The following morning came with an unspoken agreement not to talk about the night before, at least when it came to his odd moon question. Arlan was just going to pretend it never happened, that his dream had been only that, a figment of his overly active imagination. It would be best that way, to put it behind him and finally move on from this nightmare. Corwin was finally starting to settle back into the way of the town, he was anxious to get a job and get back into society properly. He’d gone through something unspeakable and was able to move past it. It was time for Arlan to do the same. When he went to get changed for the day he caught the barest hint of the smell earth and plant lingering in the air and his heart ached. It was nothing.

Arlan almost managed to get through a whole day without panic. When he came home from work to find his apartment empty his stomach sank into the floor, writhing and knotting there. Corwin didn’t have a cell phone, there was no way to reach out to his friend if he wasn’t here. He wasn’t even sure where Corwin might have gone. They did chores together, went out together so that Arlan could pull his friend away from situations that made it far too obvious that the collective memory was not the truth. Perhaps the fae had come to reverse the deal that had been made but not quite fulfilled. Perhaps even now Corwin was lost again behind the veil, cursing the day he’d befriended Arlan.

Catastrophe after catastrophe ran through different scenarios and possibilities in Arlan’s mind, coming to a halt only when he found the scrap of paper that had been pinned to his fridge. The note was almost invisible among a series of other, miscellaneous scraps. It at least brought a bit of calm, chasing off most of the worry that had started to plague him from the moment he’d walked into a completely silent home. Corwin had just gone out to the mall, his note said as much, inviting Arlan to join him whenever he might have a chance.

The mall proved to be another search, one that was starting to seem hopeless after all of the major stores had been thoroughly searched. It was on an off chance that he happened past the small new age store that seemed to be full of unexpected answers.

He would have never thought to look for his oldest friend there but through a window he caught a glimpse of Corwin at the counter, leaning on it as he engaged in a very animated conversation with the clerk. It almost felt wrong to interrupt them Corwin looked more at ease than he had since he'd crossed back into this world.

“You can come in you know.”

The voice had to raise to be heard out in the main hallway of the mall, reaching Arlan's ears just as he was about to turn away. Elwynn wasn't even looking at him to know he was leaving and yet still they knew to call out just at that moment. Corwin at least was peering out of the shop, offering his friend a smile and a wave to encourage him into the store, making no other motions to suggest he might move from his place. With hesitation he followed the wave’s direction, half tiptoeing through the full shelves to get to where his friend stood. He didn't fit into the pleasant aura the pair had achieved, the air around him tense and awkward still though he was finally starting to relax now that he'd found Corwin.

“Oh. You have a question.” Elwynn looked almost sad for a moment when they finally met Arlan’s eyes, seeing more there than just the bags and wrinkles the last few weeks had brought. The look flickered there for only a moment before they wore another expression, this one soft and welcoming as if they were speaking to a skittish animal. It might have been insulting on anyone else but on Elwynn soft face it was soothing.

“The moon-”

“Please, don't. Just ignore it. Look away from it. Don't get tangled up in that web.” Elwynn interrupted before he even had a chance to really formulate his question. The sorrow was back in their eyes, brows furrowed with what looked like worry. “It's not a path you should send yourself down.”

“Can you see it too then? Do you have some trinket to see through their uh, what's it called… glamour?” Elwynn looked uncomfortable at the question, fidgeting a little from where they stood behind the counter. They shifted their weight from one foot to another a few times, glancing at Corwin as if he might provide the answer for them. He didn’t, waiting to hear it for himself expectantly.

“I may but it’s not a matter I wish to discuss at this particular point in time. The matter at hand here is that you should forget you ever saw anything with that little stone of yours you keep so close in your pocket. It’s dangerous.” Somehow they managed to be just as mysterious as ever while they so bluntly pointed out Arlan’s oldest secret. He wondered if Corwin had been the one to spill the beans, sharing the knowledge of that particular trinket with someone they barely knew. It didn’t matter, there was no denying it now, not after his particular question.

