Page 7

Cory

“You’re not getting tired at all, are you?

You’re like a little battery; you just keep on going.

” I carefully drop my paint brush onto the paint tray and wipe my fingers off on my jeans.

I gave up on trying to keep my clothing paint-free hours ago.

Which is almost precisely the time I got sick of painting one tiny little section just to watch it dry.

“It's kind of you to continue to paint with me. Perhaps I should call it a night.”

I study the newest member of our group with my peripheral vision, wondering how it's possible for him to sit cross legged so long without moving at all.

He doesn't look like he's ready to quit painting yet.

His hand is resting on his knee, paintbrush still covered in thick, goopy beige paint as he stares at the wall in front of him.

I do notice though, his hand is shaking just the tiniest bit.

“Hey,” I say quietly. “Are you feeling okay? Nervous?”

A single tear escapes from his eye and tracks slowly down his face. He makes no move to wipe it off, nor do I mention it, but my heart is breaking because he's clearly uncomfortable and I don't know how to help him.

“I was with somebody. Back home? In Glittertopia. I have a girlfriend.”

“Ah. You need to talk to Delaney. Neither one of you asked for this situation, and I know for a fact that she'll help you in any way possible. Even if that means you're not together.”

Saladriel finally places his paintbrush carefully in front of him on the precise square of plastic tarping he cut out earlier, and then he turns sideways and lays his head in my lap.

“Wouldn't that be a conflict of interest?

She's not going want to help me get home so that I can be with somebody else.”

“I think that woman would surprise you if you gave her a chance.

I know you're dealing with this soulmate bond, one you didn't plan for, but soulmates come in lots of forms. Just because she wears your mark, doesn't mean your relationship has to look a certain way.

Some people are soulmates with their best friends and it's completely platonic.

She's not going to force anything that doesn't come naturally.”

“This whole day has just been very overwhelming.

I knew our realm was doing poorly, but I didn't think things were so bad that we needed help from an outside source.

I don't understand why Fairyunicorn Goddess would seek help from somebody that knows nothing of our realm. Or our people. And has no connection to it. I think I feel betrayed.”

“That's completely valid. I've never dealt with any sort of deity personally, but I imagine I'd feel betrayed, too, if I were in your position.”

“You don't think that makes me a bad unicorn? Shouldn't I be singing her virtues and convincing myself she has some master plan that I know nothing of? Will I be better off in the long run if I just stick this out and do what I'm asked?”

“Maybe, maybe not. I think that's for you to decide.”

A polite knock on the door has us both looking that way, and then there's the woman of the hour with a tray full of drinks.

“This is probably really dumb,” Delaney says as she walks in the room a few feet, “and this might completely offend you as well, but one of my dads used to make me unicorn lemonade when I was little, and I figured it wouldn't hurt to whip up a batch.

I have no idea if you even like lemonade, but I figured you might at the very least be thirsty enough to give it a try. You've been working in here all day.”

Saladriel looks up at me and I nod, encouraging him. He sits up and then stands, arching his back and stretching a bit after sitting so long. “Thank you,” he tells her as he reaches for one. “That was thoughtful.”

Delaney hands me one as well after grabbing her own and dropping the tray by the door. “Wow, it actually looks really good in here. The new paint really sets off those green undertones in this carpeting.”

We've been painting one of the spare bedrooms today, which actually did need a fresh coat of paint. Even though I thought beige was going to be so boring, it feels brighter in here now.

Saladriel is rubbing the back of his neck, uncomfortable, and I take that as my chance to excuse myself, giving them room to talk.

I grab Delaney’s face and kiss her before I walk out of the room, unable to stop smiling as I leave them to it.

I make sure to close the door behind me before finding a spot on the couch, stretching out next to Adam.

“There you are,” he says with a goofy grin. “I was about to come drag you out here if you weren’t out in the next five minutes. I missed you.”

I roll my eyes. “I was literally like 30 feet away from you this whole time.”

“Doesn't matter. I couldn't reach you, so therefore I missed you.” Butterflies erupt in my stomach like they always do when he says things like that, and I find myself thinking of ways we can try and help Saladriel, because I don't think he really belongs here.

