Beyond The Night - Bronze

I. Caira

   He wiped the blood off his face with the back of his hand. Shook the blade in his other hand before wiping it on his tigh and putting it back in its place on his hip. He fixed the collar of his coat and reached to the ground for his fallen hat. After sparing one last look at the pale-faced guy lying on the stone floor, he turned around and got out of the building as fast as he came in. He let the falling rain wash away the red on his clothes as he walked to the train depot.
   As the train he slept in made its way to Bonehill, Caira felt as weary as the muddy boots on his feet. His wet coat was abandoned on the seat across, with his legs crushing it. His lack of manners was the reason no one even considered sitting with him.
   After forty minutes, the train reached Bonehill. Caira was already awake, wearing his coat and frowning. The rain followed him all the way to Bonehill. Caira opened the umbrella he stole from a scrawny guy before he got off the train and set forth towards Delphi's house.
   Delphi lives in an old two-storey house just outside of town. With the backyard overlooking the woods and the front yard full of poisonous plants, Delphi lived here alone, excluding the huge crows that perch on the short trees in the front yard and shout unexpectedly loudly and scare the crap out of Caira.
   The distrustful looks he sent at the trees were joined by the sounds his wet boots made on the stone path. When he reached the house, he turned the metal door knob. Just one step inside, he jumped with Delphi's voice.
   "Don't!" She dropped the small towel in her hand on the table and made her way toward Caira. "How many times do I have to tell you to take those stupid boots off outside?!"
   "Hello to you too," Caira muttered.
   Delphi, despite her angry nature, was a soft-hearted witch. With black hair messy enough to hide a bird's nest or an ant farm, she looked like your average witch. Although Caira didn't know how old Delphi was, he never asked. Sometimes she talked about century-old events as if they happened last week, leaving Caira to think she was so much older than she looked.
   "Take those off." Delphi took an old newspaper from under the table and folded it in half to spread it in front of Caira. "Training a dog would've been easier," she kept complaining.
   Caira rolled his eyes but started taking off his boots after handing the umbrella in his hand to Delphi. He left his boots in front of the door to follow Delphi to the kitchen.
   "Hungry?" Delphi tossed the umbrella in the sink and started rummaging through the cabinets.
   "A little," Caira took a seat at the table. "I had a late breakfast but didn't have time for lunch."
   "Hurt anywhere?" Delphi put two bowls full of soup on the table.
   "No."
   "Take off your coat." Delphi went around the table to take the coat off Caira's hand. "You're ruining my furnishings." She took his hat off his head and stormed out of the kitchen muttering to herself.
   When she came back, Caira was almost done with his soup.
   "Tea?" Delphi asked with a weary tone.
   Caira nodded and turned his attention back to his soup.
   Delphi put the teapot on the stove before taking her place on the table across from Caira. They had their lunch in comfortable quiet before the teapot's whistle broke the silence. Delphi got up to gather the empty wooden bowls and spoons and put them next to the umbrella in the sink. She took the teapot from the stove to fill two cups and handed one to Caira. While Caira takes a sip from his tea, Delphi was already sitting on her seat and adding sugar to her tea.

