up, get dressed, and step out of my room feeling fresh and new as ever… except that I have a headache.

“You look like you slept the wrong way last night, Emily,” Lucelle says to me as I sit down at the dining room table.

“Just hurting,” I reply.

Allu steps in. “What’s wrong, Em?” Em, another pet name.

“Nothing, just still tired.”

Iyo walks in wearing a bathrobe, still in his slippers. “Wow, Emily, you look a bit pale there. Are you-“

I snap at him, “I’m fine, stop asking!” The room falls to silence and I realize my mistake, then look down. “Sorry.”

I feel a hand gentle press on the back of my shoulder. Lucelle whispers in a soft voice, “Some fresh air would do you well.” I don’t want to admit it, but she is right. I get up from my chair and it catches on the crack in the tile. I lose a bit of my temper and turn to shove it back with my leg, but I accidentally use magic with the movement. The chair explodes outwards and Void rock falls to the floor in a mess. I look down, feeling embarrassed, angry, and a bit annoyed, not sure what to do next. Lucelle pulls me back to reality, saying, “I’ll clean it up. Go for a walk, Emi.” I nod without looking at her and go to leave the room. As I’m getting a coat on from the next one, I hear their conversation.

“She gets like that sometimes,” Lucelle remarks.

“Don’t you think it’s a little immature? Maybe irresponsible to have acts of rage like that?” Iyo is right, but his words just hurt more.

Allu speaks up, “She’s overwhelmed is all, don’t say that about her.”

“I’m just asking, Allu. I’m not trying to make her seem like something she isn’t, but you know she has those fits a lot.”

Lucelle, being the voice of reason, silences them. “She may have more power than she knows what to do with, but she’s trying her best. When she gets like that, let her go and simmer down. She always comes around eventually.”

I decide that I don’t want to hear anymore and go to the beacon room- not without grabbing my staff, though. I change the location to Ridgewood and step through, seemingly stepping out of a small home in the little village. It has grown over the last few years, for sure. There is even a bigger, walled-in marketplace now, but I didn’t come here for the market. I walk down the same road I used to play on so many years ago until I stop in front of a hole-in-the-wall tavern- er, bar. Along the way, few people even seem to notice my existence. I love this place for that reason; no one here is going to go out of their way to get to me.

I walk in, hearing a low bell above me ring as I walk onto the rubber mat just inside the door. There is some acoustic music playing from a speaker and very few people are at the tables. A man stands with an apron around his neck at the bar, and he smiles widely as soon as he sees me, showing off a missing front tooth. When I walk up to the stools and sit down, he greets me. “Well, well-come, Em’ly. You light this place up like the sun does a dark dawn.”

I smile, remembering how funny his accent sounds to me. “Thanks, Will.”

“Been a mighty long while since you came by. Thought you’d never come back for a few moments.”

“Just a few?”

“In a sea of hope, Miss. Tea, vanilla?”

I nod. “You remember.” It’s nice to know that people remember so many things about me.

He gets working right away, though going a bit slow to be making tea. “I ‘member lots about you. Mum used to talk about you like you was some kind of angel, but I never believed it ‘till I actually saw yer face. And my oh my, when I did.” He sets the glass down in front of me, then put his hands on the bar, kind of like he was waiting for something even after I took the first drink. “So?”

I look up. “Hm?”

“So, what you think?”

I realize what he means and I look down at the glass. “Oh, it’s wonderful. Just like Gertrude used to make.” I look up a moment later to see him with that goofy smile again, this time with a blush.

“You remember, right?”

It takes me a few seconds, but then I put a hand to my face. “Ooooh!” I laugh. He’s talking about when I met him the first time, when I told him if he makes tea like his mother, I would consider marrying him. I meant it as a joke at the time, I think. “You’re a good man, Will, but I still don’t recommend trying to be with me. I blew up a chair this morning because my head hurt.”

He picks up a glass and starts polishing it with a rag, his smile staying plastered to his face. “The chair had it coming, Missy. I still think yer the prettiest girl around, you know. ‘Mazing what a lady like you can do, too.”

“I’m flattered, Will. Say… where is Gertrude?” I look over to see his smile fade. That’s not good, not at all.

“The letters didn’t make it, did they, Miss?” He speaks apologetically, “I’m sorry, Em’ly, I tried to let you know. Mumma passed not too long ago, about a year ago now.”

I feel like I knew that was coming, but I still feel pain in my heart. “She has a nice gravestone, Will?”

“Out back, Miss. I won’t bother you if you like.” After he’s done talking, I get up from the stool and make my way to the end of the bar before exiting. Outside, the tiny garden has been halfway picked of its flowers so that they could lie on the stone plate in the ground. It says, ‘Gertrude Jamie Lockhardt, loving mother.’

“It was your time, wasn’t it?” I ask out loud. I can see it now: Gertrude, one day, just decides that she’s done on this world. At that point, she just lets go, allowing her spirit to leave her body like it was already ready to be done for years up until that point. It’s how she would have gone, I know.

“Thank you for the drink, Will. I’ll visit more often,” I say to him after I go in. I keep my coat on and continue towards the door.

“Pleasant travels, Missy,” he says with a genuine smile. I like that, how people can be so happy despite having given such horrible news. The sun, I suppose, decided to go on vacation as the clouds roll in. I feel little bits of raindrops start falling on me and I put up the hood of my coat. I should have brought my umbrella, no doubt. My day is going up and down like a hill, and I wonder if it can get any better yet. Sure enough, my question is answered as the sky begins to storm down on me; no, no it can’t get any better.