“And what if I don’t need the stone to see it?” He could hear Corwin shift beside him, he caught the movement in his peripheral vision but he refused to break eye contact now. He could feel it, how close he was to real answers, if only he could reach out and grab them.

“You don’t need…” Elwynn’s voice trailed off, hand covering their lips with many rings and chipped polish while they processed the confession. Pity seemed to coat every edge of them now as their fingers curled, coming back to the counter top so they could brace themselves. “What twisted fate keeps you bound to that place? Keep your eyes to the ground, don’t look at the sky. Keep yourself safe. Keep your world safe.”

The warning sounded as if it could have come out of some fantasy novel or movie, sending a chill down Arlan’s spine. There was no amusement here, no jollity left in the store, a stark contrast to just a few moments ago. Arlan might have even felt guilty about the shift in atmosphere if there hadn’t been such an important weight to this conversation. He was at a turning point, at a crossroads, just waiting to make his choice. Elwynn had only presented him with one option, the easiest of them all. He should just accept it, let everyone here out of the invisible hold this seemed to have.

“And if I can’t? If I have to find someone before the double disappears?”

“Then you only have until the moon is new. There is nothing I can do to help you then, I will not get involved. I cannot.” Elwynn sighed, breathing deep for a moment as if to centre themselves. “I’ll only ask one last time, please, don’t get involved either.”

“I have to. I can’t leave him there.” Without warning he found his choice made for him, unable to even consider the alternative. He could still hear the prince’s voice as he called for him to run, still see the chains that kept him bound. Arlan might not have understood anything that had happened through the veil but he did know that Mies had risked his life for him and it sounded as if he’d paid for it with his own. It wouldn’t be right to just leave him there, to go on as if it meant nothing at all.

“Take your pendant when you go, the iron one. You’ll need it. A few extra nails might help as well. The quartz I gave you, keep them in your pockets, they will protect you should the time arise. You’ll need a ring of salt around yourself, when you first pass through so that none may do your body harm.” Elwynn grabbed their strange notebook again, writing nearly as quickly as they spoke, a list starting to form. “I will give you the information you need, to pass between the hidden world and ours without the aid of your fair friend but you must burn it when you return. If you return.”

There was a pause and Arlan could feel both pairs of eyes on his face, waiting for him to change his mind, to cave under the warning. It had been a risk when he offered his life for Corwin’s, he’d known that, he’d come to terms with it then. He couldn’t live with himself if he sat around and did nothing while the strange moon prison vanished from everyone’s grasp completely.

“Eat or drink nothing while you’re there. It will bind you to their ground and trap you entirely. Accept no gifts or you will be indebted to the giver, though I’m sure you already know of that risk.” Elwynn’s gaze shifted to Corwin, giving him a small smile before they finished off whatever they’d taken the time to write down. Ripping it out of the notebook and handing it over revealed them to be instructions, warnings scrawled across both the top and bottom of the page.

“Thank you.” Arlan was careful as he folded the note up, slipping it into his wallet where it wouldn’t get lost.

“My number and address are on the back.” They smiled at Corwin, just for a moment before they let their expression get serious once more. “In case you don’t die and have more questions. But uh, give it a few days before you try it. You smell like the other side, I’m sure they noticed you there too.”

With more thanks offered the pair of friends departed with a quick goodbye. It didn’t escape Arlan, the way that Corwin lingered a little in his goodbye. Again there was the hint of guilt that wormed its way into Arlan’s heart, he’d interrupted what had looked like such a nice, serene moment. It was always such a struggle for Corwin to find true smiles these days, it had been nice to see that it wasn’t lost entirely, that it was just buried a little deeper than before. When they got home Arlan pulled out the sheet, transferring Elwynn’s information from his instructions to a piece of paper he put in place of the note he’d been left before. If Corwin was so inclined he’d be able to reach out now.

It was a struggle to wait. The instructions sat on his nightstand, quartz stones on the corners to keep it weighted in place, calling to him with every passing minute. It was nearly impossible to focus at work and at home he was a bit of a mess. Every night now he saw that strange dark world with the only lit room slowly growing dimmer and dimmer. The door between himself and Mies never opened but he could feel the prince, just behind that door, waiting for the end that Arlan was desperate to stop.

