15.2: Familiar Feisty Faces

CW// Swearing

15.2

Hawthorne

The Star Elf leads me through the woods in the direction of Jemtong. I make sure to fill our journey with plenty of questions and conversation. She stops replying after, like, the fifth thing I ask but that’s ok. She’s the Star Elf, she doesn’t have to. 

Every couple of minutes, she pauses, looks up at the sky, or checks a mark in a tree, and continues onwards. At one point, she holds up her hand, staring into the woods with a piercing gaze. I take it as a queue to stop talking and shut my trap. We continue in silence until she draws to a halt in front of a tree with a massive hole in its trunk. I blink and suddenly the place where I thought there was a hole becomes a door swinging open. A fae with wavy red hair holds the door open with a pale grip, her wings practically vibrating. She looks ready to shout at the Star Elf until her eyes catch me standing behind her.

“Oh, hi Iridea!” I greet her with a smile. She looks me up and down,

“Do I know you?” She asks, holding the door open for us to pass. Stellina walks past her into the house. I follow slowly, making sure not to move my upper body too much, and explain,

“Yeah! We met four years ago when my family moved into town. You were in the welcoming party. You told me which foods were safe to eat.”

“Ah, you’re the Xeadafria kid,” She remarks factually as I pass. A familiar sinking feeling forms in my stomach,

“Yeah, I’m the Xeadafria kid.” 

Iridea slams the door shut and marches towards Stellina, who waits by a collection of seats in different shapes, colours, and sizes. She plants herself right in front of her, only inches away, tilting her head up to display her fury. Their height difference is almost comical. I hobble over to a chair to lean against so I can awkwardly watch the display.

“What the fuck happened?!” Iridea hisses, “You just up and left! Ran out of the house like it was on fire! And you bring back this,” Iridea gestures wildly at me, “Person? What the hell happened?!” Her voice is an aggravated hush which gradually increases in volume as she goes on. I wince at the title she’s assigned to me, my excitement at seeing a familiar face decreasing by the second. The Star Elf shrugs,

“I had vision.”

“Are you fucking kidding me?”

“And his name is Hawthorne.”

Iridea lets out a burst of breath, swiveling to face me. Her wings bat Stellina in the face, who stumbles back with a look of dazed shock.

“Ok. Hawthorne, why are you here? Explain this to me since Stellina here can barely comprise a sentence let alone an explanation,” My face flushes instantly, as does the Star Elf’s though she immediately composes herself. I’m not emotionally prepared enough to face the onslaught of insults that will follow my admittance of hunting werewolves that then hunted me.

“Uh,” I begin, flitting my gaze between Stellina and Iridea, “Um.”

“I know you can speak. You talked my ear off the last time we met with your gibberish,” Iridea bites in, impatiently. Her words carve a pebble sized wave of hurt in my already-hurting chest.

“I was walking back from Penketh,” I start, but I don’t get far before Iridea slides in again,

“At night? During two moons? How fucking dumb are you?”

“Okay, man, blimey, can I, like, finish my sentence please?” I grasp my side painfully, closing my eyes and breathing in deeply to keep her harsh words at bay, “I was walking back from Penketh ‘cause they closed down the city. Xeoserp sighting. I was attacked by werewolves coming home. The only reason I’m here is ‘cause the Star Elf saved me.” I look warmly to Stellina, expecting her to affirm this or smile, or something. Instead of this, her brows knit, and her head tilts.

“Were-wolv-es? They were wolves, no?” She asks, running her fingers through her braids, “What are were-wolv-es?”

Iridea’s accusing glare turns back on Stellina. 

“Surely you know what werewolves are. A human hybrid of a wolf? Transformed on full moons due to a disease transferred through saliva?” Iridea explains quickly. I swear I can see the gears clicking in the Star Elf’s head and clunking to a stop. I step in as aid,

“A creature, right?, that becomes more wolf than human after being bitten,” The Star Elf shakes her head.

“Did they not exist before?” Iridea questions, her voice spiking in disbelief.

