Midnight Wonders

7.2.1. The End of Summer

In the morning (and he was almost surprised to think of it as morning), Luc awoke to a strange noise outside his window. He flung the blankets off him and rolled out of bed. He went to the window, opened the blinds and the window, and stuck his head out.

Luc stared outside for a moment, the real light of the sun blindingly bright and warm. The sky was...there. It was there, and it was beautifully blue and clear. He'd never realized how reassuring it was to look up and see that the sky was there as it always was.

It sounded like someone was taking a shower outside. The sound was distant, yet unsettlingly near. And there was a jingling sound. Bells.

Luc grabbed his glasses from the table and slid them on as he left the room. He went out to the sitting room and was almost startled to see a body on the couch. It would have been more startling if it was just a body. It was Tristan, half-falling off the couch and wrapped all the way round with a blanket. Luc would have thought it was comical if he didn't feel so numb.

Trying to make little sound, Luc crossed the room over to the front door and slipped outside.

Luc stood on the front steps and watched as Mr. Jacobs watered the lawn for him and Catherine rode her bike in circles on the driveway.

Mr. Jacobs looked up and caught his eyes. He smiled. "Good morning," he said, and waved.

Catherine noticed him too and rode her bike across the wet lawn to reach him. "Hi, Mr. Long!" she said, stopping so she could wave too.

Luc blinked blearily at them and wondered if he wasn't still dreaming. "Hi, Catherine," he said. He put on his shoes and stepped out onto the lawn. "You're not using the training wheels anymore."

"Yeah, I don't need them anymore!" she said. "I can go everywhere now."

"I bet." Luc let her continue riding around and went over to Mr. Jacobs. "What are you..."

"I'm sure you're tired," Mr. Jacobs said, transferring the garden hose to his other hand to direct the water another way. "Emma asked me to look after your things while you were gone. I became your nosy peeping neighbor, so I am fairly certain no robbers entered your house."

"They wouldn't find anything," Luc said. His mind still felt thick, and he rubbed the side of his head.

"You might want to go wash up and brush your hair," said Mr. Jacobs, seemingly deciding not to mention that Luc was still wearing the clothes from Under-The-Green-Hill, which were all mussed and wrinkled now.

Those were the least of Luc's priorities at the moment. "Emma?" he said. "You know her?"

Mr. Jacobs just looked at him. Then he looked over to where Catherine was drawing figure eights on the driveway with the wet tires of her bike. She rang the bell every time she completed a loop.

Luc sank down into a crouch and put his head into his arms. "Bells," he said, realizing. "Emma. Annabel. Annie..."

Mr. Jacobs quietly turned off the hose.

Luc looked up at him. "You were the Collector."

He only nodded, starting to wind up the hose.

"Annabel is your long-lost daughter." Luc almost couldn't breathe.

"In a sense."

"Kay found you a way home."

Mr. Jacobs paused, looking at him. "He did," he said softly.

All of a sudden, the brightness outside was too much. Luc covered his face with his hands. "Me too," he managed, voice muffled through his hands.

Mr. Jacobs patted him on the head. "It's okay."