Corwin only voiced his concern about the plan a few times, met with a snapped reply each time. It was too late to turn around a find a different route to go. A part of Arlan wondered if the fear Corwin expressed was due in part to the risk it could bring to him. If the veil between the two worlds was ripped open, even just a little bit to allow a single entry, then perhaps it would draw attention to his whereabouts.

“Maybe you should called Elwynn, see if they can spend any time with you today.”

The suggestion broke a silence that had been hovering over the pair of friends since Arlan had returned from work that day. Even the TV had been left off, the sounds of life outside the apartment were already too much, putting a strain on the fragile state of affairs. The tension was high, so high in fact that Arlan could see Corwin trying not to argue with his response.

“Why? Are you kicking me out?” His tone was strained, spoken through half gritted teeth.

“No. I just thought you might be more comfortable there than here. I’m gonna do that ritual tonight. I can’t wait any longer the moon is almost gone.” It was just as difficult to keep his own words civil, though the meaning behind them was clearly anything but frustrated. “It’s probably way safer.”

“Arlan… I can’t just leave you alone to barge into a world you know nothing about.” There was a softening to Corwin’s edges, his body losing some of the tension it had pulled around itself like a shield. “That would be stupid.”

“Corwin. I am not asking you to come back to that place with me. I wouldn’t be able to live with myself if I did. The risk of you not coming home again is too great, I won’t let you come.”

“Shouldn’t you be giving me that choice instead of deciding it for me? What if I want to risk my life for you?” This was not the argument that Arlan had expected to have over this plan. He’d thought he would have to convince his best friend to let him do it, that he would have to lock his bedroom door just to have some privacy for the ritual itself.

“Please Corwin. I can’t let you. Please. Call Elwynn, spend some time with them, you seem to get along.” Arlan was close to begging, his tone bordering on desperate as he made his plea. Reaching out between them, he brushed his fingers against the iron pendant that Corwin hadn’t removed since the day he got it. The smell of boxwood always hung about the living room, mixing with the scent of burnt sage. He’d been doing everything he could to keep the fae at bay, for him to enter back into their den just seemed crazy. “Keep yourself safe. And come check on me in the morning, make sure I’m still alive. There’s a little note on how to snap me out of whatever state I’ll be in, at six in the morning, if I’m not back, use it. Please. I need you on this side of things.”

The frown on Corwin’s lips got deeper, the corners of his mouth causing small wrinkles as he seemed to try and come up with another argument in his favour. The need for outside help and the fear of returning to the land that kept him prisoner for so long seemed to outweigh his desire to come along though it wasn’t the preferable option. He shook his head and stepped away from the friend that had been both his doom and his saviour. Grabbing the information from the refrigerator door he said nothing to Arlan for a minute, still processing.

“If you die or get yourself trapped over there, I will never forgive you.” Corwin pulled his best friend into a tight hug, letting his emotions sit on the surface of his words instead of burying them. Arlan hugged him back, letting himself be scared just in this moment, when he still felt safe and sound. He didn’t want this to be the last time he saw Corwin but there was the chance it could be and that terrified him. It scared him more to imagine what would happen to Mies if he didn’t follow through with this plan. “Come back or I will hunt down your ghost and kill you myself.”

“I will. I promise Corwin. You keep yourself safe too or I’ll be mad.” Arlan gave him one final squeeze before he let go, tapping the piece of paper in his best friend’s hands. “Call them. Try to keep yourself distracted. I’ll be fine.”

They both knew there was a chance he wouldn’t be fine, his plan involved walking into the belly of the beast willingly. There was also a chance that the ritual would do nothing, that it would fail and Arlan would just feel a fool sitting in his room trying to cross between the worlds. Their goodbye was an awkward one, full of emotions and feelings they couldn’t say, speaking them would be useless. They were both worried, both afraid of what might come. Talking about it would do nothing for either of them. They just shared another hug, savouring the moment for as long as they could before Arlan had to begin.