“I have heard of no such creature,” Stellina affirms. Iridea draws her gaze pensively to the ceiling,

“Ok, that’s…interesting,” She says hesitantly before regaining her previous fire, “But let me get this straight. You,” She whips around to point a finger at me, “Decided to go for a merry walk at night on two full moons without thinking of the obvious danger and happened to run into some werewolves. And you,” She spins back to Stellina, shoving her finger at the Star Elf’s face, “Saw this, somehow, and decided to risk yourself too to save a naive little boy and for some reason, bring him back here.”

“I’m eighteen,” I defend myself before I can think better. I can just about see the rolling of Iridea’s eyes, though her attention is still fixed on the Star Elf, waiting for confirmation.

“Yes,” Stellina determines, “You can heal, yes? He is hurt in his side.” She uses motions to describe what she means. Colour draws itself into my face once more at the second-hand embarrassment of realising that she is not looking for a simple supporting wrap or the likes for this treatment, but an incredibly quick, incredibly impossible, magical express healing. Iridea covers her eyes with the palm of her hand,

“No. No, I can’t heal him like that, Stellina,” She sighs with clear annoyance, dragging her eyes open, “I can slap a bandage on and give him a pillow but you’re gonna have to just let nature heal him.” 

“Please don’t slap me,” I retort before I can think otherwise. Iridea lifts her eyes to the ceiling and mumbles some words in a language unfamiliar to me. I probably could’ve let that one sit in the noggin for a moment longer. 

The Star Elf, on the other hand, looks absolutely horrified. 

“What- you wait for it to- just- heal?” Her voice raises to a near squeal before Iridea silences her with a finger waving towards the roof where I assume there are more people supposedly sleeping. Stellina does not seem to get the hint, “Why are you doing that with finger?” 

“Evelena and Amara are trying to get some sleep upstairs. I need you to be quiet,” Iridea explains, to which the Star Elf dutifully nods, “Alright. Ok. Looks like we’ll have another person with us tonight. Wonderful.” Iridea paces across the rug in the centre of her living room.

“Actually, I was gonna get goin’. If that’s alright with you.” I hurriedly reassure her, pushing myself from the chair. Surprisingly, Iridea does not seem to be happy with this either.

“I’m sorry, you’re going to what? Go out into the night, again, and get yourself nearly eaten? Again?” Alright, she has a point, “No. You’re sleeping on the couch. Stellina you’re in the room upstairs.” I shrug and make my painful way towards her couch. Stellina, on the other hand, shakes her head fiercely,

“No. He is hurt. He needs bed to sleep,” She refuses, already patting the couch down and arranging it for rest. There’s no way I’m making the Star Elf sleep on a sofa.

“No, no, no. I’ll be fine,” I quickly steal a pillow from her, as fast as my body will allow me right now, and place it at the top of the couch, “You sleep upstairs. I’ll be fine here on this comfy, cosy couch.” She looks reluctant and refuses me once more before dragging herself away, wishing me well. Iridea follows her to the next level without saying goodbye. I am left to my thoughts.

The couch is far too small for me, I’m stretched out like a ‘V’ with my legs and my head hanging over the armrests. Miraculously, this strange and uncomfortable position for the rest of my body does not excite the pain in my ribs, so I take what I’m given.

The events of today still manage to bewilder me. On a normal day, just like any other day, I simultaneously escaped from Penketh, evaded Xeoserps, fought werewolves, got saved by The Star Elf, and ended up here. The Star Elf is here. After centuries, eons. I- but- why now? Why me? I have so many questions and way too much time to think about them.

I wish I were a better fighter so that I could assist her in taking down everything that has broken Zyrona. There’s not much else I can do for her; I can’t read, I can barely cook, I know close to nothing about healing. What I do know would be practically useless to her; what is a sonata going to do against an army of deprecor? 

I have to stay home anyway, to take care of my mum and my siblings. What would they do without me? They need me, and, though it pains me to admit, no matter what the Star Elf requests of me, no matter what she asks me to do, I have to stay where I’m needed most. Nothing will tear me apart from my family.