   "Did you get the horn?" she asked.
   Caira patted down the pockets of his pants and sighed.
   "It can't fit in those tiny pockets, I presume," she lifted one brow and watched him with an amused expression.
   "It's in my coat," he grabbrd his cup from the table.
   "Huh! You obviously didn't get enough sleep, Caira." She smiled and shook her head.
   "It was a long night," said Caira, exhaling a long breath.
   "I can imagine. Those thoreuos are really hard to deal with, huh?"
   "It just took some time to catch one of them alone." Caira sloshed down the last of his tea and held his warm cup with both of his hands. "Those damn freaks, there were at least fifteen of them." He furrowed his brows. "Should have killed all of them."
   "That's not your job, Caira," Delphi said with a careful voice.
   "I don't care what my job is," Caira gritted his teeth. "While those damn bastards attack towns and kill people, I-"
   "You won't do anything! It's not your problem."
   "If I don't do anything I'm responsible for the people that die at their hands!"
   "You're being ridiculous Caira!" Delphi put her cup on the table. "You're already doing your best-"
   "Is this my best? Is this really what my best looks like?"
   Delphi stared at her cup.
   Caira sighed.
   "I'm sorry. It's not your fault. You know I'm not angry at you."
   "I know," said Delphi, her voice almost a whisper. "But you can't hold yourself responsible for every bad thing that happens."
   "I don't. Just one..."
   Delphi frowned.
   Caira put his cup on the table and asked with an ingenuine smile, "Any news from Alvis?"
   Delphi didn't look convinced, but she still answered. "Liz dropped by yesterday. They were late because Griff hurt his leg."
   "I thought they were gathering some leaves."
   "They were. But they ran to a swarm of frelon."
   Caira cringed. Delphi shook her head. "Griff got battered up trying to protect Alvis and Liz."
   "Was he stung?" Caira asked with a concerned voice.
   "No," Delphi shook her head again. "Alvis got stung."
   "Heh! Idiot."
   Delphi rolled her eyes but Caira knew she was holding back a smile. "They're lucky it was him that got stung."
   "Okay but how did Griff get hurt?"
   "While he was trying not to get stung on his wings, he...fell."
   Caira started laughing and this time Delphi was smiling too.
   "I hope he didn't tumble off the mountain."
   "Your concern for your friends' well-being is touching," Delphi said with a wry tone.
   "They don't need my concern."
   Delphi got up from her chair with a sigh. "You guys are all children."
   Caira follower Delphi to the living room. Delphi took the thoreuo horn out of Caira's pocket and handed him his coat.
   "Are they at home?" Caira asked as he put it on.
   Delphi noded. "Except Alvis."
   "Not surprised."
   "He vanished after carrying Griff home, apparently."
   "He'll turn up eventually." Caira straightened up after putting on his boots. "Three days left until full moon."
   "I know. I'll see you next week."
   Caira took his hat from Delphi and turned to leave.
   "Ah!" Delphi ran to the kitchen and came back with Caira's stolen umbrella. "Here."
   Caira took the umbrella and left. 

   The rain hailed down late into the night. Caira gave up on his search for Alvis after two hours and made his way home.

   Caira lived in an apartment building close to the center of town with Alvis, Griff and Liz. As someone who spent his childhood years alone, getting used to his housemates was hard for Caira. Some nights he still woke up with fear for his life from the footsteps coming from outside his room and tried to convince himself he's not in any danger.
   When he got home, Liz was making dinner in the kitchen and Griff was sleeping on the couch in the living room.
   Caira went up to his room to take a hot bath. After he washed the day's weariness -and the blood, sweat and ash that clung to his skin- off, he got dressed and went back down.
   "When did you come back?" asked Liz over her shoulder. Her braided blond hair was swinging behind her as she put food on plates.
   "This afternoon," said Caira as he got a cup from the cupboard next to the window. "I dropped by Delphi, then looked for Alvis in town."
   "You've wasted your time." Liz put the plate in her hand on the table and opened a drawer. "But that's not what I asked. When did you get home?"

   "About an hour ago."
   "Did you talk to Griff?"
   "He was asleep." Caira downed his water in one go.
   "Go wake him up then. It's time for dinner."
   Caira could sense some tension in Liz's voice, but he didn't argue. He went to the living room and woke up Griff.
   "Tell the truth, did you roll down the mountain?" he asked, trying not to laugh.
   "Funny," Griff narrowed his eyes. He straightened up from where he was lying and spread his wings. "I'm aching all over."
   "No but really." Caira pointed a finger to Griff's leg. "How did this happen?"
   There was a white cloth wrapped around his leg, from under his knee to his ankle, covering his lion calf.
   Griff took a long breath and hanged his head. "I crashed into some rocks."
   Caira started laughing. Griff looked at him with an unimpressed expression and shook his head. At that moment, Liz walked into the living room holding a tray in her hands.
   "Good morning!" Liz put the tray on the small table next to the couch. "How do you feel? Better?"
   "Worse."
   Liz furrowed her brows. She carried the table to the front of the couch and left without another word.
   "What's her problem?" asked Caira.
   Griff rubbed his face with his hand. "Me, probably."

   Caira ate his dinner with Liz in the kitchen as fast as he could and ran off to his room. Whatever Liz's problem was, he hoped she solved it as soon as possible. Liz, with her long tail, sharp teeth and piercing eyes, was already frightening. Caira was sure he didn't want to live with a passive-aggressive lizard on top of all that.
   When Caira finally laid down on his bed, for the first time in a long time, he slept through the night.

   Until Alvis burst through the door.