“You look like you're thinking hard about something,” August says as he grabs a blanket from the back of the couch and drapes it over my legs like it's nothing.

“I guess I just feel bad for him. He just got yanked out of his life and inserted into ours, no warning. Seems a bit harsh.”

August nods. “Yeah, I guess so. Plus, we all know each other already. If I were him, I'd probably be really uncomfortable here. Even if we're trying our best to be nice, it's just a weird situation.”

“We should feed him mashed potatoes. Then he'll be happy. Guaranteed.” Leo looks ready to go ransack the kitchen to find some. I have the suspicion he really just wants to eat more himself and is looking for an excuse to make them. Not that he needs one.

Rush is in the corner alone, twitching, and I've noticed that every time Leo talks, he’s completely tuned into him.

I’m fascinated about what’s going on there as he mothers Leo some more.

More blatantly than he has. “No, you must be overwhelmed too. You only just got out of your curse. How are you adjusting?”

Leo’s sort of like a little kid, but it seems like every hour he's able to talk amongst us and walk amongst us and participate in things, he becomes a little bit more human-like.

“I feel... moody. I don't like not knowing anything about who I was before. I mean, what sort of fellow was I? Honorable? Scumbag? Rich? I could have been anybody. Trying to figure out everything is frustrating because everything is so hazy. I don't even know how long I was out there,” he says as he motions to the window, shuddering as he does. “It feels like I’ve been frozen, and when Delaney moved in, time started moving forward again. I just wish I knew how much time I lost.”

Rush begins crawling across the living room, keeping his body posture rigid.

Leo cocks his head to the side and watches but doesn't ask any questions.

“I could help you,” Rush magnanimously offers.

Leo’s eyes light up a little bit. “You have a spell to help me remember?”

My suspicions about the two of them are getting stronger, so I continue to watch this all play out.

“Not a spell. I was there with you. In the before.” It seems as if it takes Rush a lot to admit this, but I think he's putting himself out there.

“You were? Why do I not remember?”

Rush reaches out to touch the top of Leo’s foot and is emboldened when Leo doesn't flinch or pull away.

Rush allows himself a small smile before continuing.

“Making you forget was part of her curse.

Perhaps the worst of it, because now you don't know who I am, you don't know what we were.

She made you forget, and she made me remember.

That is my curse. Well, that and being a conifer for the same length of time you were a stone building edifice; we're both free of that now.”

The room goes energetically still. There's still noise happening from the other room and the conversation happening in there, and I don't hear shouting, so that's a good sign.

The TV is still playing and there's a low hum from the ancient refrigerator in the kitchen, but nobody in the room is breathing louder than they absolutely must.

We're all perking our ears and sitting forward, ready to hear a story.

“Would you tell me?”

Rush nods and gets settled, scooting just a little bit closer to Leo.

Delaney and Saladriel join us at that point, and my mate looks a bit tense but fine mostly as she drops into the open spot next to Ash. “Whoa, I just walked in on something, didn't I? Should I go back to the other room?”

I'm not surprised that Delaney would offer this, because she's the sort of person that considers other people all the time. I mean, technically everybody in this room is her business, but she likes respecting boundaries.

Saladriel has his eyes opened wide at this though, and he’s looking at Delaney differently.

“No, my mate. Never. You must always be by me. Rush knows of my before. He was just about to tell us,” Leo earnestly explains.

Rush waits for Delaney’s approval before he jumps into his story. The way he starts though, it's clear he's been practicing this in his head for a while. That he's just been waiting for his chance.

“You were a bit of a naughty human,” Rush says with a wry grin. “You loved living, so much so that you wanted to do it forever. You were spinning deals left and right with anybody who would listen, and my father tasked me with monitoring you.”

“Your father, The Devil?”

Rush nods his head in agreement. “I followed you for a while, trying to figure out weaknesses and strengths and anything that might be necessary in case you became a threat in some way.

But the more I watched you, the more I was drawn to you.

One day I approached you, and it didn't take very long for me to convince you to give me a chance.”